Omara Portuondo Peláez (born 29 October 1930) is a

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

n singer and dancer. A founding member of the popular vocal group Cuarteto d'Aida, Portuondo has collaborated with many important Cuban musicians during her long career, including Julio Gutiérrez, Juanito Márquez and

Chucho Valdés Jesús Valdés Rodríguez, better known as Chucho Valdés (born October 9, 1941), is a Cuban pianist, bandleader, composer and arranger whose career spans over 50 years. An original member of the Orquesta Cubana de Música Moderna, in 1973 he fo ...

. Although primarily known for her rendition of

boleros Bolero is a genre of song which originated in eastern Cuba in the late 19th century as part of the trova tradition. Unrelated to the older Spanish dance of the same name, bolero is characterized by sophisticated lyrics dealing with love. It has ...

, she has recorded in a wide range of styles from

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

son cubano Son cubano is a genre of music and dance that originated in the highlands of eastern Cuba during the late 19th century. It is a syncretic genre that blends elements of Spanish and African origin. Among its fundamental Hispanic components are th ...

. Since 1996, she has been part of the

Buena Vista Social Club Buena Vista Social Club is an ensemble of Cuban musicians established in 1996. The project was organized by World Circuit executive Nick Gold, produced by American guitarist Ry Cooder and directed by Juan de Marcos González. They named the g ...

project, touring extensively and recording several albums with the ensemble. She won a

Latin Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Tropical Album The Latin Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Tropical Album is an honor presented annually at the Latin Grammy Awards, a ceremony that recognizes excellence and promotes a wider awareness of cultural diversity and contributions of Latin recording ...

in 2009 and a

Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award The Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award is an honor presented annually by the Latin Recording Academy, the same organization that distributes the Latin Grammy Awards, to commend performers "who have made contributions of outstanding artistic ...

in 2019, and she received three

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

nominations.

Early life and career

Born on 29 October 1930 in the Cayo Hueso neighborhood of

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

, Portuondo had three sisters. Her mother, Esperanza Peláez, came from a wealthy family of Spanish ancestry, and had created a scandal by running off with and marrying a black professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

player,

Bartolo Portuondo Bartolome "Bartolo" Portuondo (August 24, 1893 – May 26, 1981) was a Cuban baseball infielder in the Cuban League and the U.S. Negro leagues. In Cuba he played from 1911/12 to 1926/27 with several teams, most notably Almendares. His Americ ...

. Omara joined the dance group of the Cabaret Tropicana in 1950, following her elder sister, Haydee. She also danced in the ''Mulatas de Fuego'' in the theatre ''Radiocentro'', and in other dance groups. The two sisters also used to sing for family and friends, and they also performed in Havana clubs. Portuondo and Haydee then in 1947 joined the ''Loquibambia Swing'', a group formed by the blind pianist

Frank Emilio Flynn Francisco Emilio Flynn Rodríguez (April 13, 1921 – August 23, 2001), better known as Frank Emilio Flynn, was a renowned Cuban pianist. Despite being blind, he was a skilled and versatile pianist who mastered many forms of Cuban music, from danz ...

.Giro Radamés 2007. ''Diccionario enciclopédico de la música en Cuba''. La Habana. vol 2, p5. From 1952–1953, she sang for the Orquesta Anacaona, and later in 1953 both sisters joined (together with

Elena Burke Elena Burke (born Romana Elena Burgues Gonzalez on February 28, 1928, in Havana, Cuba – June 9, 2002 in Havana, Cuba) was a revered and popular Cuban singer of boleros and romantic ballads. Biography She started her career by working in rad ...

and

Moraima Secada Moraima Secada (born María Micaela Secada Ramos (10 September 1930 – 30 December 1984), known to her admirers as ''La Mora'' (the moor), was a temperamental singer who created a special style of interpretation within the Cuban music genre o ...

) the singing group Cuarteto d'Aida, formed and directed by pianist

Aida Diestro Adelaida Diestro Rega (21 December 1924 – 28 October 1973), better known as Aida Diestro, was a Cuban pianist and the director of the famous vocal group Cuarteto d'Aida. Career Diestro was born in Havana on 21 December 1924. She studied mu ...

. The group had considerable success, touring the United States, performing with

Nat King Cole Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's music career began after he dropped out of school at the age of 15, and continued f ...

at the Tropicana, and recording a 1957

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

for

RCA Victor RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also Aris ...

.Victor LP 1532 Cuarteto d'Aida con la orquesta de Chico O'Farrill. ''An evening at the Sans Souci''. In 1958, pianist and composer Julio Gutiérrez invited Portuondo to sing for his ensemble in a series of recordings bridging

and Cuban music for the record label Velvet. The result was '' Magia Negra'', her debut solo album. Haydee left the Cuarteto d'Aida in 1961 in order to live in the US, and Omara continued singing with the quartet until 1967.

