Hot rhythms, rousing dances, exotic beauties and unforgettable melodies take the audience on a journey through the exciting nights of Cuba. Cuban joie de vivre paired with grandiose voices and impressive dance formations make “Pasión de Buena Vista - Live from Cuba” a unique experience. 

If there is one thing that best reflects the Cuban mentality, it is music and dance. Musical styles known all over the world today, such as rumba, mambo, cha-cha-cha and salsa, have their origins in four basic elements. Apart from tonewoods and drums, there are no other instruments. With the addition of melodic instruments, the now commercialized form of the rumba and other fashionable dances such as the mambo developed. The “Son”, an alternating song between singer and choir accompanied by the Spanish and Latin American tres guitar, is the clear crowd favorite. It was invented by sugar workers in Santiago de Cuba during the 1920s. Claves and maracas form the rhythm. 

With the rapid spread of the “Son”, more instruments were added, such as wooden bass, bongos and trumpets. The result is a complex, polyrhythmic sound structure that initially sounds like a hopeless mess to European ears, but later fascinates and captivates listeners. 

The “danzon” was not accepted by the Cuban upper class for a long time, but is now the most popular dance in Cuba. The cha-cha-cha developed from it. In the “trova”, traveling singers sang melancholy, beautiful ballads. The lyrics were changed thematically during the revolution and used for propaganda. Later, the musicians returned to their original themes. What travelers to Cuba today perceive as Cuban music is therefore a synthesis of African percussion and rhythms with Spanish coplas and their instrumentation. “Pasión de Buena Vista” presents the entire palette of Cuban music and dances, transferring the joy and temperament of Cuba to the audience.

The live band
The “Buena Vista Band” consists of a variety of highly gifted Cuban musicians and talents. In addition to various percussion instruments such as drums, timbales and conga, there is a range of wind instruments such as trombone and trumpet. Bass, piano and the tres guitar, typical of Latin America, round off the overall picture. The live band is accompanied by talented background singers, who also demonstrate their unique voices as soloists during the show.

The dance formation
The dance formation “El Grupo de Bailar” from Havana consists of several first-class dancers who have already demonstrated their talent in traditional dance shows. A high degree of discipline and professionalism characterizes the group and is just one reason why they were chosen for the “Pasión de Buena Vista” show.