Cuban Masters of the Fin-de-Siècle

Against the turbulent backdrop of political and social turmoil, Cuba’s location put the island directly in the path of many musicians who left Europe in search of great fame and fortune, not only in Cuba but throughout the western hemisphere. At the same time, Cuba’s social conditions triggered the formation of a particular fusion of European, African and Asian elements that manifested itself in ballrooms, theaters and churches. For example, the “father of the contradanza,” Manuel Saumell, was one of the first composers to cultivate a creolized style. Of equal importance is Laureano Fuentes Matons, whose La hija de Jefté (1875) was the first opera to be composed in Cuba. In short, Saumell, Fuentes and others laid the groundwork for what was to become a movement in Cuban music whose imagination and innovative spirit would be felt throughout the Americas. Curated by Dr. Juan López-Maya, we are pleased to carefully edit, in a practical but simple manner, a number of largely forgotten works, with the hope of delighting those instrumentalists who, familiar with the romantic tradition, will find in them a fresh and exotic spirit.

The Masters’ Compositions