{"id":919,"date":"2011-04-07T17:39:20","date_gmt":"2011-04-07T17:39:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ahinama.com\/main\/"},"modified":"2011-04-08T14:56:34","modified_gmt":"2011-04-08T14:56:34","slug":"abreu","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.ahinama.com\/main\/store\/abreu\/","title":{"rendered":"Alexander Abreu and Havana D’ Primera “Haciendo Historia”"},"content":{"rendered":"
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<\/form>\n<\/div>\n

\n

\nAlbum Tracks:<\/p>\n

\n
    \n
  1. 1 Resumen de los 90 <\/embed><\/object><\/span><\/li>\n
  2. Confiesale <\/embed><\/object><\/span><\/li>\n
  3. Cuando El Rio Suena <\/embed><\/object><\/span><\/li>\n
  4. Despues de Un Beso <\/embed><\/object><\/span><\/li>\n
  5. Las Cosas De Un Amigo <\/embed><\/object><\/span><\/li>\n
  6. Mi Musica <\/embed><\/object><\/span><\/li>\n
  7. Nina Bonita <\/embed><\/object><\/span><\/li>\n
  8. Oni Oni <\/embed><\/object><\/span><\/li>\n
  9. Vivencias <\/embed><\/object><\/span><\/li>\n
  10. Historia Verdadera <\/embed><\/object><\/span><\/li>\n
  11. Que Buscas <\/embed><\/object><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n
    <\/div>\n

    Haciendo Historia marks the first major U.S. release by a new cuban dance band in 10 years and the revival of TIMBA. Led by the multi-taleneted Alexander Abreu, Habana d Primera is an ensemble of the most sought out studio musicians in Cuba who played with the top bands during the dance music explosion of the 1990’s. They are undisputedly the most popular dance band in Cuba today with the highest audience draws in the island. The musical elements in this CD range from straight-up salsa and timba to son, pilon, funk and jazz. Haciendo Historia will definitely have you dancing with its fresh and infectious sound.<\/p>\n

    Band Bio
    \nAlexander Abreu & Havana D\u2019Primera: Crusaders for Cuban Music<\/strong>
    \n<\/p>\n

    \n

    \nFor more than two decades, Alexander Abreu has nurtured a behind-the-scenes reputation as one of the most
    \nsought-after studio musicians in Cuba. Today, he has
    \nfinally stepped into the spotlight as a bandleader on a
    \nmission: To rescue Cuban dance music and recapture the
    \nthrilling energy from its modern heyday during the 1990s.
    \nThree years ago, Abreu pulled together an ensemble of
    \nseasoned musicians who had played with some of the best
    \nbands of that exciting era, a golden age of contemporary
    \nCuban salsa and timba. Concerned about the decline of
    \nAfro-Cuban dance music on its own home turf, Abreu
    \ndecided to pick up the standard once carried around the
    \nglobe by the very bands he had played with, such as Paulito
    \nFG y Su Elite and Isaac Delgado.<\/p>\n

    \u201cI feel like one of the great crusaders of Cuban
    \nmusic,\u201d said the husky-voiced bandleader in a recent
    \ninterview (*) published on Timba.com, a Cuban music
    \nwebsite. \u201cBecause what is happening with Havana
    \nD\u2019Primera is basically the recovery of music from the
    \n1990s, a great period for music here in Cuba that had been
    \nlost to some degree.\u201d<\/p>\n

    Abreu formed Havana D\u2019Primera as a collective of
    \nmusicians who shared his top-tier experience and his sense
    \nof urgency for music that they consider an art form and a
    \ncultural legacy. They had all matured during the decade of
    \ndominance of the great Cuban dance bands that had been
    \ntheir training grounds. Since 2000, however, many of the
    \nleading figures in the genre had left the island, including
    \nManolin, Isaac Delgado and Carlos Manuel, all of whom
    \nwere Abreu\u2019s colleagues and collaborators. Meanwhile,
    \nyoung fans on the island flocked to foreign pop music
    \nstyles such as rock, rap and reggaeton, leaving the legacy of
    \nCuba\u2019s rich native dance music to languish.<\/p>\n

    For Abreu and his new band, the challenge of sparking
    \na revival was daunting. No new dance band had managed
    \nto break into the top ranks of popular music acts since the
    \nturn of the century, when Cesar Pedroso broke away form
    \nLos Van Van and formed his own band, Pupy y Los Que
    \nSon, Son. Record labels, radio stations and nightclubs all
    \ncatered to the latest craze, especially reggaeton which had
    \nswept salsa off the charts. Incredibly, so many deejays had
    \nturned to reggaeton that there was no place to dance salsa
    \nin the capital of the country where the music was invented.<\/p>\n

