EyeShotJazz | Jazz Photography

Last Saturday night at Town Hall, Earshot Jazz Festival 2013 presented La Familia Valera Miranda.
Father Félix Valera Miranda (guitar and vocals), wife Carmen (maracas and vocals) and sons Enrique “Kiki” (cuatro), Raúl (bass) and Ernesto (bongos) have virtually defined Cauto son, the mid-tempo form of the Cuban son style, marked by its easy-going, contagious swing. In this special Seattle residency, this family, plus Wilfredo Fuentes (congas) and Antonio Rodón (clave and vocals), from Santiago de Cuba, shares in a masterclass and performs.

One of several families that have played a significant role in carrying the deeply rooted local traditions of Cuba’s unique musical identity, La Familia Valera Miranda stems from subsistence farmer ancestors that populated the rural areas of the Oriente (eastern Cuba), primarily the Cauto River valley near the villages of Bayamo and Las Tunas. As they gradually migrated to the areas of Santiago de Cuba, Guantánamo, and the legendary Sierra Maestra mountains, La Familia’s ancestors exchanged artistic knowledge of their music as well as their daily and social life.

The Valera branch contributed Hispanic elements and Afro-Cuban elements derived from Bantu origins. The Miranda branch brought elements specific to the Canary Islands and Andalucía, as well as unusual Afro-Hispanic mixtures represented, in part, by the famous singer Milla Miranda, the mother of Félix Valera.

Here is a link to the Earshot Jazz Festival website  schedule for the rest of the Festival.

Here is a link to the Earshot Jazz Festival website  schedule for the rest of the Festival.