HISTORY OF THE ORCHESTRA

Since its inception on 1960, the Havana Symphony has been instrumental in developing and introducing Cuban and Latin American music to the international classical music community, in addition to covering a vast symphonic and chamber repertoire ranging from baroque to contemporary music.  International tours have taken the orchestra to Russia, Poland, Yugoslavia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Spain, Peru and Argentina.

Among the more than 100 guest conductors who have led the orchestra include Sir Thomas Beecham, Sergiu Celibidache, Pierre Monteaux, Charles Munch, Eugene Ormandy, Wilhelm Steinberg, Leopold Stokowski, Igor Stravinsky, Heitor Villa-Lobos and Bruno Walter.

Acclaimed international soloists have included Marian Anderson, Claudio Arrau, Jorge Bolet, Jose Carreras Jascha Heifetz, Nathan Milstein, Ruggiero Ricci, Mstislav Rostropovich Arthur Rubinstein, Andres Segovia, Isaac Stern, among many others.

NACHITO HERRERA, PIANO SOLOIST

Widely recognized as a young genius, Ignacio "Nachito" Herrera stunned Cuban audiences at the age of twelve, performing "Rachmaninoff's Concerto No. 2" with the Havana Symphony Orchestra. In the late 1990's, Nachito joined the famed ¡Cubanismo! as its lead pianist, arranger, and musical director, performing at the many of the world’s finest concert halls and prestigious festivals.  In 2009, Herrera toured as a member of the Afro Cuban All Stars.  His love of classical music quickly combined with traditional Cuban rhythms under the instruction of the Cuban masters-Rubén González, Jorge Gomez Labraña, and Frank Fernández. In his twenties, Nachito became the musical director at the famous "Tropicana" in Cuba where he continued to deepen his repertoire.