Van Van’s Sound Opens the Doors of the 8th World Meeting “Baila en Cuba”
The tone and timbre richness of the legendary Cuban musical group Los Van Van opened today the doors of the 8th World Meeting of Dancers and Academies of Casino and Salsa Dancing “Baila en Cuba 2013”, which until next Saturday brings together more than 700 participants from a dozen nations.
The Benny More Pink Hall of The Tropical, venue selected for the inaugural gala, proved to be ideal for dancers from Germany, Colombia, Venezuela, Mexico, Spain, Turkey, Martinique, Russia, Italy and Switzerland, among others, to enjoy the harmonious caudal of the Juan Formell’s orchestra considered the national music train.
Just when chords of numerous Formell’s songs began, participants took the opportunity to show their skills in dancing, and with their partners, they took to the dance floor to move their bodies with the rhythm of El Buey Cansao, Sandunguera, ¿Qué cosa?, Por encima del nivel, La Habana no aguanta más, Tal Vez, among other songs.
Previously, one of the leading figures of Cuban music, pianist and composer Frank Fernandez, National Prize of Culture and composer of more than 700 pieces, performed a work written for two pianos and based on the world of the plains, both Cubans and Colombian-Venezuelan.
Entitled Por derecho, the piece is an extremely difficult and complex to improvise Joropo that hosts a great dispute, and in which the two pianos speaks with one another, as Fernandez himself warned the delegates and guests attending the event.
Organized by the Cuban Cultural Tourism Agency, Paradiso, the event will honor Cuba's rich country music, that’s why next Friday there will be a special tribute to Celina Gonzalez, the Queen of Country Music.
The international meeting Baila en Cuba 2013, which will run until November 29th, during the last week of November receives casino dancers and dance academies both European and American, according to the Italian Claudia Critelli, event coordinator, who added that this time the program is dedicated to country music and as usual, in addition to classes, it includes live performances of important Cuban orchestras at La Tropical, considered the palace of the dancers in Havana.
During the week of sessions there will be performances of Palmas y Cañas, a group of traditional music, along with singers David Blanco and Maria Victoria.
In the following days there will also be performances of other orchestras: NG La Banda, Havana D´primera, Puppy y los que son son, Adalberto Alvarez y su son, Elito Revé y su charangón, Pachito Alonso y sus Kini Kini, Manolito Simonet y su trabuco, Maykel Blanco y su salsa mayor, and Yumurí y sus hermanos.
This time, classes focus on rural dances (with roots in Hispanic-Canary dances) still alive at bashes or traditional parties in rural zones of the island, where the punto cubano, changüi and decimas guajiras are performed.
