Tonight at 9pm in Havana's Teatro Nacional Alexander Abreu & Havana D'Primera officially release their album "La Vuelta al Mundo". Guests at the concert will include Carlos Vareles, Osain del Monte and salsero Luis Enrique, who shares vocals the title track with Alexander. The album was released oustide Cuba by Pafata Productions and won both a Grand Prize and Best Dance Music Album - Maestros at Cubadisco 2015. I don't know if this official release concert marks the release of the Cuban version of the CD on the Unicornio label or if we still have to wait for that to become available. In any case, Teatro Nacional is the place to be tonight if you find yourself in Havana. For more information about the Pafata release and speculation about what may yet be to come, checkout Bill's review . If you don't have "La Vuelta al Mundo" yet, you can buy it from the digital retailers such as iTunes, Amazon and CD-Baby.

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Click the link for the Cuban Jazz Train homepage

Calixto Oviedo's second Latin Jazz CD will drop July 30th with a Record Release Event at the prestigious Catalina Jazz Club in Hollywood. The event begins at 8:30pm and will feature special guests. You can buy your tickets in advance .

Amazingly the album has not leaked to the public yet, but those who have heard it during production have given rave reviews. For example, independent journalist Angel Lopez says:

In 2015 Calixto Oviedo brings us a CD of pure Cuban Jazz in his second independent Jazz production. While we have only heard a few songs from this CD, even un-mixed they already carry the promise of a big prize. What artistry by this legendary drummer, timbalero, conguero, composer and bandleader - in short a living legend of all the best we have in this Latin world! I promise you will love it. Please follow him. He is one of the greatest musicians of Cuba and one of the most innovative drummers of all time. The compositions are masterful; there is guaracha, afro, Pilón - a little of everything for your enjoyment. Don't miss it Los Angelinos  - Como Suena .

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The long-awaited date has finally arrived! Emilio Frias "El Niño" y La Verdad celebrate their 2nd Anniversary at Salon Rosado de la Tropical Benny Moré with the great José Alberto "El Canario" . Other guest artists include Manolito Simonet , Alexander Abreu , Septeto Santiaguero and Osain del Monte .

El Canario arrived Thursday and has been rehearsing with the band since then, so get ready for an amazing concert! I can't tell you how much it hurts that I was not in Havana this weekend. Tonight is also the final concert of three for the presentation of "Soy" - Buena Fe's new album at Karl Marx Theater. But more on that later.

Below you can enjoy a clip from rehearsal uploaded by Emilio to facebook yesterday. To all the timberos in Havana - enjoy the concert! To El Niño y La Verdad - happy anniversary!

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Today Orderquis Revé y Su Changüí have released two singles: "Vacúnala and "La Vida". The songs are available at iTunes, Amazon and other digital retailers worldwide. This is the first fruit of the new Tumbao Republika label based in Antwerp, Belgium and founded by two dedicated promoters of Cuban music. The single is a teaser for the album that will drop at the end of the year. 

Oderquis' music has all the raw power of changüí and the new songs are sizzling dance tracks, so buy yours now! As a friend of mine pointed out - "You can barely get a napkin at Starbucks for under $2". Get ready to be seeing a lot more about Oderquis Revé y su Changüí here at Timba.com as their long overdue section will soon be published.

If you still need convincing, here is a little taste of "Vacúnala" during a rehearsal in Havana. Enjoy!

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