Aldo López-Gavilán Junco, a young Cuban pianist and composer, was born on December 20, 1979, in Havana. He studied at the Manuel Saumell Elementary Music School (660 F Street, Vedado, Havana) and then continued his secondary education at the Amadeo Roldán Conservatory (Rastro No. 1 and Espada Street, Centro Habana, Havana). He later earned a scholarship to Trinity College, London, from which he graduated with excellent results.

He made his orchestral debut at the age of 12 with the Matanzas Symphony Orchestra. At 17, he began performing with the Cuban National Symphony Orchestra, performing Prokofiev’s Third Concerto for piano and orchestra.

His first award came at the age of 11, when he won the Danny Kay Children’s Competition in Holland, sponsored by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). In 1990, he won the Grand Prize and special prizes for his interpretation of Cuban music and his own works at the Amadeo Roldán Piano Competition. At 14, he also won a prize at the Cittá di Senigalia in Italy, and at 18, he won second place in the Teresa Carreño Piano Competition in Venezuela.

In 1998, Aldo López-Gavilán won First Prize in the Trinity College of Music Piano Competition in England. In 2000, he won Third Prize in the International Piano Competition in the same country and Third Prize in the International Spanish Composers Piano Competition, sponsored by SGAE, Spain.

In 2002, he participated in the International Piano Soloist Competition, convened by Trinity College London, where he performed Sergei Prokofiev’s Concerto No. 3 for piano and orchestra. On this occasion, he was accompanied by the College’s Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Peter Stark, which awarded him First Prize.

In England, he performed at London’s Royal Festival Hall as part of the Cuba Solidarity campaign held there. He also opened the Millennium concerts at the Casa de las Américas (3rd and G Streets, Vedado, Plaza de la Revolución, Havana), with works of his own creation.

Aldo López-Gavilán has toured countries such as the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, and Spain. He was invited by Cuban jazz musician Chucho Valdés to participate in the recent international Jazz Plaza festivals held in Havana; and he was chosen to participate in the Italian documentary “Musical Cities of the World.” He has also made important recordings for Cuban radio and television.

In the 2000 edition of Cubadisco, Aldo López won the First Work Award and the Grand Prize shared with Osdalgia for: In the twilight of the ant and the elephant, his first record production (1999), recorded at Abdala studios (Calle 32 No. 318, Miramar, Playa. Havana).

His second album, “Talking to the Universe,” was produced by the Unicornio label and also recorded at Abdala Studios (318 Calle 32, Miramar, Playa, Havana). The artist is accompanied on this work by a quartet that cultivates the rhythms of Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie, composed of bassist Néstor del Prado, percussionist Amed Michel, guitarist Alí Arango, and saxophonist Roberto Martínez. Also featured on the album are choirs and members of the Amadeo Roldán chamber orchestra, conducted by Daiana García. The young voice of Diana Fuentes also appears.

In 2007, his third album was released, produced by the Colibrí record label and titled “Aldo López-Gavilán Live.” The album focused on classical music, including works by Johann Sebastian Bach, Sergei Prokofiev, Modesto Mussorky, one of the representatives of the 19th-century Russian Romantic movement, and an arrangement of “The Flight of the Bumblebee” (Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakovsk) by George Cziffra, a legendary pianist of the early 20th century.

Among his other albums are “Sound Bite,” which brings together some of Aldo’s solo piano compositions recorded live in Europe in 2006; “Dimensional,” recorded in 2008, which is a more experimental offering in line with current trends in electronic music; and finally, his album “Concierto a 8 manos.”

Throughout his career as a composer, he has cultivated jazz fusion. His major works include: To My Pretty Brother; Campanero; Of Princesses, Castles, and Ellipses; In the Twilight of the Ant and the Elephant; Spiral; The Story of the Girl Who Gave Time Back to Time; Sonbanchero; Theme with Bongos; Train to Gotham City; and Whiskey and Soda.

His playing style is within jazz and fusion, and his artistic endorsement attests to his quality as a concert pianist. In a brief definition of music, Aldo López-Gavilán stated: “It’s everything; it’s the connecting thread through which my greatest loves, my homeland, my family, my friends… I wouldn’t know how to live without it.”