• Submitted by: lena campos
• Music
• 11 / 19 / 2013

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Buena Vista Social Club is calling it quits.  The aging masters of Cuban son, who rose to fame after winning a Grammy Award in 1998 for Best Traditional Tropical Latin Album and gained worldwide prominence a year later, when Wim Wenders released an eponymous documentary which netted him an Academy Award nomination for Best Documentary Feature, have announced a 2014-2015 farewell tour which will mark the last time they hit the stage abroad.  "We want our music to endure over time and continue to charm the world," 83-year-old singer Omara Portuondo told Europa Press earlier this month. "That is what we have achieved with our concerts."

The Orquesta Buena Vista Social Club... Adiós Tour will begin in summer 2014 and end in the fall of 2015, with a final concert to be held in the group's birthplace of Havana, Cuba, according to the report.  Jesus Ramos, the group's musical, also says the group plans to embark on a tour of Cuba early next year, which would be their first ever cross-island tour.  Buena Vista Social Club has originally brought together a host of son musical all-stars to record an album to be sold abroad, and over the years, the orchestra has seen a diverse array of musicians counting among their lineup. More than 40 musicians have been affiliated with the orchestra over the 16 years of its existence, during which younger musicians joined forces with older ones to celebrate a style of music which has become synonymous with the Caribbean island nation and beloved internationally.

Some of the best-known members, immortalized in the Wenders documentary, have passed away, including Ibrahim Ferrer, the silky-voiced lead singer who went on to record several solo albums and tour apart from the group.  Others who have garnered acclaim for their solo efforts include Rubén González, Cachaíto López, Manuel Galbán, Omara Portuondo, Anga Díaz y Roberto Fonseca.  According to Europa Press, this time around, the Adiós Tour will see Jesus Ramos directing the band and playing trombone, as per usual, while others who can be heard on the Buena Vista Social Club album and seen on the movie will also appear, including Eliades Ochoa (guitar), Omara Portuondo (vocals), Guajiro Mirabal (trumpet) and Barbarito Torres (lute).  They'll be playing as-yet-unreleased songs and covers of popular Cuban songs in addition to classics like "Chan Chan", "El Cuarto de Tula", and "Candela".  They've just finished an extensive tour of the US this fall and is now performing dates in Europe.

Source: Latintimes.com