Cuba jazz festival brings world musicians together

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Havana nights lit up during a week of jazz performances by some of the world’s best musicians, with local and foreign artists taking to the city’s stages during the 34th International Jazz Plaza Festival which closed on Sunday.

One of the festival's highlights was the joint appearances of outstanding Cuban and American jazz musicians, such as bandleader Orlando Maraca Valle, and Grammy award-winners Brian Lynch from the U.S. and Puerto Rico's Nestor Torres.

Maraca jazz band is joined by Grammy Award-winners U.S. trumpet player Brian Lynch (in a black hat) and Puerto Rican flutist Nestor Torres (in red shirt). /CGTN Photo

Also at hand was the creator of the festival, Maestro Bobby Carcasses, who was joined on stage by U.S. jazz musicians Scotty Barnhart, Roger Glenn, and Dick Griffin.

Through the years, the festival has served as a bridge between Americans and Cubans, and according to trumpet player Brian Lynch, "The central core of the sensibility of jazz comes from the African music sensibility, so this is something that the U.S. and Cuba really share."

Festival creator Bobby Carcasses and his jazz band joined by the U.S. jazz musicians Scotty Barnhart, Roger Glenn, and Dick Griffin. /CGTN Photo

This year, the festival was marked by not only a large number of musicians from around the world, but also the quality of their performances. This was the case of acclaimed British soul singer Joss Stone, who joined Cuban singer Omara Portuondo in a popular local tune that received a thundering ovation.

This improvised duet, along with other performances that mixed interpreters from different nations, ratified the festival's role of bringing musicians from Cuba and the world together.

(Top image: Jazz music lovers queue up outside a theater in Havana. /CGTN Photo)