Olivero Mambo Solo Horn

There is a statue of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in Havana. On my first visit toCuba in 2017, I was told by one of the local musicians: Mozart would havebeen been a good Cuban. I was intrigued by this comment and thus began theinspiration for this album which was recorded in Havana, Cuba in January,2020 and released by Alpha Classics on July 10th, 2020.At the time of my first visit to Cuba, I had already been dancing salsa formany years so I knew and loved Cuban popular music. Salsa, son, mambo, bolero these are my idea of musical heaven. But the Cuban classical scene wascompletely unknown to me. I had been asked to give a French horn masterclasson my first trip there but had no idea what to expect how many horn playerscould there be in Cuba? I was blown away by how many turned up to class, howwell they played and how full of music they all were. I felt an immediateconnection with my new Cuban musician friends and through them, I started todiscover the classical music culture of Cuba. Mozarts statue in Old Havanabegan to make complete sense. I decided then and there to do what I could toraise awareness for the wonderful classical music-making going on in Cuba.Thus the Mozart y Mambo project was born. This exciting, unique and, Iadmit, somewhat crazy project combines much-loved solo pieces for French hornby Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart with traditional Cuban music. These are perhapsnot the most obvious pairing but to all those who ask me, why record Mozartin Cuba, I can only say once you hear it, you will know why. The energy andpassion of these musicians is so inspiring and I hope you will be able tohear the special atmosphere we created during the recording. This project hasbeen one of the highlights of my life and we are so happy that 3b Produktionwere with us and made a wonderful documentary about the project called ACuban Journey with Sarah Willis, which was broadcast on Deutsche Welle TV.I am happy and proud to have worked on this album with the Havana LyceumOrchestra, a chamber orchestra made up of young and talented Cuban musiciansand their Cuban conductor José Antonio Méndez Padrón (Pepe), and alsowell-known musicians from the Cuban popular music scene. I could not havewished for a more inspiring and hard working team of musicians with whom torealise this project. Part of the proceeds from the album will go towardsbuying instruments for the musicians of the Havana LyceumOrchestra.!