• Submitted by: admin
• Arts and Culture
• Holguín
• Music
• 10 / 18 / 2007

Recently Los Tainos Orchestra from Mayarí, a municipality of the province of Holguín, 800 km east Havana released its fourth disc Me mantengo produced by the discographic house Colibrí headed by Gloria Ochoa.

In visiting the Café Cantante of the Teatro Nacional de Cuba the renowned musicologist Helio Orovio repeated the introductory words on the disc sleeve he penned: "The greatest experience I had at the 1st Meeting of the Cuban Son Ensembles was to listen to the Taínos de Mayarí Orchestra and admired its professional creativity". Orovio added that a critic as fearsome as Tojo had commented he hadnt seen such a good musical work for a long, long time.

It could be said, the occasion served to celebrate the bands 51st founding anniversary - October 21, 1956 - of playing son music with a particular flavor that differs from the rest heard throughout the island.

Taino's repertoire also includes other typical rhythms; bolero, cha, cha, chá, guaracha, guaguancó, sucu sucu, cumbia, merengue, rumba and ballenato.

Reviews of several top musicians

"Los Taínos is "cool". Weve shared scenario several times and I assure you we can make an excellent disc. I trust one hundred per cent its professional quality.........
Director César "Pupi" Pedroso:

".......well regarding Cuban identity, effort, professionalism and talent we should not forget that Taínos de Mayarí has propelled the national dance music to the highest position ever". Director Manolito Simonet:

Outside the frontiers

In 2001, Los Taínos had a successful tour of Switzerland, where it traded its CD Cuba as well as in Mexico, Germany and Spain. The song Me complicas got one of the highest on-line rating as much as Con lo que tú sufres yo gozo.

The orchestra annually tours Cuba far and Wide, always takes part in the Matamoroson Festival, TV and radio programs and frequently plays at La Tropical and grassroots cultural institutions Casas de la Música and its show has remained on top of the Holguins Hotel Playa Pesquero billboard charts for months.

Los Taínos & the National Meeting of Son Ensembles

The events 19th edition runs in November and will feature Los Taínos among other folk dance music bands. Percussionist, composer, director, promoter Jorge Cabreja Rondón set up the Los Tainos in 1989 being already a member of the National Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba (UNEAC).

Later Juan Mejías Montero (musical director) joined and others from Mayarí - the land first inhabited by the aboriginal Tainos settlements.

Mayarí takes pride in pioneering the son music, where it became lore and legend since mid-20th century.

Source: By Esperanza Soler Cruz, CubaSi