Blackwell Reference Online

Extract

The most influential songwriter of the Nueva Trova Cubana (Cuban New song), Silvio Rodríguez Domínguez was born November 26, 1946 in san Antonio de Los Baños, Cuba. The triumph of the Cuban Revolution (1959) led to improvements in arts and education, and Rodríguez, who had served in the military from 1964 to 1967, played an important role after being invited by Mario Romeu, former director of the Cuban Institute of Broadcasting, to appear in the popular TV program Música y Estrellas (Music and stars). As he sailed around the Atlantic and Africa in 1969, he composed 62 songs, among them “Playa Girón” and “Ojalá.”When he returned to Cuba, he became a member of the Group of sound Experimentation (GEsI) at the Institute of Cuban Cinema, where he contacted composers such as Leo Brouwer and guest lecturers such as Fred smith. The GEsI brought him into contact with other composers and songwriters and allowed him to experiment further in his music. His friendship with Vicente Feliú, Noel Nicola, and especially Pablo Milanés exposed him to new ideas about Cuban music, the role of the composer in society, the future of popular music, and social change. This prompted the group to start the Nueva Trova Cubana movement, which combined social concerns with the use of romantic verses about love. Rodríguez has since then traveled around the world, playing to crowded stadiums and in public plazas. ... log in or subscribe to read full text