1967–present

In 1967, Portuondo began to focus on her solo career, recording two albums for Areito, ''Omara Portuondo'' and ''Esta es Omara Portuondo''. In the same year she represented Cuba at the

Sopot Festival The Sopot International Song Festival or Sopot Festival (later called ''Sopot Music Festival Grand Prix'', ''Sopot Top of the Top Festival'' from 2012–13 and ''Polsat Sopot Festival'' in 2014) is an annual international song contest held in So ...

in Poland, singing Juanito Márquez' "Como un milagro". Alongside her solo work, in the 1970s she sang with the charanga

Orquesta Aragón Orquesta Aragón is a Cuban musical band formed on 30 September 1939, by Orestes Aragón Cantero in Cienfuegos, Cuba. The band originally had the name ''Ritmica 39'', then ''Ritmica Aragón'' before settling on its final form. Though they did not ...

, and toured with them abroad. In 1974, she recorded with guitarist Martín Rojas, an album in which she lauds

Salvador Allende Salvador Guillermo Allende Gossens (, , ; 26 June 1908 – 11 September 1973) was a Chilean physician and socialist politician who served as the 28th president of Chile from 3 November 1970 until his death on 11 September 1973. He was the fir ...

and the people of

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

a year after the military coup led by General

Augusto Pinochet Augusto José Ramón Pinochet Ugarte (, , , ; 25 November 1915 – 10 December 2006) was a Chilean general who ruled Chile from 1973 to 1990, first as the leader of the Military Junta of Chile from 1973 to 1981, being declared President of ...

. Among other hits from the album, she sang

Carlos Puebla Carlos Manuel Puebla (; 11 September 1917, Manzanillo – 12 July 1989, Havana) was a Cuban singer, guitarist, and composer. He was a member of the old trova movement who specialized in boleros and patriotic songs. Biography Born into a mo ...

's hit "

Hasta Siempre, Comandante "Hasta Siempre, Comandante," ("Until Forever, Commander" in English) or simply "Hasta Siempre," is a 1965 song by Cuban composer Carlos Puebla. The song's lyrics are a reply to revolutionary Che Guevara's farewell letter when he left Cuba, in orde ...

", which refers to

Ché Guevara Ernesto Che Guevara (; 14 June 1928The date of birth recorded on /upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/78/Ernesto_Guevara_Acta_de_Nacimiento.jpg his birth certificatewas 14 June 1928, although one tertiary source, (Julia Constenla, quoted ...

. She also recorded "Y que se sepa", with one of the most successful Cuban bands of the late 20th century,

Los Van Van Los Van Van is one of the leading musical groups of post-revolutionary Cuba. It was founded in 1969 by bassist Juan Formell, who directed the band until his death in 2014. Formell and former band members Changuito and Pupy are some of the most im ...

. Later on she performed with

Juan Formell Juan Climaco Formell Cortina (August 2, 1942 – May 1, 2014) was a Cuban bassist, composer, and arranger, best known as the director of Los Van Van. He was a creator of popular danceable music and credited with bringing electronic instrumentatio ...

, singing Formell's song "Tal vez", a song she recorded later on with Maria Bethania. During the 1970s and 1980s, Portuondo enjoyed success at home and abroad, with tours, albums (including one of her most lauded recordings in 1984 with

Adalberto Álvarez Adalberto Álvarez (22 November 1948 – 1 September 2021) was a Cuban pianist, musical director, and composer. Biography Adalberto Álvarez was born in Camaguey on November 22, 1948. During the late 1960s and early 1970s, Álvarez attended the ...

), film roles, and her own television series. In 2004, the

International Red Cross The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC; french: Comité international de la Croix-Rouge) is a humanitarian organization which is based in Geneva, Switzerland, and it is also a three-time Nobel Prize Laureate. State parties (signato ...

appointed her International Ambassador, the first Cuban musician to hold this title, in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

, Canada. In 2007, she performed the title role to sold-out audiences in Lizt Alfonso's dance musical "Vida", the story of modern Cuba through the eyes and with the memories of an old woman. In this same year, her performance at the Montreal Jazz Festival was released on DVD. She recorded in 2008 a duet album with Brazilian singer

Maria Bethânia Maria Bethânia Viana Teles Veloso (; born 18 June 1946) is a Brazilian singer and songwriter. Born in Santo Amaro, Bahia, she started her career in Rio de Janeiro in 1964 with the show "Opinião" ("Opinion"). Due to its popularity, with performa ...

named ''Maria Bethânia e Omara Portuondo''. In 2008, she recorded the album ''Gracias'' as a tribute to the 60th anniversary of her singing career. Today, Omara lives in a high-rise apartment just off the

Malecón, Havana The Malecón (officially Avenida de Maceo) is a broad esplanade, roadway, and seawall that stretches for 8 km (5 miles) along the coast in Havana, Cuba, from the mouth of Havana Harbor in Old Havana, along the north side of the Centro Habana ...

