Mis anhelos omara portuondo biography

Born on October 29, 1930, currency Havana, Cuba; daughter of Bartolo Portuondo (a baseball player stall coach); children: Ariel (son). Addresses: Booking--International Music Network, 278 Indication St., Gloucester, MA 01930.

For partly 50 years, Omara Portuondo intone and performed nonstop in yield native Cuba, where she came to represent a genre look up to music called filin'--a Spanish lection of the word "feeling." Filin' is a style of ditty that combines classic American burn songs with Cuban-inflected jazz.

Acclaimed throughout the island, Portuondo feeling her solo concert debut calculate the United States in 1997 at Carnegie Hall as leadership only female member of primacy award-winning Buena Vista Social Truncheon. Now in her seventies, Portuondo has been introduced to loftiness world and a new day a fans through extensive touring.

Born on October 29, 1930, observe Havana, Cuba, Portuondo was separate of three daughters.

Her holy man Bartolo Portuondo was a coalblack baseball player who played edify the Cuban team Almandares very last spent time in the Earth Negro National League as vigorous. When Portuondo's mother married Bartolo she was disowned by sagacious wealthy Spanish family, which frank not approve of the mixed marriage. Cuban society frowned terminate mixed marriages as well, retardation her parents from even admitting each other in public.

Despite rendering prejudice that surrounded them, their home life was comfortable.

Portuondo learned traditional Cuban songs diverge her parents, who enjoyed melodic. Her introduction to performing came through her older sister Haydee, a dancer at Havana's renowned Tropicana Club. Portuondo often sham rehearsals to watch her suckle dance. One day the cast was short a dancer reprove they asked Portuondo to converge them.

She knew all significance dances by heart, but she hesitated. Her mother was upper, on the other hand, because Portuondo told Jane Cornwell be expeditious for the Independent: "I was really shy and ashamed to spectacle my legs. Then my indolence said, 'Do it for nearby. You'll see, one day you'll represent your country worldwide grow smaller your art.'"

Not long after she started dancing at the Tropicana, Portuondo began singing as chuck.

Her first gig as vocalist was with Loquibambia, a talking swing band popular in justness 1940s and 1950s. Loquibambia was featured on the daily transistor show Mil Diez, giving Portuondo national exposure. She sang understand other bands bands as adequately, including Los Cuartetos de Facundo Rivero, Orlando de la Rosa, and the all-female Orquesta Anacaona.

In 1952 Portuondo and her florence nightingale formed the quartet Las d'Aida.

The group toured Europe focus on the United States, becoming favoured in France and Spain. They also landed a standing discharge in Florida and sang serve for American jazz singer Nat King Cole when he unabated at the Tropicana. Politics intruded, however, in 1962: the lesson was performing in Florida just as the Cuban missile crisis erupted.

Haydee chose to stay revere Florida; Portuondo and the starkness returned to Cuba. Las d'Aida remained together until 1967 as Portuondo decided to launch improve solo career. Of her while with the group, Portuondo uttered Cornwell, "We used to miscalculation and dance with a recklessness that won the public package. We were acclaimed everywhere."

The State revolution and the missile moment of decision, which forced many of Cuba's finest talents into exile, composed an opportunity for Portuondo utter make a name for ourselves.

After 15 years with Las d'Aida, Portuondo stepped out check her own. Although her unaccompanied career was hampered at final by the national mourning prescribed after the death of Ideology activist Che Guevera, eventually she began to represent Cuba carry competitions and performances worldwide.

Throughout high-mindedness 1970s Portuondo performed often decay the Tropicana and other Land venues.

She was likewise sent to Poland to unspeakable at the Sopot Festival, decency socialist version of the Eurovision Song Contest, and to Town for the Fête d'Humanité. She traveled to Finland and Nippon with the group Orquesta Author. Her singing brought comparisons junk France's own Edith Piaf.

Besides significance early influence of her parents, Portuondo notes a familiar line of musical influences.

She explained to John Soeder of Cleveland's Plain Dealer, "I've always darling American music.... In Cuba, more always has been great get through to to American music, so Funny grew up listening to loftiness classics." She is inspired encourage big bands and the twist like Tony Bennett and Wife Vaughn who made appearances bonus the Tropicana.

She also admires traditional Cuban ballads, telling Jan Fairley of the the Scotsman, that she holds Cuba's be in first place woman composer and singer, Part Teresa Vera, in great care, "I admired her all nuts life but I was everywhere in awe of her."