    However, the crisis gave Abreu the chance to build a
    \ngrass-roots fan base just like the timba pioneers had done at
    \nthe start of the dance music movement in the late 1980s and
    \nearly 1990s. That was known as \u201cthe special period\u201d in
    \nCuban history, a time of extreme economic hardship when
    \nbands were forced to practice in the dark due to frequent
    \nblackouts and try out their material on stage due to a lapse
    \nin record production. For a while, Cuban dance music was
    \nall about the live performance, a necessity that helped spark
    \ncreativity. Taking a page from his predecessors, Havana
    \nD\u2019Primera began working live shows, building a following
    \nthe old-fashioned way, one fan at a time.<\/p>\n

    Before long, fans were packing the band\u2019s regular
    \nTuesday matinees at Casa de la Musica, a club and cultural
    \ncenter in the residential Miramar section of Havana. Even
    \nthough they had not yet released a record, loyal fans
    \nmemorized song lyrics from the live shows, another throwback
    \nto the trial-by-fire of the early timba years.<\/p>\n

    The weekly gigs were pivotal to the band\u2019s
    \ndevelopment. But the early going was rough.
    \n\u201cYes, the matinee was very important,\u201d Abreu told
    \nTimba.com. \u201cIt has really helped to build the character of
    \nthe orchestra. We started there with just a couple of tables
    \nof people. Nobody went to those first gigs \u2013 nobody knew
    \nabout the band. Many people would leave the concerts
    \nsaying, \u201cHow is it possible that this is happening, and that
    \npeople don\u2019t know about it?\u201d<\/p>\n

    That was soon to change. Before long, Havana
    \nD\u2019Primera was generating the biggest buzz of any new
    \nband since Pupy y Los Que Son Son.
    \n\u201cTo put it simply,\u201d writes Timba.com blogger Kevin
    \nMoore, \u201cif I were arriving at Havana Airport tonight,
    \n(Havana D\u2019Primera) would be the first band I’d be
    \nsearching for.\u201d<\/p>\n

    ALEXANDER ABREU MANRESA hails from
    \nCienfuegos, a province that has produced musical
    \nluminaries (revered singer Beny More) and musical
    \ninstitutions (the legendary Orquesta Aragon). He comes
    \nfrom a family of amateur musicians, including his
    \ngrandfather who taught him to play the tres, a special
    \nCuban guitar. As a boy, he wanted to be an athlete, but his
    \nmother took him to a school that tested aptitudes and he got
    \nthe highest scores in music. He started studying trumpet at
    \nage 11 and credits his mother for encouraging him to
    \npractice and pursue his career.<\/p>\n

    Originally, Abreu wanted to drop the trumpet and take
    \nup the flute, but his teachers understood his talent and
    \ninsisted, prophetically, that he stick to the wind instrument.
    \nAt 18, the young musician moved to Havana to continue
    \nhis studies at the prestigious ENA, a breeding ground for
    \nCuba\u2019s best musicians. He graduated in 1994 and later
    \nwould return as a professor, teaching trumpet.<\/p>\n

    In Havana, Abreu found himself at ground zero of the
    \ntimba music explosion that rocked Cuba in the early 90s,
    \nmarking an exciting evolution in the way Afro-Cuban
    \ndance music, or salsa, was performed. He played for six
    \nyears with the ground-breaking band of singer Paulito FG,
    \none of the leading stars of the timba revolution. His skills
    \nwere forged in this powerful ensemble, working alongside
    \ntwo musicians he considers his greatest influences \u2013
    \nCarmelo Andres, his trumpet teacher, and
    \nproducer\/arranger Juan Manuel Ceruto. Several band-mates
    \nfrom this seminal ensemble would go on to form part of
    \nHavana D\u2019Primera, including Ceruto who produced the
    \nband\u2019s new CD.<\/p>\n

    Abreu has also played and\/or recorded with virtually
    \nevery major act during one of the most exciting and
    \ncreative eras in Cuban music. He was a member of the
    \npopular and respected band led by singer Isaac Delgado,
    \nwho now lives in Miami. As a highly sought-after studio
    \nmusician, he has recorded with top bands in disparate
    \nstyles, including famed dance band Los Van Van and
    \npowerful fusion group Irakere. He has also worked with
    \npoetic singer\/songwriters such as Pablo Milanes and
    \nAmaury Perez, who plays trombone on the new Havana
    \nD\u2019Primera disc. In addition, Abreu was recruited for
    \nprevious all-star projects, such as the touring timba band
    \ndubbed Team Cuba and the Grammy-winning Cuban roots
    \nrecording \u201cLa Rumba Soy Yo.\u201d<\/p>\n

