The image on this third solo album – is of an artist laying himself bare to his audience. Fonseca has called it ‘Yo' (me) and has spoken of it as a new phase in his life. Certainly the album contains an even greater diversity of sounds and styles than on his previous recordings, if that were possible – Fonseca is already known for a refreshing openness towards music outside the traditional sphere of afro Cuban jazz, bringing influences from Brasil and Eastern Europe.
He gives himself the opportunity to express himself fully by drawing on instruments, voices and styles that are fundamental to his musical personality – funky Hammond organ, traditional North African (griot) singing and kora (harp), carnival conga, son and the music of the Yoruba saints. Alongside, his long serving jazz quartet plays brilliantly throughout.
He even has space for spoken poetry: the beautiful track ‘Siete Rayos' incorporates a legendary recording of National Poet Nicolás Guillén reciting ‘Yoruba Soy' which arrives like a lightning bolt to the heart midway through the song.
The album contains no less than 15 artists each contributing more than a simple solo – the great Senegalese singers Assane Mboup and Fatoumata Diawara as well as the kora of Sekou Kouyate and Babba Sissouko's talking drum lend a wonderful fluid sonority throughout to ideas which literally burst like flowers from Fonseca's fertile imagination. In lesser hands such a project might result in a tokenistic ‘guest star' approach but Fonseca's genius is to unify the whole to produce a sound which is at once a joyful celebration of the music as well as a journey from one side of the black Atlantic to the other.
Needless to say, throughout, there is room for Fonseca to show what a wonderful pianist he is. From percussive aggression through gentle passages and intricate, funky riffs, he displays a gift for melody rare in much contemporary jazz.

MAESTRA
33 minute documentary by Catherine Murphy, Spanish with English subtitles

Venice by Enrique Alvarez, The Disasters of War by Tomas Piard, Verde Verde by Enrique Pineda Barnet

Cuba will erect a monument and a plaza to pay tribute to the deceased three-time Olympian and world champion boxer Teofilo Stevenson in the eastern province of Las Tunas, Granma newspaper confirmed.

Lilian Rodriguez, president of the government in that territory, explained that sports and cultural events are being designed in remembrance of the athlete, who died June 11, 2012 of a sudden heart attack.

A U.S. court will begin on Sunday the trial for the cancellation of a Cuban music festival in Miami, home of extremist groups which are against the normalization of relations with the Caribbean country.

Judge Sarah Zabel will settle the case in a court of Miami-Dade, Florida, after hearing the arguments of the litigants.

Cuban group Juan Formell and Los Van Van have been nominated for Latin Grammy Awards Latino as other musicians selected in four categories.
The album "Van Van: La Maquinaria", by the record labels ACDAM and EGREM, which includes dance tracks with melodies from the years 1980 and 1990 with new arrangements.

The list of the Cuban renowned musicians chosen by the Latin Recording Academy, also consists of Leo Brouwer, Manuel Galban and Eliades Ochoa.

Cuba50 have 2 pairs of tickets to give away to go to the Dia de la Cultura Cubana Fiesta at Conway Hall in London on saturday 20 October 2012. Watch and dance to the fantastic Omar Puente and Raices Cubanas plus lots more.

To enter the competition – send an email to office@cuba50.org with 'Dia de la Cultura Cubana comp' in the subject line, with your full name and a contact tel number to arrive by 15 October 2012.

Once the 14th Paralympic Games have come to an end, London will always remember the performance of a Cuban athlete who delighted the crowd with her speed and strength. Her name is Yunidis Castillo, a Cuban sprinter who set three world records in as many events.

On Saturday, Castillo knew that she had to run the 400 meters T46 final impeccably. She had a perfect and strong start and ran without rivals to finish with an incredible 55.72 seconds, beating the previous record by Thsotlego Morama, from Botswana. Castillo even said this was a tough event for her since she was accustomed to shorter distances, and this one felt very long. However, she demonstrated herself to be the Queen of Speed in this London Paralympics.

Members and staff at community computer clubs (JJCE) marked the 25th anniversary of their foundation last September 8 and thanked the founder of the initiative, Fidel Castro Ruz, at a ceremony held at Havana's Palacio Central de Computacion, reported the AIN.

Participants thanked Castro and sent him a painting in recognition of his work creating the JJCE.

Havana Cultura say:

The National Art Schools may be the most famous, albeit unfinished, architectural legacy of the Cuban Revolution. Envisioned by Fidel Castro and Che Guevara in 1961, the 5-building complex was built with a surge of collective optimism in an ideal setting at Cuba's formerly luxurious (and exclusive) Country Club Park.

Their vision was grand: the National Art Schools were meant to house more than just artists, to be the physical embodiment of a national pride. Their architectural conception would be completely new; a style the People could call their own. Architects, Ricardo Porro, Roberto Gottardi, and Vittorio Garatti were tasked to create unique designs for each of the five structures, each imbued with the ideals of the Revolution.

Carlos Acosta is leading a plan to turn an abandoned arts school in Havana into an international dance centre.

For the first time in the UK a new generation of Cuba's talented musical diaspora have gathered together to record and release a Cuban son album, and on 13th September they will be performing live on Radio 3's In Tune. Listeners will also have a chance to learn more about the formation of this wonderful group from Son Yambu's founder Toby Herschmann.

The United Status Treasury Department applied new measures to block the program People to People established by the Obama administration in 2011, to expand traveling opportunities between the U.S, and Cuba.

New bureaucratic measures complicate the renewal of licenses issued to travel agencies last year and the application forms of an authorization to operate trips to the island increased from six to hundreds of pages to fill in.

Cuba finished in the 16th position in the medals table at the 2012 London Olympic Games with a harvest of 5 gold medals, 3 silvers and six bronze. Getting 2 golds and 2 bronze in boxing now ranks them 3rd in the world in boxing.