WOMAD

Jesus Cutiño

From Cuba, United Kingdom

The region of Oriente in the far east of the island of Cuba is renowned for its music and musicians. It was there that the quintessentially Cuban style known as son was born. It was also in Oriente that Jesus Cutiño was born thirty years ago. After studying the tres, that tiny Cuban guitar that is the mainstay of the son sound, Jesus joined a local band called Superbanda where he honed his skills as a singer and tres player. Jesus moved to Havana in 1995 and clinched a residency at the famous Lluvia de Oro (‘Rain of Gold’) bar on one of the city’s main drags, with the group Son de mi Terra, who specialized in traditional son, a style that suited Jesus down to the ground. At around this time he also started to compose. In 1998 Jesus moved to London and quickly became a feature of the city’s vibrant salsa scene, appearing with numerous bands including Cubanito, Conjunto Sabroso, El Equipo and Alex Wilson. In 2003 he formed his own band, Son de Cuba, to concentrate on developing his own songs within the context of a roots acoustic son sound.