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15 H avana represents a fascinating focus of study for considering notions of identity, uses of place, and processes of cultural formation. The city has always been a nexus of influences, developing along trade routes crossing the Atlantic, and serving as a site for the fusion of cultural influences from Europe, the Middle East, sub-Saharan Africa, the United States, and elsewhere. Havana’s residents represent themselves musically in many ways that reflect this rich heritage. Some of the city’s genres—for instance, its Afro-Cuban religious repertoire or political theater—have generated controversy for decades, even centuries. Yet one might argue that, with the onset of the revolution of 1959, the Cuban capital became a discursive battleground of representation to an even greater extent, with exiles and revolutionaries alike actively attempting through music and other cultural forms (as well as academic projects, news reports, etc.) to support or contest particular ideologies. Within this tense context, musicians tread on sensitive ground as they choose how to frame the complexities of their personal experience. Cuba’s geographic and political isolation, compounded by the difficulty of travel for most of the population, means that domestically produced music often circulates nationally more than internationally. For this reason, popular songs foreground local images markedly, perhaps to an even greater extent than those created in other places. And such references create palpable affective responses in listeners. Martin Stokes has noted that music has a special ability to evoke collective memories and experiences of place “with an intensity, power and simplicity unmatched by any other social activity” (1994, 3). He suggests havanainthenuevatrova repertoireofgerardoalfonso robin Moore H young and holmes text-5.indd 15 11/1/10 10:08 AM 16 — Robin mooRe that the places constructed through music may be influenced by numerous external forces (e.g., musical styles from abroad), that they frequently create or reinforce social boundaries of various kinds (generational, gendered, racial), and that they may emphasize difference, alternative ways of conceiving self and other. This final issue is especially relevant, since many younger artists experiment broadly with alternative representations of self and citizenship in the context of urban life. Their lyrical themes and musical choices often contrast with or even implicitly challenge those of official state discourses. Many of these trends are evident in the work of artist Gerardo Alfonso, who serves as the focus of this chapter. An Afro-Cuban guitarist, pianist, and singersongwriter , Alfonso grew up on the outskirts of Havana during the heyday of nueva trova, socially conscious protest song. He uses music as a means of commenting on life in the city, constantly presenting musical and textual references unique to that location. Lyrically, Alfonso’s songs deal with themes such as vagrancy , prostitution, and the negative effects of the tourist trade, topics for the most part absent in the media. Musically, his clever reworkings and adaptations of traditional Afro-Cuban genres (the bolero, chachachá, son) create tensions between conceptions of localism and globalism, modernism and tradition. Central themes that characterize his compositions include a concern with race relations, a desire to broaden the notion of Cuban music through its fusion with foreign elements, and a tendency to use songs and musical styles from the past to comment on present-day realities. haVana as Cultural ConteXt The city of Havana, home to approximately one-third of Cuba’s population of eleven million, has been the historical center of commercial music-making in that country and arguably in the Caribbean as a whole. Beginning as early as the late nineteenth century, with the international popularization of the habanera , Havana has influenced the world with its music. The vast majority of Cuban musicians and record labels have been based in this city, especially during the influential years of the 1940s and 1950s. Since the revolution of 1959 and the creation of centralized cultural institutions overseen by the state, Havana’s national importance has if anything increased. The government’s primary record company, EGREM, is based in Havana, as are its radio and television studios, its most prestigious cultural institutions (museums, theaters, libraries, symphony, and ballet), and its most advanced institutions of higher learning. The Ministry of Culture and related institutions are located in the same city, as are many other government organizations that support and patronize the arts. The first stages of Havana’s development after becoming a colony centrally young and holmes text-5.indd 16 11/1/10 10:08 AM [3.143.168.172] Project MUSE (2024...

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