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Directed by ex-<a href="spotify:artist:04azg2bFlSz46nOe03VY2w">Sierra Maestra</a> drummer Juan De Marcos Gonzalez, the Afro-Cuban All Stars have been essential to the growing worldwide popularity of Afro-Cuban music. Their 1997 album, A Toda Cuba Le Gusta, was the first to be recorded during the now-legendary <a href="spotify:artist:11kBu957KTYoAltZHDm8gW">Buena Vista Social Club</a> sessions. A multi-generational big band, with members ranging in age from 13 to 81, the Afro-Cuban All Stars incorporate the full spectrum of Latin dance music, including mambo, cha cha, salsa, rumba, son montuno, timba, guajira, danzón, abakuá, and bolero. During a late-'90s interview, Gonzalez explained, "We have to use all the heritage of Cuban music to create a sound of the future." Gonzalez, who holds a doctorate in hydraulic engineering and Russian and has worked as a consulate at the Agronomic Science Institute in Havana, formed the Afro-Cuban All Stars shortly after the disbanding of <a href="spotify:artist:04azg2bFlSz46nOe03VY2w">Sierra Maestra</a>, the group with whom he had attracted global attention since 1978. Musicians in the Afro-Cuban All Stars, including pianist <a href="spotify:artist:00n4Vljc6N9pvJ26SKPphh">Ruben Gonzalez</a> and trumpet player Yanko Pisaco, represent the cream of Cuba's instrumentalists. Lead vocalists have included <a href="spotify:artist:13yIrDY8fitx2qJr7UjfAc">Pio Leyva</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:0WxB5q1D7hT4vhN1BSRYHJ">Raúl Planas</a>, and Manuel "Puntillita" Licea. In late 2000, <a href="spotify:artist:4B5PkQ1wMjo1siTN9yD9Ds">Los Van Van</a> vocalist Pedro Calvo agreed to sing with the group. Shortly afterwards, the band added <a href="spotify:artist:4Dg0GLEhfBZYwfErkMajyb">Caridad Hierrezuelo</a> (born Santiago de Cuba, 1924.) ~ Craig Harris
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