Guillermo Rubalcaba (January 10, 1927 – September 7, 2015) was a Cuban

pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...

bandleader A bandleader is the leader of a music group such as a rock or pop band or jazz quartet. The term is most commonly used with a group that plays popular music as a small combo or a big band, such as one which plays jazz, blues, rhythm and blues or ...

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

and

orchestrator Orchestration is the study or practice of writing music for an orchestra (or, more loosely, for any musical ensemble, such as a concert band) or of adapting music composed for another medium for an orchestra. Also called "instrumentation", orch ...

specialising in

danzón Danzón is the official musical genre and dance of Cuba.Urfé, Odilio 1965. ''El danzón''. La Habana. It is also an active musical form in Mexico and Puerto Rico. Written in time, the danzón is a slow, formal partner dance, requiring se ...

and

cha-cha-cha Cha cha cha may refer to: * ''Cha-cha-chá'' (music), a style of Cuban dance music * Cha-cha-cha (dance), a Latin American dance accompanying the music Film and television * ''Cha Cha Cha'' (film), a 2013 Italian crime film * ''Cha Cha Cha'' ...

music genres.Orovio, Helio (2004). ''Cuban Music from A to Z-CL''. Duke University Press Books. .Guillermo Rubalcaba Article
(Spanish). ''EcuRed.com. Retrieved on July 30, 2015. Born as Guillermo González Camejo in the town of

Pinar del Río Pinar del Río is the capital city of Pinar del Río Province, Cuba. With a population of 139,336 (2004) in a municipality of 190,332, it is the List of cities in Cuba, 10th-largest city in Cuba. Inhabitants of the area are called ''Pinareños'' ...

, as the son of Jacobo González Rubalcaba he adopted his father's maternal name for professional purposes. Besides, Guillermo Rubalcaba was the father of

Latin jazz Latin jazz is a genre of jazz with Latin American rhythms. The two main categories are Afro-Cuban jazz, rhythmically based on Cuban popular dance music, with a rhythm section employing ostinato patterns or a clave, and Afro-Brazilian jazz, whic ...

pianist

Gonzalo Rubalcaba Gonzalo Rubalcaba (born May 27, 1963) is an Afro-Cuban jazz pianist and composer. Early life Rubalcaba was born Gonzalo Julio González Fonseca in Havana, Cuba Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The ...

.Rubalcaba, Gonzalo (Gonzalo Julio Gonzalez Fonseca)
. ''Encyclopedia of Jazz Musicians.'' Retrieved on July 31, 2015.

Life and career

Early years

Rubalcaba received formal musical training from his father,

Jacobo Rubalcaba Jacobo González Rubalcaba (1895–1960) was a Cuban musician, composer, bandleader and Music education, educator. Born in Sagua La Grande, he adopted his mother's maiden name for professional use.Orovio, Helio (2004). ''Cuban Music from A to Z-CL ...

, a talented multi-instrumentalist and also one of the first charanga bandleaders to spread the danzón in the western region of Cuba.Guillermo Rubalcaba, un pilar en el desarrollo del danzón
(Spanish). ''JornadaUnam.mx.'' Retrieved on Jul5 25, 2015. Likewise, his father composed the legendary danzón ''El Cadete Constitucional'', which has been recorded by countless performers for a long time. Rubalcaba studied at the Orbón Conservatory, where he learned to play not only the piano, but also the violin, the clarinet and the saxophone. At age 15 he became the violinist in the Ases del Ritmo orchestra, later playing in the CMQ radio orchestra and in Ñico Suárez's band. On saxophone he performed in the Montecarlo orchestra and as part of Los Churumbeles.

Rise to fame

Not long after moving to

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.

, Guillermo Rubalcaba worked as pianist accompanist for famous singers such as

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 ...

Blanca Rosa Gil Blanca Rosa Gil (born August 26, 1937 in Matanzas Perico, Cuba) is a famous Cuban Latin Bolero singer known as 'The Singing Dolly'. Singing career Blanca Rosa Gil's first album 'Shadows' was recorded in Venezuela in 1957. In the 1950s, 1960's an ...

and

Omara Portuondo Omara Portuondo Peláez (born 29 October 1930) is a Cuban 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 Gu ...

, and also developed a close relationship with veteran

flutist The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with Reed (instrument), reeds, a fl ...

