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Leosbel Jiménez Licea is Hanny the Voice of Cuba

Born on July 8, 1972, Havana Cuba in the Vedado neighborhood. For the love of the songs I used to listen to on the radio at home, the love for music was born, especially for the guitar. That’s why since I was 4 years old all my toys were musical instruments, a drum set, drums, harmonicas, triolas, until I had a little toy guitar with which I used to invent concerts on the balcony of my house, the neighbors would pass by and laugh when they saw me so small believing me to be a star.

Hanny the Voice of Cuba

9 years old, I begin to study the basics of the guitar in the house of culture of the neighborhood at the same time that I was practicing fencing, at the age of 11 I won the national infantile championship of fencing earning me a scholarship to the school of sport incision (Eide) in the city of Havana, school from where many glories of the Olympic and world-wide sport of Cuba have come out.

14 years for disenchantment with the sport life I decide to leave the sport and to concentrate only in the music, in a self-taught way of course, there I begin to write my first songs that were poems that I was musicalizing at the time that I was learning new chords.

At the age of 19 I already had some songs that were sometimes played on some programs of the radio station in the province on the Havana City Radio.

So I was trolling the streets meeting many street artists until one day, an Englishman David Butlle, known as Mr. Bongo, arrived in Cuba in search of an orchestra to produce a record in Britain, a few days before leaving Cuba wanted to buy several albums of Cuban music from the 50s and did not know how to speak Spanish, my friend who passed by helped him with the translation into English, thanked him and told him who he was, my friend told him about my music, then we recorded a demo of 11 songs of my authorship then took them to London.

Between August and September of 1996, I was flying to London to record my first CD titled (Athe Voice of Cuba) production of 11 themes of my authorship and a danzón of the composer Niurka Díaz and Daniel Rodriguez, recorded with British, Cuban, Venezuelan, Colombian musicians all settled in London, my first recording work came out two themes that were in the French movie “Place Vomdome”, with the famous actress Catherine Deneuve, a British novel called Coronation Street, I also use my music, novels and series from Argentina, one called the Lola from Colombia and Israel, my first cd enjoyed good reviews in the best known and respected media especially in the UK opening the doors to the Royal Albert Hall, jazz cafe in London, the most prestigious jazz festivals and world music generally from the UK, as well as taking my music to all Europe, Colombia, Peru, etc, making for the success of the album concerts in Norway, Spain, Turkey, and Finland.

In 1998 I recorded my second album produced by my company (Hanro Records) and this time we recorded between the laboratory of electroacoustic music of Cuba and London with the participation of musicians from the Orchestra of Elio Reve, Paublito fg and Irakere, plus some British and Latin musicians based in London, at the same time conducted and directed a radio program in Spectrum radio called Cannonazo in England. Then came a period of just a few acoustic concerts to prepare all the new songs that we will start recording at the end of the quarantine. In 2019, I did 6 concerts in Finland, 5 Acoustic and one with a band in one of the most prestigious halls of Helsinki, I did 5 concerts in Ecuador and one concert in Cali Colombia, now we were preparing a group of concerts in Colombia, Chile and Peru everything is stopped until normality arrives, with 3 albums ready to start recording little by little.

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The Cuban multi-percussionist, Orestes Vilato, is undoubtedly one of the greatest figures in the history of Cuban drums known as timbales.

He is one of the most influential figures in the world of Latin percussion.

He was born on May 4, 1944 in Camagüey, Cuba, and currently resides in San Francisco, California in the United States.

He has worked with many of the best exponents of Cuban popular dance music and Latin jazz, from José Antonio Fajardo and Israel López (Cachao) to Rubén Blades and Carlos Santana.

During the 1950s, the Vilato family moved to New York, the world capital of salsa, where the young Orestes would rise to fame as an innovator of his beloved traditional instrument, “Los Timbales.

While living in New York City for 25 years, Orestes was intimately involved with many musical organizations that played key roles in shaping the course of Latin music around the world.

Among the many groups were: Fania All Starts (founding member), Ray Barretto, Tipica 73 (founding member), Los Kimbos (founder-director), Tito Puente, Johnny Pacheco, Cheo Feliciano, Ismael Rivera, Joe Cuba, Eddie Palmieri, Ruben Blades, La Lupe, Celia Cruz, Rolando La Serie, Chico O’Farril, Lionel Hampton, Los Chavales de España, Cal Tjader.

Other artists he has recorded or worked with include: Winton and Bradford Marsalis, Paco De Lucía, Whitney Houston, Linda Ronstadt, Aretha Franklin, Willie Nelson, Herbie Hancock, McCoy Tyner, Cachao, Andy García, Emilio Estefan, Gloria Estefan, Paquito de Rivera, Dave Valentín, Mongo Santamaría, Armando Peraza, John Santos, Rebeca Mauleon, Giovanni Hidalgo and Raúl Rekow.

In 1980 he moved from New York to San Francisco, California, where he worked with Armando Peraza, in the band of Chicano rocker Carlos Santana.

He later recorded with American jazzmen Bobby Hucherson and Buddy Montgomery, and with Cuban percussionist Luis Conte.

He also works with Jon Santos’ Batachanga Orchestra and Machete Ensemble.

In 1992 he recorded with Israel López (Cachao) as well as with Cuban percussionist José Luis Quintana (Changuito).

In 2009 he recorded his production entitled Orestes Vilató ?- Its About Time, with a repertoire in the style of Salsa, Latin Jazz, Descarga.

In 1981, Mr. Vilato moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, where he continues to reside with his family.   From 1980 to 1989 he recorded and toured with Carlos Santana’s renowned band.

Orestes was nominated for a Grammy in 1995 (Latin Jazz category) for his CD, Ritmo y Candela con Patato y Changuito. In 2009 his solo CD Its About Time was nominated for a Latin Grammy.

Orestes has recorded several film soundtracks including  Our Latin Thing, Mambo Kings, Carlito’s Way, Steal Big Steal Little, The Bird Cage, Dance With Me, Just A Ticket, Things To Do In Denver and The Lost City.

He has been a special guest artist at multiple jazz festivals around the country and in Puerto Rico, including the San Jose Jazz Festival.   He has performed and taught at numerous music conservatories including the Berkeley School of Music, UCLA, the University of Fresno, Stanford University, as well as many conservatories abroad.

Orestes was honored at the Yerba Buena Garden, Monterey and San Francisco Jazz Festivals.

Orestes’ style is one of the most imitated and emulated among recording artists.

Credits
Acoustic Bass – Carlitos Puerto Jr.
Backing Vocals, Handclaps – James Zavaleta
Bass – René Camacho
Bongos, Cowbell – Johnny “Dandy” Rodriguez
Co-producer, Timbales, Bongos, Lead Vocals, Cowbell, Cajón, Guiro, Maracas, Claves, Handclaps, Backing Vocals, Music Director – Orestes Vilató
Congas – Joey De León
Engineer [Assistance] – Joshua Blanchard
Engineer, Mixed By – Jimmy Branly
Executive Producer – Camerina Campillo, Ralph Campillo
Flute, Soprano Saxophone, Alto Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone – Justo Almario
Lead Vocals, Handclaps, Backing Vocals – Adonis Puentes
Mastered By – Peter Doell
Piano – Alberto Salas
Piano, Arranged By, Handclaps, Backing Vocals, Music Director – Rebeca Mauleón
Producer [Associate] – Manolo Santana
Tres, Acoustic Guitar – Ramón Stagnaro
Trumpet – Luis Eric González*, Sean Billings

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