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CD Review
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Bay Area Reporter, CD Review >>
Cuban voice
One of Cuba's great vocalists, Havana-born Omara Portuondo has been singing before the public since 1948. Curiously, her initial outing was in a vocal ensemble that specialized in English repertoire. Although she traveled to the United States early on to perform in Orlando de la Rosa's quartet for six months, her fame blossomed when she returned to her homeland.
In 1952, Omara Portuondo joined Las D'Aida quartet along with her sister Haydeé. For the next 15 years, the group was oft-considered one of the finest vocal ensembles in the history of Cuban music. After the quartet's demise, Portuondo continued working as a soloist, basing herself in Havana, where she remains a beloved artist.
The oft-brassy tracks on her latest compilation, Sentimento (Cuban Essentials), recorded between 1973-96, demonstrate that Portuondo may still possess one of the most stunning sets of pipes on the island. To accompaniment that is Cuban to the core, she explores a wide variety of styles, including jazz. Some of the songs are laden with sentiment, with Portuondo sobbing, crying, and indulging in feelings that some would prefer to keep behind closed doors. Her rendition of "Te Quer'a" is so over the top that I expect it will either leave you screaming or screaming for more.
On other tracks, Portuondo's amazing voice dances, swings, croons, and serenades. As one might surmise from doing the math, she sounds best in the early recordings, with the tracks from 1996 revealing the inevitable effects of age. But the voice and interpretations are inimitable. 04/06/06 >> go there
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