The Center for the Arts at Virginia Tech will host legendary bandleader Juan de Marcos and the Afro-Cuban All Stars on Wednesday, Oct. 28.
The orchestra moves across generations and styles, from classic Cuban son and danzón to contemporary timba dance music, bringing master musicians and rising artists together for a high-energy performance filled with unexpected instrumental turns.
“We have to use all the heritage of Cuban music to create a sound of the future,” de Marcos said. “It’s important to have that continuity and fight for our identity.”
Born in Havana in 1954, de Marcos is the son of a singer who performed with influential Cuban musician Arsenio Rodríguez, and de Marcos studied classical guitar at the Havana Conservatory.
While at university, he co-founded Sierra Maestra in 1976, a traditional Cuban septeto created to introduce a new generation to traditional Cuban son.
In the 1990s, de Marcos began working with Nick Gold of the London-based label World Circuit, and sought out veteran musicians, including Ibrahim Ferrer, Rubén González and Omara Portuondo, to develop the concept that became the Afro-Cuban All Stars.
In 1996, de Marcos and the ensemble gathered nearly 60 musicians to record “A Toda Cuba le Gusta.” The album, which later received a Grammy nomination, was the first recorded during the now-famous Havana sessions that also produced “Buena Vista Social Club” and “Introducing Rubén González.”
Three decades after its founding, the Afro-Cuban All Stars remains true to de Marcos’ original vision, celebrating the breadth of Cuba’s musical heritage while carrying its traditions forward through new generations of musicians.
Onstage, the music is constantly in motion, with unexpected instrumental turns and exchanges among the musicians bringing fresh energy to even the orchestra’s most traditional sounds.
De Marcos’ work has received three Grammy nominations and a Latin Billboard Award nomination.
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Chris Graham
