Circles Robinson, Author at Havana Times

Cuban Spanish Ballet at Grand Theater

The Spanish Ballet of Cuba will be presented in the Garcia Lorca Hall of the Gran Teatro de La Habana (Prado No. 458, Centro Habana), on both Friday and Saturday, December 25 and 26, at 8:30 p.m.

Yasek Manzano y Su Groupo

On Saturday, December 26, the young trumpet player Yasek Manzano will be presented with his group from 10:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. at the La Zorra y el Cuervo jazz club (calle 23 y O, Vedado). The composer and arranger took first place at the first edition of JoJazz in 1998 and has shared stages with important Cuban and foreign musicians.

Jesus Fuentes y Conexión Santo Tomás

Jesús Fuentes y Conexión Santo Tomás will be presented on Friday, December 25, from 10:00 to 2:00 a.m. at the La Zorra y el Cuervo jazz club (calle 23 y O, Vedado). His band not only plays pieces of Cuban jazz, but also Brazilian, Caribbean and US jazz by musicians such as Charlie Parker and Chick Correa.

Roberto Fonseca y Temperamento

HAVANA TIMES, December 21. ? Roberto Fonseca, with his group Temperamento, will be at the La Zorra y el Cuervo jazz club (calle 23 y O, Vedado) on Thursday, December 24, from 10:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m.
An excellent pianist and composer with a very personal and innovative style, Fonseca follows different tendencies of the Cuban piano.

Dayramir y Havana Entrance

Dayramir y Habana en trance performs on Wednesday, December 23; and on Tuesday, December 29, from 10:00 p.m. to 2:00 at the La Zorra y el Cuervo jazz club (calle 23 y O, Vedado). Dayramir Gonzales has been a member of the Diakara jazz band of Oscar Valdes. Likewise, he has participated in all of the Havana Jazz Festivals since 2000, sharing stages with figures such as Timbalaye, Janne Brunet, Ramón Valle, Bobby Carcasses, Hernán Lopez-Nussa, Pancho Ferry, and others.

Alejandro Falcon Y Cubadentro

Alejandro Falcon y Cubadentro perform on Tuesday, December 22, from 10 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. at the La Zorra y el Cuervo jazz club (calle 23 y O, Vedado). Young pianist and composer Alejandro Falcon founded the Cubadentro project in 2008, along with Keisel Jimenez (drums), Sergio Raveiro (bass), Guillermo del Toro (congas).

Trova Enfusion Monday Concert

Trova Enfusión, a group of youth who combine trova with jazz, perform in concert on Monday December 21 at 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. at El Jelengue de Areito (San Miguel 410 e/ Campanario y Lealtad, Centro Habana). The Areito record label is sponsoring this performance in which youth such as Yolo Bonilla dare to break out of the frameworks of both trova and jazz fusion.

New Cuba Council of State Members

The Cuban parliament elected seven new members to the 31-member Council of State, Cuba’s top governing body, on Sunday. Two were elected to vice president’s status, Ramiro Valdes Menendez, also the Minister of Communications and Informatics and VP of the Council of State, and Gladis Bejerano Portela, the new Cuban Comptroller.

The Golden Mean

There are too many issues in Cuba than deserve intensive, probing, critical assessment and debate to move the country forward toward socialism; Yoani Sanchez Inc.’s explicit championing of a push to move Cuba back to capitalism is not one of these.

Cuba Rumors Prove False for Now

Relaxing strict housing and vehicle laws that allow only quasi ownership; the near impossibility of legally starting a small business; and the perennially unpopular exit visa law were once again heard in people’s homes, jobs and on the streets prior to the meeting. Likewise, the possibility of a single Cuban currency. In the end the Assembly met, but there was no reported movement on any of these issues. Instead, President Raul Castro set the tone for more hardship to come.