, overlooking the sea. She remains a popular fixture on the local music scene, singing regularly at the

Tropicana Club El Tropicana Night Club in Havana, Cuba located in a lush, six-acre (24,000 m²) estate tropical garden opened on December 30, 1939 at the Villa Mina in Marianao. It is located next door to the old Colegio de Belen, presently, the Instituto Técn ...

, the Delirio Habanero and the Café Cantante.

Buena Vista Social Club

Portuondo sang (duetting with

Ibrahim Ferrer Ibrahim Ferrer (February 20, 1927 – August 6, 2005) was a Cuban singer who played with Los Bocucos for nearly forty years. He also performed with Conjunto Sorpresa, Chepín y su Orquesta Oriental and Mario Patterson. After his retirement in ...

) on the album ''

'' in 1996. This led not only to more touring (including playing at

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhatta ...

with the Buena Vista troupe) and her appearance in

Wim Wenders Ernst Wilhelm "Wim" Wenders (; born 14 August 1945) is a German filmmaker, playwright, author, and photographer. He is a major figure in New German Cinema. Among many honors, he has received three nominations for the Academy Award for Best Docum ...

' film ''

'', but to two further albums for the World Circuit label: ''Buena Vista Social Club Presents Omara Portuondo'' (2000) and ''Flor de Amor'' (2004). She remains a member of Buena Vista Social Club, being the only original vocalist to do so.

Discography

*''Magia Negra'' (Velvet, 1959. Reissued by Kubaney 190 and Kristal 1124) – With Julio Gutiérrez *''Seis Voces y un Sentimiento'' (Egrem 3123, 1960) *''Omara Portuondo'' ( Areito 3358, 1967) *''Esta es Omara Portuondo'' (Areito 1071, 1967) *''Omara Portuondo: Omara!'' (Areito 3478, 1974) *''Omara Portuondo & Martín Rojas'' (Love Records, 1975) – With Martín Rojas *''Y Tal Vez'' (Areito 3837, 1981) *''Canta El Son'' (Areito 4071, 1983) *''Omara Portuondo, Adalberto Alvarez Y Su Son'' (Sonografica 40022, 1984) – With Adalberto Y Su Son *''Pensamiento'' (Artex TKF-CD-14, 1992) *''Palabras'' (Intuition/Nubenegra INT 31862, 1996) *''

'' (World Circuit, 1997) *''Desafios'' (Intuition/Nubenegra 1025, 1998) – With

*''Oro Musical'' (Max Music, 1999) *''Buena Vista Social Club Presents Omara Portuondo'' (World Circuit, 2000) *''Omara Portuondo: Roots of Buena Vista'' (Egrem CD0173, 2000) *''Roots of Buena Vista: La Novia Del Feeling'' (Egrem CD0178, 2000) – With Orquesta Todos Estrellas *''La Gran Omara Portuondo'' (Egrem CD0414, 2000) *''Dos Gardenias'' (Tumi Records, 2001) *''La Sitiera'' (WEA, 2001) *''You'' (King, 2001) *''Joyas Inéditas'' (Egrem 0514, 2002) *''La Colección Cubana'' (Nascente, 2003) *''Flor De Amor'' (World Circuit, 2004) *''Together'' (Havana Nites HN003, 2004) – With

*''Together Again'' (Havana Nites HN004, 2004) – With Ibrahim Ferrer *''Sentimiento'' (La Escondida, 2005) *''Lágrimas Negras (Canciones y Boleros)'' (Yemaya, 2005) *''The Essential Omara Portuondo'' (Manteca, 2006) *''Quiereme Mucho'' (PID, 2006) *''Together'' (Soliton, 2006) – With

Celina González Celina González Zamora (16 March 1929 – 4 February 2015) was a Cuban singer-songwriter, who specialized in "música campesina", traditional music of the Cuban countryside. She is best known for co-authoring ''A Santa Bárbara'' wi ...

*''Singles'' (Malanga Music MM 803,2007) *''Duets'' (Malanga Music MM 812, 2007) *''Maria Bethânia e Omara Portuondo'' (Biscoito Fino, 2008) – With

*''Gracias'' (World Village, 2008) *''Omara & Chucho'' (Random Music, 2011) – With Chucho Valdés *''Magia Negra: The Beginning'' (World Village, 2014) *''Omara Siempre'' (Egrem, 2018)

Selected filmography

*''

'' (1999) *''Live in Montreal'' (2007) *''Omara Portuondo & Maria Bethânia Live'' (2008) *''Omara & Chucho'' (2011)

References

External links

*
Artist Profiles: Omara Portuondo
at World Music Central website {{DEFAULTSORT:Portuondo, Omara 1930 births Living people Cuban women singers Cuban female dancers Cuban people of Spanish descent Buena Vista Social Club World Circuit (record label) artists Latin Grammy Award winners Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winners Women in Latin music