This is the last edition of our Digital Newsletter in 2004, that's why we want to share with our friends, just in the final days of December and the year, right occasion for intimate meetings with relatives and friends, a special dish of our native food, the Cuban Ajiaco, which is also, as a concept, symbol and reflection of the existing social-cultural process regarding to mixing of races and transculturation which, as Don Fernando Ortiz stated, gave birth to a qualitatively new entity: Cuban people.

The wise Don Fernando Ortiz is considered as one of the three discoverers of Cuba. The first one was Christopher Columbus who qualified the Island as the prettiest land of the world, the German naturalist and geographer Alejandro de Humboldt followed him, who published the first scientific essay about our country, after his researches in 1800 and 1804.

But Cubaness has not a complete radiography without the comments of our third discoverer, restless diffuser of the African contributions to our Cuban culture. This one was named with the culinary term of Ajiaco because it is formed thanks to diverse influences.

This genuinely Cuban product flourished around the XIX century as a mix, portraying indigenous, Spanish and African elements without ignoring Yucatecas, French and African gleams besides the permanent presence of Caribbean treads.

Cubans prefer a very meaty soup that makes us sweat called Ajiaco. It is composed by fleshes and vegetables aided by species to conform a nutritious and delicious food.

The undoubted presence of customs and hands coming from different places of the world allowed the mixing in this Caribbean island to crown the Cuban table with an exquisite dish that could be accompanied with an aromatic cup of Cuban coffee and the volutes of a Habano tobacco.

To find the incredible symbiosis of these mixtures, you can go to any restaurant, but if you make up your mind and go to La Bodeguita del Medio, as best menu, they offer “El Menú al Ritmo Criollo”, penned by our peerless Nicolás Guillén, National Poet honoring this nice and famous space.

White rice
black beans
pork rolls
revive a death
masses of fried pork
delicious!
roasted pork leg
how nice!
baked chicken
tasteful!
Moros y Cristianos
fried bananas
divine!
Yucca with mojo
A fancy
season salad
criolla decoration
sweet potatoes with cinnamon
buñuelos
made in grandma's style
sweets with syrup
and cheese
fast dessert
Bread and butter
always present
Cuban coffee
At the end.

By: Miralys Sánchez Pupo.

Andalucian Essence in the Cuban Ajiaco

Since many years ago, Reynier Mariño is considered one of the best defenders of the flamenco music in the island, his work already recorded by National labels, having growing success and gaining more and more acceptance, is also part of this well-packed bunch of sonorities conforming the panorama of Cuban music.

On the concert's note where Mariño featured his debut work "Alma Gitana", Master Harold Gramatges wrote: ''This group is opening an space for the legitimate emotion in its essence for that Lorca-style goblin showing his face when a group like this one convoke the happy event of the Cuban meeting with Andalucian roots''.

Without a doubt, during XVIII century, qualified by studious as the decisive period in the formation process of Cuban nationality and culture, about 23, 62 % of Iberian inmigrants came from Andalucia. These figures didn't changed in XIX, although Galicians, Catalans and Asturians also found place in our country.

With the exodus everything remains untouched. The so-called transculturation process mutated also the Andalucian essence to give space to Cuban Ajiaco. This ''all mixed'', tackled so many times by Nicolás Guillén, gave more priviledge to ''punto guajiro'' brought by the Isleños than to this sort of peninsular manifestation.

Flamenco music entwined then not only with other instruments, such as batá drums, but also with other sonorities which resulting sound has been registered for history, in the most important luminaries recordings of all times.

Since many years ago, Cubans managed to testify the purest flamenco music revival through dancing companies and older people might remember Obdulia Breijo and Marianita Morejón, both cultivators of this genre just as it came from the Iberian Peninsula.

In this way, Reynier Mariño appearing at the current Cuban stage is not a surprise.

Notes from the article Reynier Mariño o la Resurreción del flamenco. By Marta María Ramírez, Publisher on Granma Newspaper. July/2003

The music of the outstanding composer, guitar master and remarkable orchestral director, Leo Brouwer, running through an assorted range of angles and his musical quality is an artistic jewel, valuable for experts and public in general.

