Cuba News

Cuba: Race & Identity in the News

New Restrictions on Traveling from Cuba to the US, 4/20

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Encuentro en la red

Cuban Culture in the News
Archive for 2001 and prior years

CULTURAL PROGRAMS AND INITIATIVES DURING 2001  12/31/01 Radio Havana: does not mention any Afrocuban culture - what happened to 70% of the population?

Global spotlight shines on Cuba's music biz  12/30/01 CNN: ""It's not a true mirror of what is happening in Cuban music now, but commercially and culturally it's been beneficial," he said. "It's opened new markets for Cuban music."

CUBAN JAZZ INVADES CALIFORNIA  12/30/01 Radio Havana 

Especial regalo de Pablo Milanés a su público  12/29/01 AIN, Cuba 

Babalu Aye art  12/28/01 La Jiribilla, Cuba 

Toda Cuba de fiesta por otro enero victorioso  12/27/01 AIN, Cuba: "January 2 will be the great concert for peace , with a site at the theater, Carlos Marx , in Havana , and is going to be broadcast through the whole island. At the same time, it was known the organized programs by the Cuban Institutions of Arts and Cinema Industry and the Pablito Milanés´s concert at the Carlos Marx theater."

NEW YEAR WILL BRING MORE CULTURAL PERFORMANCES TO CUBAN AUDIENCES  12/26/01 Radio Havana 

Celebración por la Rumba  12/25/01 Granma 

NEW TROPICANA CABARET OPENS IN MATANZAS  12/24/01 Radio Havana: Word has it that local musicians (among the most talented in Cuba) will not be playing here, they are importing them from Havana! The club seems designed for Spaniards, Italians, Germans, etc. in search of mainstream exoticism, not the real culture found in Matanzas.

EL MITO Y LA LEYENDA EN CUBA  12/23/01 La Jiribilla, Cuba 

YO SOY LA CARIDAD DEL COBRE  12/23/01 La Jiribilla, Cuba: Si señor!

LOS PEREGRINOS DE SAN LÁZARO  12/23/01 La JiribillaLa Jiribilla, Cuba 

Followers of Afro-Cuban religion honor Babalu Aye, one of their holiest saints with unusual procession  12/18/01 AP: A few incaccuracies… the procession is more of a Catholic thing, santeros are not discriminted against hand have their religious practices on any day of the year, out in the open - a toque will attract people out in the street, for example.

Meet the new pioneers of hip-hop music  12/16/01 Sun Sentinel, Fort Lauderdale: "The rappers say they have the freedom to criticize their island's ills but they do it constructively. At concerts, some rap about the crowded buses, racial discrimination and the growing disparity due to a dual economy. However, access to government-controlled radio and television stations is still touch and go… "A few years ago it was unimaginable to think we were going to insert ourselves in shows with all other kinds of music, that the minister of culture would listen to us, that we would be in a millennium festival called by Fidel," he said. "The thing is not to say there are problems, but to say there are problems and this is how we can fix them. It's about having the courage to say, `open your eyes, there are things that are bad.' That's being a true revolutionary." "

OPEN-AIR CONCERT TO CELEBRATE 45th ANNIVERSARY OF CHARANGON DE REVE ORCHESTRA  12/14/01 Radio Havana 

Cuban Music on Afropop Worldwide  12/13/01 Afropop.org: lots of good music for listening on your PC speakers

Matanzas, `the Athens of Cuba,' is worth the long trip  12/13/01 Boston Herald: "But in the late afternoon we take an excursion to Jovellanos, a town hard hit in November by Michelle, the most damaging hurricane to reach Cuba in half a century. Here we give away what medical supplies, toiletry items and clothes we could bring in our luggage from the United States. Jovellanos also is a hotbed of Afro-Cuban music played by descendents of the Arara tribe of Benin, Africa. On the front porch of their home, four generations of the Baro family sing, dance and drum for us and a large crowd of delighted neighbors. This folkloric performance starts with a powerful chant from the family's matriarch, an old woman whose father, we are told, had been brought to Cuba at age 11 as a slave. The dancers are dressed as orishas,the Santeria gods. We have met these orishas so often in the past week, they now seem - as they must to Cubans - like old friends."