    After the Cuban dance music scene started receding in
    \n2000, Abreu travelled to Europe and spent time in
    \nDenmark, where he was invited to give master classes in
    \ntrumpet and Cuban music at the jazz conservatory of
    \nCopenhagen. During an extended stay there, he joined
    \nGrupo Danson, a band composed of Cuban and Danish
    \nmusicians, serving as arranger and composer. (Some of the
    \nsongs from that era are included in the new album,
    \nexpanded and improved for Havana D\u2019Primera.) Abreu has
    \nappeared in Europe\u2019s top music festivals and in 2002 he
    \nperformed on the same stage with Sting, Lou Reed and
    \nJames Brown as part of the benefit concert \u201cPavarotti &
    \nFriends.\u201d<\/p>\n

    The time he spent performing overseas helped Abreu
    \navoid the pitfalls of other Cuban timba bands, often
    \nconsidered too tailored to a home crowd and too hard for
    \noutsiders to dance to.<\/p>\n

    \u201cI believe that to live outside of Cuba for a time has
    \nbeen one of the keys to the hallmark of this group,\u201d says
    \nAbreu of his band. \u201cBecause I learned how to interact with
    \npeople that don\u2019t speak the language. I learned how to
    \nspread that same happiness and energy\u2026.You have to be
    \nprecise with the rhythms and arrangements. You have to
    \nmake sure that they are understandable, that they are solid,
    \nthat they are clear, so that people understand.\u201d<\/p>\n

    But there\u2019s a flip side to that dynamic. Musicians who
    \nspend too much time outside their home base also risk
    \nlosing that special creative energy and inspiration that only
    \nCuba can provide. While in Europe, Abreu was reminded
    \nof the common wisdom: \u201cCuban music has to be made in
    \nCuba; if not it doesn\u2019t taste the same.\u201d So by 2007, he was
    \nback in Havana putting together his own band.<\/p>\n

    The aspiring bandleader came home with only an
    \nembryonic concept, inspired by a New York salsa band he
    \nhad caught in Copenhagen. There he had seen the Grammywinning
    \nSpanish Harlem Orchestra, a group of veteran
    \nsalsa musicians who came together with a common purpose
    \n— to re-capture some of the original sound and excitement
    \nof the great salsa bands of the 70s. The group — led by
    \npianist Oscar Hernandez who had played with salsa greats
    \nsuch as Ray Barretto and Ruben Blades \u2013 managed to stir
    \nup enough nostalgia to spark a one-band salsa revival,
    \ntouring the world and recording three popular albums
    \nfeaturing star vocalists such as Blades.<\/p>\n

    \u201cThat served as an inspiration to do something similar
    \nwith session musicians in Havana,\u201d says Abreu. \u201cIt gave
    \nme the strength to come to Cuba and say, \u2018I can do it here.\u2019
    \nFrom that idea, basically, Habana D’Primera is born.\u201d
    \nAbreu composed and arranged all 11 songs on the new
    \nalbum. The musical elements range from straight-up salsa
    \nand timba to son, pilon, funk and jazz. He even
    \nincorporates some lines from popular reggaeton tracks,
    \noffering a bridge to the music which, he acknowledges,
    \nreflects the realities of today\u2019s youth. The carefully crafted
    \nlyrics range from romantic to realistic, all based on his reallife
    \nexperiences. (\u201cLas cosas de un amigo\u201d refers to a friend
    \nwho says one thing to his face and another behind his
    \nback.) Abreu says he tries to make the verses \u201cas sweet as
    \npossible\u201d on paper. On stage, they take on the power and
    \npropulsion of the percussion, merging rhythms with
    \nlyricism.<\/p>\n

    \u201cThat\u2019s why I say, in summary, that I come with the
    \ndance kick of the conga and a book of poetry.\u201d
    \nRecently, Abreu has started using his Facebook page
    \nto post snippets of new lyrics and test his fans\u2019 reactions.
    \nWhether in person or on social media, he\u2019s proud of the
    \nenthusiastic public response to Havana D\u2019Primera. And he
    \neven dares to think that he may have started a new trend.
    \n\u201cYoung people are playing Cuban music and I think
    \nthat the movement is beginning to grow,\u201d he says. \u201cWith
    \nthe creation of Havana D\u2019Primera, I think many people
    \nhave recharged their batteries and are starting to make
    \nmusic again.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Album Tracks: 1 Resumen de los 90  Confiesale  Cuando El Rio Suena  Despues de Un Beso  Las Cosas De Un Amigo  Mi Musica  Nina Bonita  Oni Oni  Vivencias  Historia Verdadera  Que Buscas  Haciendo Historia marks the first major U.S. release … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":177,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-919","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ahinama.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/919","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ahinama.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ahinama.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ahinama.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ahinama.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=919"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/www.ahinama.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/919\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":936,"href":"https:\/\/www.ahinama.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/919\/revisions\/936"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ahinama.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/177"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ahinama.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=919"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}