The JGO at the International Guitar Festival in Havanna

Improvisación - days full of surprise

The idea for this tour already had its origin 4 years ago, when probably the most famous Cuban musician, Leo Brouwer worked as guest-conductor with the JGO for a week. He then suggested that the JGO and the " Sonantas Habaneras " from Havanna should establish contact for exchange of experience. When in the year 2000 the JGO was asked to play at the EXPO in Hanover, that was the right moment for an invitation of the Cubans to Germany. The trip to Havanna was now the subsequent counter-invitation through Leo Brouwer and Jesús Ortega, the director of the Cuban ensemble. It was the first time that that the JGO participated at an international guitar-festival with international guitar - VIPs such as Leo Brouwer, Costas Cotsiolis, Timo Korhonen, Pavel Steidel, Joaquin Clerch, the EOS - quartet and many others who played concerts and gave master-classes.
On this tour the JGO travelled with 3 conductors and our manager, Susan. Arnold Sesterheim, who managed the funding of many exceptional projects of the JGO under difficult conditions for years, (the German Music-Counsil and the BDZ - BW deserve our gratitude for their support) apart from hisactive role as conductor also had got the honorable task to be member of the jury of the competition.

10.05.

After a 14 hours flight from Frankfurt with a stopover of 2 hours in Madrid the group arrived in the evening in Havanna. Already the the first problems arouse. On our entry-visa, a stamp was missing, therefore forms had to be filled out again and everybody had to pay an extra charge. But finally the group could pass the customs and outside the airport the Cuban friends were waiting already. Coming outside the building, we immediately sensed pleasantly the tropical warm climate. The Cubans had come to pick us up with a bus, and to bring us to the accomodation.

11.05.

This day was only for rehearsels. It took place in a very narrow, banana-trees foliage framed bower with roofs against the direct sun, but the place had a perspiration-driving incubator-effect. Some wind, that blew in from the 100 meters distant Atlantic Ocean made the temperature a bit more bearable.

Program:

12.05.

At the this first free day the entire group drove with public, incredibly overcrowded buses into the ancient part of town, some went on with a taxi to the 16 km distant beach where they got themselves a heavy sunburn quickly. The sun stands about vertically at midday, practically there are no shadows . The others strolled through the fascinating ancient Havana, with its tropical atmosphere mated with a certain morbid flair of decay. Many of the architecturally beautiful houses in the colonial-style and Jugendstil is decrepit, only a very few have been restorated. Old American cars, Cadillacs and Pontiacs from the fifties, lots of cabs, bike-cabs and horse-coaches filled the narrow streets and everywhere on the streets were friendly people. Some wanted to sell something, for instance pictures of Che Guevara or Fidel Castro or also cigars. No one of the numerous pubs was without a live - band. At times three groups and another radio from one of the windows of the upper floors could be heard simultaneously. They played the Cuban music very well , but on partly very poor instruments. Usually these bands consisted of percussion, contrabass, two guitars, chant and a melody-instrument, sometimes they also had a simple keyboard. With a Cuba Libre, Daiquiri or Mojito, a drink from lime-juice, white rum and mint-leaves that is very refreshing (you only then notice that the drink contained alcohl when you tried to stand up again) one could rest here perfectly.
Going back to the Teatro we went at the "Malecon", the famous Ocean - drive of Havana. Children bathed despite prohibition at the rocky coast.
In the evening we listened to the opening-concert of the festival. Beside solo-contributions of the prizewinners of the competition of previous years there performed a youth - guitar - orchestra of 100 players with perfect interplay and stage - choreography some Baroque and Cuban folk - pieces. Climax of the impressive performance was a rhythmically complex Rap with two singers.

13.05.

Our first concert took place at the Teatro Amadeo Roldan. It was probably the most important one for the JGO. Both, the "Sonantas Habaneras" and the JGO contributed pieces to the program. The morning was free for rehearsels in the theater where also the competition and all other festival-activities took place.
Therefore it was a lack of rooms there and we had to change the place several times - bringing all the instruments from one room to the other. Fortunately Jesús Ortega brought us the presumably only one in Havanna existing set of Hannabach bass guitar strings. One of ours was broken the day before and we didn't have no substitute. With the " Sonantas Habaneras" there was designed to do a common rehearsel because we wanted to play the encores all together with the two ensembles. That worked very well and the public loved the common performance. In the meantime there also had to be organized and tuned (with water) a bunch of bottles. They are applied in the piece of Marian Budos "Three Days with the Eastern Emperor". The sound of bottle - blowing in combination with the guitars yields a very appealing effect to the public.

Representatives of the Cuban ministry of Education and Arts and Leo Brouwer listened to that concert. Leo was very pleased and cordially congratulated Roland Boem and the JGO after the concert for the interpretation of his piece " Acerca del cielo...". Also many of the festival-participants expressed their respect for the JGO.
Afterwards, we spent the night with a sponteneous party at the Malecon with quite a lot of " Cuba Libre ". It was a very special atmospheare when the currency broke in the whole city. The silouettes of the skyscrapers emerged eerily in the darkness against the night-heaven. Some Cuban teenagers joined our group. They brought percussion-instruments, started to sing and to clap rhythms and danced all night long.