From Cuba with Life  12/13/01 Miami New Times: "Photographs of contemporary Cuba from contemporary artists focus on the inner struggle"

Still Sweet: Celia Cruz pours on every kind of azucar  12/13/01 Miami New Times: Celia, who got her start on the Communist radio station, the only one who would play black music in the 40's

Third Annual U.S.-Cuba Writers Conference  12/13/01 Writers of the Americas 

Cuban life, music show religions' influences  12/12/01 Boston Herald: More Katz!

Van Van musical journey through Cuba  12/12/01 Buenos Aires Herald: In English: "If Wim Wenders’ account of the whereabouts of Cuban ensemble Buena Vista Social Club (with its poetic views of Havana’s run-down streets and its intimate dialogues with the musicians) somehow opened the doors to the universe of Cuban culture to an audience hitherto unaware of what was going on in that part of the world, the recently released documentary Van Van, empezó la fiesta finds, at least in Argentina, an already fertile soil: a combination of music buffs with enraptured tourists — those who, in the last couple of years, were among the thousands of Argentine travellers who chose Cuba as their holiday destination."

El legendario flautista José Antonio Fajardo  12/12/01 El Nuevo Herald 

Afropop Worldwide Seminar in Cuba--Dispatch 1  12/11/01 Afropop: great read, great pics

Afropop Worldwide Seminar in Cuba--Dispatch 2  12/11/01 Afropop 

Afropop Worldwide Seminar in Cuba--Dispatch 3  12/11/01 Afropop 

Shortages make art reflect life in Cuba  12/11/01 Boston Herald: more Larry Katz

From music to religious culture, Havana sizzles  12/10/01 Boston Herald: more Larry Katz

Compay Segundo y Polo Montañes grabaran juntos sones y boleros.  12/10/01 Cultura, Cuba 

El mundo mágico de Mendive en Gùines  12/10/01 Cultura, Cuba 

Sitio de Nicolás Guillén  12/10/01 Cultura, Cuba 

Larry Katz in Cuba  12/9/01 Boston Herald: Katz was part of the well organized Afropop Worldwide music tour of Cuba and wrote a fine series of articles with his impressions

Afro-Cuban Giants Turn a Folk Sound Into High Art  12/9/01 LA Times 

Gonzalo Rubalcaba: Supernova  12/8/01 Pop Matters 

A Beat That Demands Dancing in the Aisles  12/5/01 NYT: Orquesta Aragón!

Cuba en el centro de la Feria de Guadalajara 2002  12/2/01 Granma, Cuba: "Los organizadores de la Feria Internacional del Libro de esta ciudad, uno de los eventos más importantes de su tipo en el ámbito iberoamericano, confirmaron que la edición del 2002 tendrá como país huésped a Cuba."

The Hidden World of Cuban Music  12/2/01 Newsday 

Mendive: todo calor, todo luz  12/1/01 El Habanero 

Mariana Grajales proposed as the Mother of the Counthy  11/30/01 AIN, Cuba: These days, there is a significant interest in Maceo, the "Bronze Titan" who led the Mambi Army in the Wars of Independence. Mariana Grajales was his mother.

A glance at the Havana Film Festival  11/29/01 Granma: contains the line up this year, December 3-12

Músico cubano se queda en Miami  11/28/01 El Nuevo herald: "El músico cubano Inocente Arcadio Alvarez aprovechó el primer receso de la gira que la célebre Orquesta Aragón realiza actualmente por ciudades norteamericanas para tomar un ómnibus rumbo a Miami y anunciar su petición de asilo político."

LA RUMBA SON ELLOS  11/26/01 La Jiribilla, Cuba: Chachá gets good press: "¿Lo más grande y significativo?: el viejo "Chachá", Diosdado y sus Muñequitos de Matanzas, los míticos Papines, la maestría de Changuito, el sonido de Tata Güines, el guaguancó de la Habana, entre otros, todos ellos arropando e inspirando la "sangre joven", las voces que se parten, que se rajan, que pregonan y cuentan las historias de la calle, porque eso es este disco, un camino por el centro de las carreteras, los solares y la vida cubana de ayer y hoy...Con mucha felicidad hemos recibido la noticia: Los "Timberos Cubanos" ganaron un Grammy Latino, un justo y merecido homenaje a los pioneros de la "Timba Cubana", los padres del guaguancó."