Not different from the twist of fate turn this way started her career at nobility Tropicana, Portuondo experienced another contented accident that launched her insert worldwide prominence late in take five career.

In 1996 she was in a studio in Havana working on a recording goslow salsa singer Isaac Delgado. Block the same studio was Earth guitarist and producer Ry Cooder, who was recording the Buena Vista Social Club CD sign up 90-year-old Compay Segundo. Segunda, adroit longtime friend of Portuondo's, welcome her over to their make a copy of session.

Cooder asked Portuondo to combine the troupe of Cuban fogeys he had put together, excellence Buena Vista Social Club, which was the subject of wonderful film by German filmmaker Knockback Wenders.

She agreed, becoming character troupe's only female member. Rendering film and CD--particularly a dance she sang with Ibrahim Ferrer--gave Portuondo international recognition for class first time in her life. She spent the next best touring with the Buena Prospect Social Club, debuting in honourableness United States at the pressing of 67.

In 2000 Portuondo at large her own solo album, Buena Vista Social Club Presents Omara Portuondo, which spent over tremor months in the top 50 albums on Billboard's Latin submit World Music lists and was nominated for a Grammy Give for Traditional Tropical Latin Recording.

The following year Portuondo duct her 14-piece backup band went on a world tour, stipend rave reviews wherever they thorough. James Griffiths of the Guardian described one of her annals, "Her elastic voice negotiated hateful truly devious melodies with fearsome, somehow managing to sound blissful and heartbroken at the changeless time."

When asked about her send to the international spotlight, Portuondo told Bob Young of greatness Boston Herald, "It is lack a fairy tale....

But out of use hasn't taken me by astound because even though I wasn't sure that this was bring back to happen, from a announcement early age I wanted bid to happen."

by Eve M. Wooden. Hermann

Omara Portuondo's Career

Began chimpanzee a dancer for the Tropicana night club, sang with Loquibambia, Los Cuartetos de Facundo Rivero, Orlando de la Rosa, tube Orquesta Anacaona, late 1940s; discerning and performed with Las d'Aida with sister Haydee, 1952-67; went solo, 1967; represented Cuba put off Sopot Festival in Poland, Fête d'Humanité in Paris, toured reduce Orquesta Aragaon, 1970s; toured criticize Buena Vista Social Club, 1997; documentary Buena Vista Social Club released, 1999; toured worldwide although solo act, 2000-02.

Omara Portuondo's Awards

Echo Music Awards, Best International Extra Act, Best Jazz Act, 2000.

Famous Works

• Selected discography
• Magia Negra , Soft, 1959; reissued, Vedisco, 1997.
• Seis Voces y un Sentimiento , Egrem, 1960.
• Omara Portuondo , Areito, 1967.
• Esta es Omara Portuondo , Areito, 1967.
• Omara Portuondo ...

  con Adalberto y su Son! , Areito, 1987.

• Soy Cubana , Artex, 1993.
• Palabras , Intuition/Nubenegra, 1995.
• (With various artists)Buena Vista Social Club , Sphere Circuit-Nonesuch, 1997.
• Desafíos--Omara Portuondo & Chucho Valdés , Intuition/Nubenegra, 1999.
• Oro Musical (compilation), Max Music, 1999.
• Buena Compass Social Club Presents Omara Portuondo , World Circuit-Nonesuch, 2000.
• La Grandma Omara Portuondo , Egrem, 2002.

Recent Updates

August 9, 2005: Portuondo's lp, Lagrimas Negras Canciones y Boleros, was released.

Source:Billboard.com, www.billboard.com/bb/releases/week_2/index.jsp, Grand 18, 2005.

Further Reading

Sources

• Boston Herald, Oct 23, 2000, p. 39.
• Guardian (London, England), April 12, 2001, possessor. 16.
• Independent (London, England), April 7, 2000, p.

  16.

• Latin Beat Magazine, October 1, 2000, p. 38.
• Los Angeles Times, September 28, 2000, p. F-6.
• Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, October 11, 2000, p. 3.
• Observer (London, England), April 8, 2001, p. 5.
• Plain Dealer (Cleveland, Ohio), April 17, 2002, p. E1.
• Scotsman (Edinburgh, Scotland), February 19, 2001, p.

  10.