13.10.1 Rolando Luna

Rolando Luna, Cuban pianist, arranger, and composer, was born in Havana in 1978. He studied classical piano at the Amadeo Roldán Conservatory (Calle Rastro No. 1, Habana Vieja, Havana). His academic training and great creative talent are evident in each of his performances, with a high level of improvisation and refined technique. They have allowed him to explore genres such as Cha-Cha-Cha, Son, and Danzón, which he has been able to enrich with his compositional concepts.

Luna stands out for the impeccable way he infuses his works with elements of concert music, Caribbean music, Cuban music, as well as jazz, a musical genre of which he has proven to be a magnificent exponent.

He won First Prize in the JoJazz Competition in 1999. The award was granted to him by a demanding jury chaired by maestro Chucho Valdés, in a competition attended by young jazz musicians from all over the country.

In 2001, he recorded his first CD, “En la luna,” with the Unicornio label. In 2006, he performed as the keyboardist for the CarHabana orchestra at the Grand Casino in Geneva, Switzerland.

In 2007, Rolando Luna was selected for his high level of performance to participate in the 41st Montreux International Jazz Festival, sponsored by Bosendorfer, a musical instrument company well-deservedly renowned for the quality of its pianos. The event brought together talented performers from around the world and took place at the Petit Theatre of the Montreux Palace in Switzerland.

In the Piano Solo competition, included in the festival’s program, he won the main prize and also the Audience Award, leaving Azerbaijani Shahin Novrasli, considered a revelation, in second place. He thus became the second Cuban musician to reach the Montreux piano summit, having previously been achieved by his colleague Harold López Nussa in 2005.

From the very beginning, Rolando Luna stood out for his excellence and has gradually gained momentum in his brilliant career as a pianist, arranger, and composer. He is considered one of the brightest young talents in Cuban culture.

The painter Jorge Arche Silva (1905 – 1956), his contributions to the Cuban Plastic Arts
The plastic work of Enrique Caravia y Montenegro (1905 – 1992)
Wilfredo Oscar de la Concepción Lam y Castillo (1902 – 1982), the significance of his plastic work
The sculptor Teodoro Ramos Blanco (1902 – 1972), his work
The plastic work of Gumersindo Barea y García (1901 – ?)
The painter Carlos Enríquez Gómez (1900 – 1957), an essential exponent of Cuban visual arts
The work of the sculptor Juan José Sicre y Vélez (1898 – ?)
The work of the painter and architect Augusto García Menocal y Córdova (1899 – ?)