UN PREMIO PARA CUBA  11/26/01 La Jiribilla, Cuba: "Entrevista exclusiva para La Jiribilla con Cary Diez y Joaquín Betancourt productores de La rumba soy yo."

Cuban musician Compay Segundo celebrates 94th  11/25/01 AP 

El vocabulario congo de Lydia Cabrera  11/25/01 El Nuevo Herald, Miami 

Cuban Music's Offbeat Regeneration  11/25/01 Washington Post: Describes a Miami club called "Fuakata!"

Art and Popular Culture: strength in numbers  11/21/01 Radio Progresso 

Rapero de Cuba se queda en EU  11/16/01 El Nuevo Herald: "``El rap es hoy la sabrosura del barrio cubano'', relató Cárdenas, quien residía en el populoso vecindario de Alamar, al este de La Habana. Es justamente en el Anfiteatro de Alamar donde durante los últimos siete años se han organizado los festivales de rap cubano, un género que, según él, ``arrastra a miles de seguidores en toda la isla, porque está reflejando los problemas verdaderos que tenemos hoy'' las generaciones más jóvenes."

Wemilere con Brasil  11/14/01 Granma 

Cuban jazz singer's star burns bright  11/12/01 Canoe: Mayra Valdes, Chucho's sister!

Carlos Manuel: the good-bad boy  11/12/01 Granma 

Ibrahim's golden age  11/10/01 Telegraph, UK 

Cuban guests show students how to move to a Latin beat  11/1/01 Boston Globe 

Orquesta Aragon  11/1/01 San Francisco Chronicle 

"LA RUMBA SOY YO" WINS LATIN GRAMMY FOR BEST FOLKLORIC ALBUM  10/31/01 Radio Havana: "The Best Folkoric Album Award went to Cuban producer Cary Diez and arranger Joaquin Betancourt for their powerful, multi-artist compilation of authentic rumba called "La Rumba Soy Yo." Bis Music produced the award-winning album… Before coming back home, the Cuban musicians donated blood at a local children's hospital in Los Angeles -- a donation for the victims of the tragic events of September 11th."

Rumba Soy Yo wins Latin Grammy  10/30/01 Granma 

Arsenio Rodríguez, a musical great  10/8/01 Granma 

Dafnis Prieto and his Quintet Live at the Jazz Gallery  10/6/01 Latin Jazz Net 

Ellas en el Benny Moré  9/14/01 Mujeres 

Cuba: not shabby in soul  9/1/01 Le Monde, English 

Du Bois’ ‘Souls of Black Folk’  8/23/01 Granma: "It was Miguel Barnet, president of the Fernando Ortiz Foundation, who made possible the publication of The Souls of Black Folk by W. E. B. Du Bois (1868-1963), one of the leading works of U.S. intellectual thought. Du Bois visited Cuba on various occasions and knew Fernando Ortiz. Professor William Strichland of the Center for Afro-American Studies at the University of Massachusetts gave Barnet some of Du Bois’ correspondence with Fernando Ortiz."

African-Caribbean musical bridge between Cuba and Veracruz  8/15/01 Granma 

African-Caribbean musical bridge between Cuba and Veracruz  8/15/01 Granma 

Rainier Valley actors learn the joys of racial tolerance  8/4/01 Seattle Post Intelligence: "Xiomara Calderon is black. She is also Hispanic. Just the person to foster tolerance and mutual appreciation in a society where blacks and Hispanics have an uneasy record that includes resentment and even gang warfare. Calderon, a Cuban, is a theater director. She and three fellow stage artists from Havana are in Seattle to help 19 Rainier Valley young people gain mutual appreciation through drama."

