Juan de Marcos González

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Juan de Marcos González, Moers Festival 2012
Juan de Marcos González

Juan de Marcos González Cárdenas (* 1954 in Havana ) is a Cuban singer, arranger and producer. He is best known as the band leader of the Afro-Cuban All Stars and as a guitar virtuoso on the Cuban Tres .

González, who comes from a family of musicians, did not pursue a purely musical education, but earned a doctorate in water engineering from the University of Havana in 1989. After initially having a greater interest in rock and electric guitars, he discovered the traditional Cuban son and was co-founder of the Sierra Maestra group in 1976 , which he led until 1996 and which initiated a certain son renaissance by maintaining the repertoire of the twenties to forties. ( Jesús Alemañy , the leader of ¡Cubanismo ! , was the group's trumpeter.)

In March 1996 González was with the "Afro-Cuban All Stars", founded in the previous year, for recordings in the studio of the state record label EGREM in Havana's Miramar district. There were also Ry and Joachim Cooder who had planned recordings for an album with musicians from West Africa. However, they were stuck at the Paris airport, and Ry Cooder and his producer Nick Gold (who had already released two Sierra Maestra records outside of Cuba) spontaneously organized joint recordings with the Afro-Cuban All Stars. González brought in a number of veteran musicians as soloists, some of whom had already retired. The two parallel albums Buena Vista Social Club (the cooperation with Ry Cooder) and A toda Cuba le gusta (González 'original project) were showered with hits and awards.

In May 2005 González founded his own label, “DM Ahora!” , Which was supposed to be dedicated to current Cuban music. It is based in London and has a studio in González's Havana home. Her first releases included her own works, the debut albums Goza Pepillo by the fusion band Interactivo led by Roberto Carcassés and A Diario by the rapper Telmary Díaz .

Since 2007 he has lived in Mexico with his wife and two daughters, where their daughters are studying music.

Discography

  • with Sierra Maestra:
  • Viaje a la Semilla , EGREM, 1994
  • ¡Dundunbanza! , World Circuit, 1994
  • Tíbiri Tábara , World Circuit 1997
  • with Buena Vista Social Club:
  • Buena Vista Social Club , World Circuit, 1997
  • Introducing Rubén González , World Circuit, 1997
  • with the Afro-Cuban All-Stars:
  • A toda Cuba le gusta , World Circuit / Nonesuch, 1997
  • Distinto, diferente , Elektra, 1999
  • Live in Japan , DM Ahora !, 2004
  • Step Forward , DM Ahora !, 2005
  • with Félix Baloy:
  • Baila mi Son , Tumi, 2003

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Juan de Marcos & The Afro-Cuban All-Stars . In: Fusion Magazine, February 27, 2013, accessed September 20, 2013
  2. ↑ Steve Kiviat: Why Juan de Marcos González Won't Make You Pachanga Till You're Ready , Interview with González in: Washington City Paper of March 23, 2011, accessed on August 5, 2012 (English)
personal data
SURNAME González, Juan de Marcos
ALTERNATIVE NAMES González Cárdenas, Juan de Marcos (full name); Marcos González, Juan de
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Cuban singer, arranger and producer
DATE OF BIRTH 1954
PLACE OF BIRTH Havana