SONGS IN THE KEY OF LIFE

28 HAVANA’S VIBRANT SCENE

Thanks to centuries of cross-cultural fermentation, Cuba’s capital is a round-the-clock jam session of staggering diversity. Rumba, jazz, son cubano, metal – it’s all resonating here

Cuba might have endured shortages and sacrifice over the past 50 years, but the arts – and music, in particular – have prospered, spurred by government patronage, ample local talent and a remarkably fertile culture. Creativity is particularly strong in Havana, a city of faded grandeur and animated street life that is starting to rediscover its entrepreneurial spirit.

The Cuban capital virtually bleeds music, a simmering stew of Spanish, African, French, North American and indigenous influences that combine in a beautifully syncopated whole. The city bubbles over in a maelstrom of sounds that swing, dance and rock out of every nook and cranny. There’s the jazz trombonist standing on the sea wall practising his scales; rumba drummers engrossed in an all-day Santería ritual; the troubadour seducing tourists with songs about Che Guevara; an octogenarian crooner belting out a plaintive Bésame mucho; and thrash metallers screaming something in Spanish about revolution. The music never stops. Even better, it’s nearly always live. In Havana, guitars are as common as mobile phones, and singing and dancing as natural as walking and breathing.

Popular exports son cubano and mambo are merely a warm-up act. You can walk through the city and plot the path from Beny Moré to hip hop via jazz, charanga, rumba, salsa, timba and cha-cha-chá. Take a deep breath and dive in.

1. El Guajirito

During the mid-1990s, American slide guitarist Ry Cooder resurrected a group of half-forgotten Cuban musicians and funnelled them into an extraordinary collective called the Buena Vista Social Club. The band