The Musicians

Alex Cuba

Alex Cuba
Singer-songwriter Alex Cuba hails from Artemisa, Cuba and resides in Smithers, B.C. Musically, he lives everywhere in between. His trademark sugarcane-sweet melodies, pop-soul hooks and rock chords subtly subvert commonly held notions of what Cuban music is. Alex is on the vanguard, crafting a cross-cultural sound that mirrors his geographical journey. Not tied to tradition, this Cuban-Canadian prefers his vintage Gibson over el sencerro (cowbell) anytime.

In Canada, he teamed up with his twin brother Adonis to record Morumba Cubana, as The Puentes Brothers. In 2001, the album received a nomination for a Juno award – as well as winning a West Coast Music Award and a Canadian Independent Music Award. His debut CD with the Alex Cuba Band, Humo De Tabaco, earning him a Juno award for World Music Album in 2006, with the single “Lo Mismo Que Yo”, featuring Ron Sexsmith charting in the Top 20 at BBC Radio 2.  His second album, Agua Del Pozo, was released in Canada in February 2007 under his own Caracol Records imprint.

Alex has won two JUNO Awards (2006 and 2008) and a SOCAN Award (2009) in Canada; a Latin Grammy Award (2010) for Best New Artist and was nominated for a 2011 Grammy Award in the Best Latin Pop Album category. In the digital space, “Agua del Pozo”  reached #1 on the iTunes Latin Tropical Album chart (7 on the overall Latin Album Chart). In July 2008, “Amor Infinito” was selected as a Single of the Week, this time by iTunes Japan and he has recorded an exclusive iTunes “Live at Soho” session.

Alex Cuba has performed in the UK, Japan, the US and Canada, sharing the stage with artists like Jose Gonzalez and Seu Jorge (Central Park Summerstage), Feist and Cesaria Evora.

Alex Cuba songs featured in “La Dany”
Alex Cuba – Official Website
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Ron Davis

Ron Davis
Ron Davis is a pianist in the great virtuoso tradition. His music is rooted in the swing and post-bop idioms. Active and popular on the jazz scene, Ron has played across the world. In Canada, Ron’s home base, he is known as both a dazzling musician, and an entertaining performer.

Ron’s recordings have been acclaimed both at home and internationally. His 2007 concert recording Subarashii Live is a nod to Japan, where Ron spent several months as a Visiting Scholar and an Arts Fellow while his 2005 release, Shimmering Rhythm, a brilliant blend of jazz, classical, klezmer and world music, was a Top 10 pick by CBC Radio, JAZZ.FM, and CODA Magazine.

Every Friday and Saturday night, Ron plays and hosts some of the world’s finest jazz talent in the Ron Davis and Friends series at Toronto’s historic Old Mill Inn. Ron blogs and writes the keyboard column for Canadian Musician magazine. He is also busy with Playing Along to Surpass, a workshop series for those in the business world. Ron recently begun SymphRonica, new collaborations with symphony orchestras that bring a new dimension to his unique sound.

Ron studied music in his teens with the late Darwyn Aitken, a pupil of classical great David Saperton and jazz legend Oscar Peterson. He also studied at the Royal Conservatory of Music. Ron has had other lives: as a lawyer, and as an Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto, where he earned a PhD in French linguistics.

Ron’s community work includes serving on the Executive of the Glenn Gould Foundation. He is involved in many charities, including Peacebuilders International, and Feed the Hungry, and as co-Producer of Jazz for Herbie, an annual benefit for the Sick Kids Hospital Foundation.

Ron Davis composition featured in “La Dany”
Ron Davis – Official Website
Connect with Ron Davis on Facebook

Rubén “Beny” Esguerra

Reuben Esguerra
Rubén “Beny” Esguerra was born in Bogotá, Colombia in 1979 and arrived in Toronto, Canada at the age of eight. As a musician, he began to play the violin at age 10. At the age of 12 he traveled to Harrogate, England with the Winona String Ensemble to represent Canada at the Harrogate International Youth Music Festival. By the age of 13, he had begun his high school career at the Etobicoke School of the Arts, where he majored in music.

Beny is currently an active percussionist with: Diego Marulanda and Pacandé, New Cuban Generation, Cruzao, Cruzao Grupo Monstruoso, Proyecto Charanguero, Pueblo Unido, Dimension Vallenata, Sacha Wiliamson, Gruvoria, AlucinArte, Pantiki Sound System and Grupo Ixtasis.

He has performed at the Distillery Jazz Festival and the Montreal Jazz Festival with Latin Jazz trumpet player Nick “Brownman” Ali and Cruzao and at the Atlantic Jazz Festival with award-winning Latin vocalist Eliana Cuevas. He was invited to perform with Cielomama at the Ven al Sur music festival in Bogotá Colombia and in 2004 shared the stage with renowned artists from across Latin America and the Caribbean at the Havana Hip Hop Festival in Havana, Cuba.

Beny has a Masters Degree in Musicology/Ethnomusicology from York University in Toronto, Canada.

“La Dany” original music composed by Rubén “Beny” Esguerra
New Traditions Music – Official Website
Connect with Rubén “Beny” Esguerra on Facebook

Diego Marulanda

Diego Marulanda
Diego Marulanda’s talent as a composer, bandleader and musician have garnered national and international recognition. Since his arrival to Canada from his native Colombia, Diego has taken his band Diego Marulanda and Pacande and their contemporary cutting-edge Latin sound from the cramped backstreet clubs of Toronto to the world-renowned Montreal International Jazz Festival, Winnipeg International Folk Festival and the Pan American Games, performing in front of crowds 50,000 strong. He has toured extensively across Canada and the US. His second album, Por El Sol, was acknowledged by Canada’s public and its professional music establishment with a Juno Award nomination.

Diego’s music has been heard on television series including La Femme Nikita and Peter Benchley’s Amazon. His talents as a composer and his ability to work with creative teams have recently taken him from creating the live musical landscape of a Mexican rodeo in Cozumel to composing film scores and creating music for dance performances with local choreographers and those as far away as Iqaluit, Nunavut in Canada’s Arctic. Diego has been asked to sit on art juries and has himself been the recipient of numerous grants. Diego released his fourth CD Ke ‘ Ma in 2006.

Diego Marulanda songs featured in “La Dany”
Connect with Diego Marulanda on Facebook

Permalink | Comments (0) | Apr 27, 2009

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