Richard Egües Richard Egües, nicknamed "la flauta mágica" (the magic flute), (October 26, 1923 - September 1, 2006) was a Cuban flautist and musician, one of the country's most famous artists. Egües was a member of the Orquesta Aragón band which he joined i ...

, who recommended him to

violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...

ist and cha-cha-cha bandleader

Enrique Jorrín Enrique Jorrín ( Candelaria, Pinar del Río, December 25, 1926 - Havana, December 12, 1987) was a Cuban charanga violinist, composer and music director. He is considered the inventor of the '' cha-cha-chá'', a popular style of ballroom music de ...

. In 1964 Rubalcaba joined the Jorrín orchestra in a tour scheduled in several countries of

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

and

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

. He then found himself on the move again, this time through North, Central and South America, which included a stop in the

Expo 67 The 1967 International and Universal Exposition, commonly known as Expo 67, was a general exhibition from April 27 to October 29, 1967. It was a category One World's Fair held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is considered to be one of the most su ...

held in

Montreal, Quebec Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-pea ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, until he entered the Charanga Típica de Concierto in 1968, invited by musicologist Odilio Urfé. The purpose of the band was to preserve the danzón tradition in its original form. Rubalcaba became the pianist and later the conductor of the ensemble, which in 1973 became known as the Charanga Rubalcaba. In 1987, the Charanga Rubalcaba released its most successful album, ''Vivencias'', which featured

Barbarito Díez Barbarito Díez (December 4, 1909 – May 6, 1995) was a Cuban singer who specialized in danzón.Orovio, Helio (2004). ''Cuban Music from A to Z-CL''. Duke University Press Books. . He began his career as the singer for Graciano Gómez and Isaac O ...

and Tito Gómez, two of the most significant voices of the danzón and cha-cha-cha in Cuban music history.

Later years and death

In the 1990s, Rubalcaba became a member of several touring groups of veteran musicians who emerged in the wake of the success 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 gr ...

and Afro-Cuban All Stars groups. In between, he collaborated with

Jane Bunnett Mary Jane Bunnett, (born October 22, 1956) is a Canadian musician and educator. A soprano saxophonist, flautist and bandleader, she is especially known for performing Afro-Cuban jazz. She travels regularly to Cuba to perform with Cuban musicians. ...

in her recording project ''Cuban Odyssey'' (2002). Latterly, Rubalcaba ran and directed his orchestra named after him, in which he was also the pianist. Rubalcaba's career more than that of any ''danzonero'' has lived the period of early revolutionary effervescence, lethargy, and slow revival in recent times. Rubalcaba died on September 7, 2015 in Havana, and was buried at the Cristóbal Colón Cemetery.

Awards and honours

*2002:

Alejo Carpentier Alejo Carpentier y Valmont (, ; December 26, 1904 – April 24, 1980) was a Cuban novelist, essayist, and musicologist who greatly influenced Latin American literature during its famous "boom" period. Born in Lausanne, Switzerland, of French an ...

Medal

Discography

* ''Vivencias'' (Areito – LD-4435, 1988) * ''Fundadores del Sabor'' (Discmedi S.A. – DM-210, 1995) * ''Por eso yo soy cubano'' (Eurotropical Muxxic – EUCD-10, 1998) * ''El Danzón de la Reina Isabel'' (Eurotropical – EUCD-901526, 2000)Charanga Rubalcaba Discography
''Descarga.com.'' Retrieved on August 3, 2015. * ''A corazón abierto'' (Eurotropical – Muxxic 8431588-909225, 2002).Charanga Rubalcaba – A corazón abierto
''WMC.org.'' Retrieved on August 3, 2015. * ''Entre dos generaciones'' (Envidia Records – ER-7080, 2003) * ''Pasado Y Presente'' (Pimienta Records, 2003) * ''Con sello de calidad'' (Envidia – ER-7116, 2004)

References

External links

Guillermo Rubalcaba music
on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

Guillermo González Camejo ″Rubalcaba″
''MusicaIP.cult.cu.'' Retrieved on July 31, 2015. {{DEFAULTSORT:Rubalcaba, Guillermo 1927 births 2015 deaths Cuban bandleaders Cuban pianists Danzón musicians Cuban charanga musicians Cha-cha-cha musicians People from Pinar del Río