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• Arts and Culture
• Music
• 01 / 15 / 2007

By: Joaquin Borges

One of the Cuban CDs that Ive listened to at home over the last few months is titled Breathing Havana, a compilation aimed specifically at the Japanese market through the Omagatoki Corporation. The objective of this album is to take a listen at what is being called the contemporary Cuban sound: musical creations that inherit certain elements from what was the Nueva Trova style, but"consistent with the times we live in" opening up to a range of other musical influences.

I should say that, in general, Im not a great fan of this type of disco-graphic production, because all compilations, anthologies or sampling albums run the risk of leaving out pieces that should be included. Also, I think that that among us Cubans, especially in an area like rap, CD compilations have been abused; something which has overly delayed the phonographic premieres of numbers of popular performers.

I admit that there are occasions when sampler albums fulfill important functions, particularly when they serve to test a market for niche that the product (read artist) can penetrate.

This is precisely the intention of Breathing Havana. The material offers the Japanese public potential an idea on the directions of those who have influenced the course of music in Cuba over the past few years. In that sense, there was already a precedent with the CD Cool cool filin, which allowed audiences to learn about what young people here are doing in terms of the bolero genre. Now, with this new disk, twelve different styles "that are yet at the same time complementary" have been selected to constitute the musical creation.

This variety created one of the greatest challenges for those producing the album, Cuban singer-songwriter Yusa and Japanese journalist Hitoshi; they had to give a coherent sound to songs that were recorded in different places and at different times. They were successful in achieving this thanks to very efficient re-mastering work that greatly aids the listening to the 12 pieces, giving them certain evenness and an ordering of moods that is praiseworthy.

There are short compilations coming from official production companies and others which are independent. In addition, the disk includes artists that share identical sensibilities expressed in musical compositions that nationalize what is global and globalize what is national.

The tunes and artists, in order of appearance, are: Dentro de mi piel (Inside my skin), Esteban Puebla and Diana Fuentes; Hojarasca (Trash), Milanese Lynn; Sencillez (Simplicity), Harold López-Nussa; Mucho aché (A lot of power), Raul Torres; Un mar (A sea), Sexto Sentido; Hechizo (Charm), Yalica Jo Gazan; Desierto (Desert), Jesus Cruz; La número dos (The number two), Yusa; Tus ojos siempre me enamoran (Your eyes always make me fall in love), Julio Fowler; Requiem por un amor (Requiem for a love), Milanese Haydee, La melodía (The melody), Francis del Rio; and Si me hubieras enseñado (If you had showed me), Columna B.

Although as one might suppose, that while I have my own favorite pieces among these fine selections, it is not appropriate to go into my preferences between one and another cut. I only want to say that in CD it is necessary to choose. Im convinced that if the Cuban radio were to air all of this work, more than one song on the disk would emerge as a hit because of melodic "hooks" so often employed in clearly commercial music.

One could add that in terms of Breathing Havana, where risk taking or experimentation are not issues, the CD was conceived with considerable rigor. Therefore, I would not be surprised if in a few months we get back the pleasant news that the disk was well received on the Japanese market. After all, quality is what is abundant among these exponents of the new generation of Cuban musicians. The only thing necessary is that good luck accompanies them. Hopefully it will!

Source: Juventud Rebelde