14.05.

Next day, our second day with a concert, everybody assembled in the late afternoon at the concert - hall in the Basilica San Francisco in the old part of town.
This place, the Basilica, is a wonderful building with palms growing in the inner courtyards. From the " torre ", the belfry, one has an all around-gaze over the whole city, the harbour and the ocean. The Basilica contains a school, a museum and serves for numerous cultural events. The chief is Gertraud Ojeda, a lady descendant from Germany, who was pleased, to be able to speak with us in her language.
The concert went very well. It was recorded and broadcasted by Habana - Radio. Fortunately we could get a copy of that recording on the last day of our stay.

15.05.

One of the climaxes of the whole tour, was a trip with a rented bus to Piña Del Rio, the center of the tobacco-industry and cigar-manufacturing. After a three-hour drive through the tropical landscape, we reached the city and visited one of the cigar-factories. Actually, the famous " Cohibas " are produced completely in handicraft. Approximately 100 workers sit in a big hall at their workbenches. They talk loudely with each other or listen to a lecturer, who tells or reads stories for them - against the boredom of their work. Approximately 10000 cigars are produced daily, that makes about 100 - 140 per worker. The prestidigitation with the work is amazingly; miscellaneous leaves are rolled up and molded in a form until they look one like the other. Other men or women sort these rolled cigars according to their color, again others are responsible for the quality control or the labelling.
In the afternoon, the trip continued to Viñales, a small city amid a bizarre but however Caribbean mildly looking landscape with canyons, steeply emergent rocks and exotic vegetation. Here from Leo Brouwer must have gotten his inspiration for his " Paisajes Cubanas " - compositions. Per coincidence, we got an unbelievable finale of the day in a plain and simple farmhouse: A "5 * - menue" with half a lobster for everyone, chickens, fish and rice was served. Living chickens and pigs ran about the tables, that were arranged quickly in the courtyard. 3 women prepared the meal within minimum time and the host brought soft drinks and beer from the neighborhood in his backpack. Finally everybody got a tasty Cuban coffee. It was a downright banquet, from which we returned to Havanna late at night.

16.05.

On this free day most of the group drove to the approximately 16 km distant Playa Del Este because they wanted to go bathing. On the way back to the city we saw the American ex - President Jimmy Carter among his security guards in a big convoy. He was in Cuba to discuss some political topics with Fidel Castro.
In the evening, we went to the final concert of the festival. The 1. prizewinner of the competition played the guitar-concert of Mario Castelnuovo Tedesco. Further pieces of the program were guitar-concerts of Eduardo Falu, a modern piece and an arrangement of a Paganini - violin-concerto. The best performance concert of the evening of was the recitel of Pawel Steidel. He really played fantastically and certainly must be counted among the best guitarists of the world today.

Jury and prizewinners of the contest

17.05.

In the morning the JGO had a meeting and workshops with the " Sonantas Habaneras ":
Arnold Sesterheim lectured about German Zupfmusik after 1945, (Schwaen, Wüsthoff...) with some examples from CDs and reported about the tradition of the music of plucked instruments in Germany. The " Three Misunderstandings on F. S." from Wulfin Lieske commented then Helmut Oesterreich. The JGO played the work mouvement by mouvement after the respective introduction. The interest in contemporary music for guitar-ensemble was generally very big, because the Cubans predominantly were familiar with the Spanish and Latin American repertoire.
In the afternoon our last but again very beautiful concert took place at the Gran Teatro de Habana in the the center of the city. Once again we shared the program with another group, the guitar-ensemble of the city of Holguin. This Cuban ensemble consisted of excellent young players who could execute the most rapid scales (music of Paco de Lucia) absolutely clearly even in unison. Music can be a socially highly estimated professional career in Cuba and therefore already very young pupils practice carefully and concentratedly. The reservoir of highly-talented and well-motivated players is enormous.
After the concert, we had the opportunity for another little conversation with Brouwer, and then went to the Fiesta with the "Sonantas Habaneras" and the ensemble from Holguin.

18.05.

It was already the day to say goodbye to this fascinating country where music and the friendlyness of the people are perceptible everywhere. We spent the last few hours with another walk through the ancient part of town, that included the sightseeing of the cathedral, which had inspired Augustin Barrios to his famous composition. In the evening, we went to the airport and after an awkward and lengthy procedure of check - in we finally found some sleep during the return flight.
One thing that is particularly worthful besides the fantastic musical experiences and the encountering of a quite diffrent way of living and culture is: we met numerous new friends and could intensify already existing contacts. Everybody wishes that it might not have been the last time to meet each other and to make music together.