Roberto Fonseca – Yesun at Kuumbwa Jazz Center

Pianist, composer, and Artistic Director for Cuba’s Jazz Plaza Santiago Festival, Roberto Fonseca has toured the world’s most prestigious venues with Orquesta Buena Vista Social Club and the legendary Omara Portuondo. An artist of prowess and ideas, a musician with a questing jazz sensibility and deep roots in the Afro-Cuban tradition, the Havana-born pianist has recently released his ninth solo album, Yesun. Combining everything from jazz and classical music to rap, funk, reggaeton and electronica, Fonseca is ripping up the rule book. He celebrates the rich musical traditions of Cuba’s past, with a vision of where the island’s music is headed in the future, entwining folkloric and modern sounds...

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Pianist, composer, and Artistic Director for Cuba’s Jazz Plaza Santiago Festival, Roberto Fonseca has toured the world’s most prestigious venues with Orquesta Buena Vista Social Club and the legendary Omara Portuondo. An artist of prowess and ideas, a musician with a questing jazz sensibility and deep roots in the Afro-Cuban tradition, the Havana-born pianist has recently released his ninth solo album, Yesun. Combining everything from jazz and classical music to rap, funk, reggaeton and electronica, Fonseca is ripping up the rule book. He celebrates the rich musical traditions of Cuba’s past, with a vision of where the island’s music is headed in the future, entwining folkloric and modern sounds. “Yesun is the album I’ve always wanted to make,” says Fonseca, “It presents a Cuba without borders. I’m building bridges between my Afro Cuban traditions and other styles of music I’ve absorbed over many years of touring this world. I’m taking Cuban music forward, always forward, without ever forgetting my roots.” There is a new generation of artists reinvigorating the Cuban music scene and Fonseca is at the forefront, leading this cultural renaissance.

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