Since 2009, UK-based DJ and music producer Gilles Peterson has been partnering with the Havana Cultura project, “a global initiative to promote contemporary Cuban culture”. While the highly successful Buena Vista Social Club project delved into Cuba’s rich musical past to highlight forgotten Son Cubano gems, Havana Cultura looks ... [Continue Reading]
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Gustavo Santaolalla: De Ushuaia a la Quiaca
Argentine composer Gustavo Santaolalla’s powerful theme “De Ushuaia a la Quiaca” is used to stunning effect at the very end of The Motorcycle Diaries (2004). Based on Ernesto Guevara’s [amazon text=eponymous&asin=0007172338] memoirs and on his companion Alberto Granado’s book [amazon text=Traveling with Che Guevara: The ... [Continue Reading]
Giovanni Mirabassi: El pueblo unido jamás será vencido
Giovanni Mirabassi (b. 1970) is an Italian jazz pianist who has been living in Paris since 1992. In 2001, the pianist recorded [amazon text=Avanti!&asin=B000059TIK], his first solo album where he revisited with a personal and moving style several popular anthems, songs of resistance, anti-war or partisan songs from around ... [Continue Reading]
Lhasa: El desierto
Born in the United States from American and Mexican parents, brought up through English and Spanish, travelling during her youth around North and Central America in a converted school bus, then spending her time between Canada and France, Lhasa de Sela (1972-2010) was a true wandering artist. "El Desierto" comes from her ... [Continue Reading]
Cesária Évora: Mãe Carinhosa
A new song by Cesária Évora is certainly a good excuse to open the floodgates of nostalgia! The Cape Verdean singer passed away in December 2011 after a very successful "late" international career. The singer was 47 when she recorded her first breakthrough album [amazon text=La Diva Aux Pieds Nus&asin=B00017YY90] in 1988. ... [Continue Reading]
Tony Gatlif: Vengo
Tony Gatlif (b. 1948) is a French film maker born in Algiers of a Romani mother. This family connection probably explains why almost every film by Tony Gatlif is concerned with the social, political and cultural alienation of gypsy communities across Europe. And why music as a way of life plays a central role in his film making. ... [Continue Reading]
