As stories of musicians' ill fortune go, it ranks not far from Leonard Cohen having to tour because his business manager stole $5m of his savings. In 1996, the Malians Bassekou Kouyate and Djelimady Tounkara were invited by World Circuit Records' Nick Gold to Havana to record with a handful of Cuban singers and musicians. Depending who you talk to, lost passports, visa issues or better-paid gigs elsewhere ensured the Malian musicians never made it to Cuba.

The last time the American Ballet Theatre performed in Cuba, Fidel Castro had been in power for barely a year and relations between Washington and Havana were yet to turn sour.

The Jose Marti Brigade of Art Instructors was founded 20 October 2004, when they began their work throughout the country. As in other provinces, instructors in the central province of Villa Clara work to provide children with the fundamental background to develop their artistic skills and help them become artists.

These art instructors spread their knowledge all over the country, even in the most hard-to-reach places. Here in Manicaragua, these young art providers have become an essential part of community life, prioritizing art no matter the hindrances they may come across along their way.

From www.soycubano.com October 20 was established in Cuba as ‘'Day of Cuban Culture'', honoring the memorable October 20, 1868, when the mambí troops under the leadership of Carlos Manuel de Cespedes set free Bayamo city and people sang for the first time our National Hymn, La Bayamesa.
The Cuban National Hymn history can be traced around August 13, 1867, when the Bayamo's Revolutionay Committee met at the lawyer Pedro Perucho Figueredo's house, to elaborate the plans necessary to unchain the Cuban independentist movement. There, Figueredo was encouraged to compose ‘'Our Marsellesa''. At very early hours of that August 14, this Bayamo-born revolutionary was writing the melody that later became our National Hymn. It was called La Bayamesa as expression of its revolutionary character, revering also the place serving as cradle for the national rebellion. (*)

Cairo, Oct. 21 (Prensa Latina) The book "Arabs in Cuba" by researcher Rigoberto Menendez provides a new reason for Latin Americans in Egypt to defend their common identity, based on the influence of immigrants from the Middle East.

A perennial curiosity for looking into the roots of their national identity, culture, and history brought together the audience at the Cervantes Institute in Cairo for the launching of Menendez' book, which many praised as a masterly.

After battling for 16 days at the 2010 FIVB Men's World Championship in Italy, the Cuban team returned to their country heads high having captured a silver medal at the highest level of international volleyball. The youngest team at the competition somehow managed to overcome their lack of experience to dramatically catapult Cuban men's volleyball back into world stage, capturing the attention and heart of fans from around the globe.

Another controversial and popular Cuban soap opera is fueling debates among Cuban audiences. Bisexuality, alcoholism, drug addiction, prostitution, crime, mental illness all feature.

BBC Radio 4 programme: Really happening!

Watch the first take of the first track recorded by AfroCubism here plus short films of performances. This is World Circuit's dream project – the original intention for Buena Vista Social Club was a stellar collaboration of musicians from Mali and Cuba. Now the original plan has finally been realised with an incredible line-up including Eliades Ochoa, Bassekou Kouyate, Djelimady Tounkara, Toumani Diabaté, Grupo Patria, Kasse Mady Diabaté and Lassana Diabaté.

An Ecological meeting took place September 15 in Havana: the rap singers from 'Cubanos en la Red' and several institutions celebrated an ecological encounter in this capital.

The Cuban Music Institute and the National Center of Popular Music are honored to present the 26th Edition of the International Jazz Festival ¨Jazz Plaza 2010¨ that is chaired by Chucho Valdés and will be held in Havana from December 16th to December 19th, 2010 with the participation of famous artists from Cuba and abroad.

The Creole Choir of Cuba are such a potent force of positivity, their government dispatched them to Haiti to help out after the earthquake. Dorian Lynskey meets a group on a musical mission.

The American Ballet Theatre company is to perform in Cuba later this year for the first time in 50 years.

Barack Obama's administration has given the troupe permission to dance at the Havana International Ballet Festival at the Karl Marx Theatre.

Enter the competition to win one of five DVDs of the new film: Sons of Cuba, released 20 September.

One of Cuba's most talented film makers, Fernando Perez, has selected a challenging topic for his new film. It features Jose Marti, the Cuban revolutionary (1853 – 1895) during his early years, as he observes the many injustices perpetrated by the Spanish colonial power.

As a school boy, Marti shows his concern for fairness by refusing to reveal to his Spanish professor, the identity of his cheating class mates. Within Marti's closely knit family there is a parallel dilemma. His Spanish father, a police officer in the colonial force, meticulously enforces the law against a woman aristocrat, that results in his dismissal. When offered a new job in Havana he accepts taking Marti with him, providing them with many new experiences.