His entire body of work has been compiled in the Cuban recording industry. EGREM Label is gathering diverse volumes of his important work at Grupo de Experimentación Sonora del ICAIC (GES), highlighting Leo Brouwer`s artistic value heading this group, contributing his experience as guitarist, symphonic composer and creator of soundtracks for movies together with his huge knowledge about popular music.

In that epoch his creative labor was very close to the Nueva Trova Movement and notable artists such as Silvio Rodríguez, Sara González, Pablo Milanés, Eduardo Ramos, Noel Nicola, Emiliano Salvador and Sergio Vitier, among others.

Special spotlight of EGREM is also de edition of diverse volumes of “La obra guitarrística de Leo Brouwer” and CD Clásicos Cubanos. The latter can be enjoyed in the chords of National Symphonic Orchestra featuring beautiful songs under the direction of Leo. His music can be listened in cuts from the “Grandes Momentos de Chucho Valdés e Irakere”, where his outstanding creation joins the songs of this evergreen of the Cuban music: Chucho Valdés.

The most recent compilation of Leo Brouwer work was made under Colibrí Label using the expression “Homo Ludens” as title of this album. According to Leo ..."Homo Ludens" means “man that plays” and it is precisely in an early playful stage where man starts to show his abilities. If we are going to talk about professional secrets, mine has been to find a real equilibrium between the highest rigor and the pure joy of the music as a game…

Digging in the topic of our cultural-ethnic mixture, expressed in all the artistic creations of the island, we are proudly recommending the book “Visiones sobre Lam'', written by this outstanding researcher Fernando Ortiz.

In 1950, Fernando Ortiz devoted this book of art to Wifredo Lam. This analysis, is one of the most profound and meticulous ever made of this Cuban painter, evincing the wide spectrum of topics approached by this Cuban intellectual.

The reedition made by the Fernando Ortiz Editorial is accompanied by an introduction and notes penned by Argeliers León, elaborated around the 70s, little before dying and it's an excellent reference for studious and specialists.

Soycubano congratulates the notable writer Jaime Sarusky, who received the National Prize of Literature in 2004, outstanding accolade to acknowledge his entire work and the Primma Ballerinna Alicia Alonso, glory of Cuban and world ballet in the commemoration of her birthday.

The Fototeca de Cuba, through its cultural project ‘'Fondo Cubano de Imagen Fotográfica'', is readying the VIII Jornada for the Iberoamerican Photographer Day, annual event to be held on January since 1997.
This date was chosen because on January 3, 1841 , the first photographic studio of Iberoamerican was opened in the former 26, Obispo St , Old Havana, by the North American daguerreotypist George W. Halsey.
In the island, the photography has important exponents such as: Raúl Corrales, Korda, Liborio Noval, Rene Peña, Marta Maria Pérez and Roberto Salas among others.

Forms and colors will be present this late december with the famous painter Agustín Bejarano's work, who will be exposing his sample "8 Manos year Old" at the Gallery Espacio Abierto, from the magazine "Revolución y Cultura" and also with the paintress and engraver Aziyadé Ruiz Vallejo, one of the youngest voices from the cuban plastic; who will be presenting "Difficilis Relations", at Lonja del Comercio, Suite of the Square San Francisco de Asís.

Since 1997 Cuban video clip has its Lucas Award, dedicated to the best productions for this artistic expression. In this 2004, quality and volume of selected works showed the interest and strength of this project. The awards were given to videos made by gifted producers including figures of important and popular artists and groups, such as: Charanga Habanera, Arnaldo y su Talismán, Wuarapo, Wena Onda, Los Papines, Karma duet, Rochy, X Alfonso and Polito Ibañez.

Days of dance and music is the main proposal of this XVII edition of the homage for Enrique Jorrín to be held in Candelaria city around the upcoming 23 to 26 in this Pinar del Río city, cradle for the Cha cha cha creator.