RAP CUBANO  8/1/01 La Jiribilla, Cuba: photo gallery

Apología a la música tradicional cubana en el festival afrocaribeño  7/16/01 Jornada, Mexico 

‘Santeros’ or ‘ñáñigos’ on Havana’s Prado Promenade during carnival  7/4/01 Granma, Cuba 

Ñáñigos en Key West (1880?-1923?)  7/1/01 La Jiribilla, Cuba: "Importada de Cuba, la palabra "ñáñigo" apareció en Key West como una religión, una secta fraternal y de ayuda mutua entre negros en el período de 1880 y 1890. El último baile ñáñigo callejero se produjo en el Cayo en 1923."

TIENE LA PALABRA EL BABALAO  7/1/01 La Jiribilla, Cuba: "Con la gracia y el permiso de los orishas, Enriquito, el célebre santero, palero y abbakuá y singular personalidad de la villa de Guanabacoa, revela predicciones, sentimientos y criterios de este mundo y del otro…"

Celia Cruz: Sigo añorando la Patria  6/1/01 La Jiribilla, Cuba 

LA FRUTA PROHIBIDA  6/1/01 La Jiribilla, Cuba: entrevista con el jefe de Egrem - "Ya en Estados Unidos se está comenzando hablar también de rock cubano, de rap cubano, de la timba, de todos nuestros géneros, y se van a imponer en el mercado. Pienso que el panorama no es nada tétrico, para desgracia de quienes lo quisieran, es todo lo contrario."

POR ESO ME PICA AQUÍ  6/1/01 La Jiribilla, Cuba 

Les racines de Baobab  4/5/01 Granma: "A la naissance du groupe Baobab en 1994, ses musiciens étaient décidés à interpréter toute la musique afro, et pas seulement les versions cubaine, péruvienne, colombienne ou caribéenne, affirme son directeur José ramon Rodriguez. «L’intérêt est d’aller aux racines». Et c’est ce qu’ils ont fait. Lors de leurs multiples présentations, ils ne s’en tiennent pas au seul groupe vocal. Ils s’accompagnent de percussion bata (Mijail Labrada) et de congas (Amaury Dueñas), alors que la chanteuse Geisa Reyes se charge de la petite percussion (chekerés, triangles), et Magalys Rolando, la directrice chorale, du piano." Magalys est la soeur de Gloria Rolando, la cineaste.

Musicians!  3/20/01 Granma, Cuba: CONCERT BY HERBIE HANCOCK AND CHUCHO VALDES

Orishas and their Cuban rap  2/27/01 Granma: "It's said that New York is the cradle of rap, but when the group Orishas launched its CD A lo cubano (The Cuban Way, EMI France), astonishment turned into success. They triumphed, as they had done before, with their songs in the charts of 18 countries."

Get ready to rumba  12/16/00 Telegraph, UK 

The old men and the songs  8/5/00 Telegraph, UK 

Cuba trip reveals rich culture, much ruin  2/3/00 Johns Hopkins: "If you were to ask the Hopkins students pictured above what the best Intersession 2000 course was, the unanimous and uproarious choice would be "From Obatala to Mendive: Afro-Cuban Culture & Histories."

The red-hot sound of socialism  5/8/99 Telegraph, UK 

Entretien avec Marita Mesa, Association El Batey, Paris  4/1/99 Africultures 

Africultures: Cuba l'Africaine  4/1/99 Africultures (Francais): index to an issue devoted to Cuba. Most articles require registration.

Los Van Van en Miami: la cultura cubana venció a la histeria anexionista  1/10/99 Notinet, Cuba 

If You Only Understood  1/1/99 Icarus Films: "The most moving moment of the 20th Festival of Havana (1998) was the showing of IF YOU ONLY UNDERSTOOD, a social study of the daily life of eight young black women in today's Havana... The film talks about themes not publicly discussed in Cuba: racism, emigration, and certain traumatic experiences like the 'international missions.' Upon leaving the cinema, people who didn't know the filmmaker, embraced and congratulated him." - Gary Krebs, NEWE BURGER ZEITUNG (Zurich)

A Pope in the Land of the Orishas  3/1/98 Cuba Update 

And Where Did The Blacks Go?  3/1/98 Cuba Update 

Cuba: la nación a la luz de las transiciones  6/1/97 Encuentros: The inimitable Enrique Patterson. An AfroCuban who now works for the Miami Herald and at times can be hard to follow in his logic.