SOME THINGS in life are so good they seem indestructible. Memorable food, great art, indispensible friends, they all stay with us through the years. And for fans of Cuban music, let’s add Omara Portuondo to that list.
Omara Portuondo – A rum show at UCLA
During a series of visits to the island nation in the 1990s, I was struck by the resilience of the extroverted Cuban spirit and how it never failed to seep through the stifling strictures of Castro’s regime. Like a bubbling spring seeking its way to the surface, the spirit – and in this case the passion – of music, cannot be denied. And judging by Friday night’s show at Royce Hall as part of the excellent UCLA Live! concert series, at the ripe old age of 79, songstress Omara Portuondo is bubbling along very nicely, thank you.
Like her fellow Buena Vista Social Club alums Ruben Gonzalez, Compay Segundo and Ibrahim Ferrer, Portuondo enjoyed early success in her home country followed by decades of obscurity before bursting back onto the international stage following the release of that landmark album in the mid-1990s. With her hip-swivleling entrance to the opening bars of Gracias on Friday night, the chanteuse is clearly loving every minute of her career’s long, unexpected Indian summer. One suspects that retirement is not in her plans. And for this reviewer, having seen the late, lamented Ruben Gonzalez and Ibrahim Ferrer at the Hollywood Bowl a few years back, seeing the lady herself felt like completing the set.
But despite her upbeat and energetic beginning, it came as no surprise that Portuondo paced her 90-minute set cautiously. She mixed upbeat, celebratory numbers like Gracias with slower, more bittersweet fare (which allowed her to sit down) and she also gave her five-piece backing band frequent solos so she could take a breather.
The quality and virtuosity of the musicians around her – led by Brazilian guitarist and music director Swami Jr., – was uniformly superb and the affection and admiration between the young troupe – some of whom looked less than half her age – and the star was clearly genuine. Swami deserves credit for leading Portuondo onto new ground with some upbeat, jazzy arrangements of her classics, – including Adios Felicidad and Viente Anos, as well as a stirring rendition of Amame Como Soy which nicely showcased the talents of percussionist Andres Coyao.
As for the audience, they may have been a sophisticated bunch with plenty of musicians in attendance, but they still fell hard for Portundo’s upbeat rendition of the classic Guantanamera as the show drew to a close. She then bade us adieu quite exquisitely with an encore of Besame Mucho, accompanied only by Swami Jr’s melancholy acoustic guitar.
All things considered, a great night at UCLA, and a welcome chance to see a bona fide Latin music legend. Come back soon, Senora.
