Cuban Fusion Pioneers Sintesís On Queen, Santería And Prog Rock

October 31, 2019
Just when you think you know a lot about Cuban music, along comes a pair of musicians who tell me one that of the major influences on their pioneering jazz/rock/santeria band was Queen. Yes, that Queen. In 1976, Carlos Alsonso and his wife Ele Valdés started Síntesis as a prog- and jazz-rock outfit in Havana, Cuba. After participating in a festival that featured santería — the Yoruba spiritual tradition that developed in Cuba among West African descendants — they were enthralled and determined to incorporate this sacred music into their own. Source: Cuban Fusion Pioneers Sintesís On Queen, Santería And Prog Rock : Alt.Latino : NPR