Carlos Varela, Cuban composer, singer, and guitarist, was born on April 11, 1963, in Havana. He graduated from the Faculty of Performing Arts at the Instituto Superior de Arte (ISA) (1110 Calle 120 between 9th and 13th, Cubanacán, Playa, Havana). He wrote his first songs in 1978. In 1980, he joined the Nueva Trova movement, and then began performing on the most important stages in our country.

His poetry is based on singing about the reality of Cuban youth; his music and work are the most distinctive aspects of the so-called Novísima Trova Cubana. He has become one of Cuba’s most popular musicians, ready to draw large crowds to his performances.

In 1986 he went on an extensive tour of several cities in Spain, with musicians such as Silvio Rodríguez, Pablo Milanés, Alberto Tosca, Gerardo Alfonso and Xiomara Laugart.

Carlos Varela founded his first band in 1988. Over the years, this band has been comprised of prestigious young Cuban musicians. Their performances have always received high praise from critics both in Cuba and abroad. This year, he also performed with Amaury Pérez in Mexico.

Varela returned to Spain in 1989 and later performed in Caracas, Venezuela, where he participated in the exhibition The Cuban Pictorial Vanguard of the 1980s. This year saw the release of his first album, Jalisco Park, recorded in the Canary Islands, Spain, thanks to the collaboration of the Center for Popular Canarian Culture. Consisting of 10 songs, this album is the result of a songwriting project the singer-songwriter had begun a few years earlier.

Following the huge success of their first album, Carlos Varela and his band recorded the album “Carlos Varela En Vivo” at Havana’s Karl Marx Theater (1010 Ave. 1ra, Miramar, Playa, Havana) under the Bis Music label. The album includes new tracks in addition to the songs from Jalisco Park. This is the only live album by Carlos Varela and his band to date. It is notable not only for the singer-songwriter and his musicians’ immense talent, but also for the applause of their fans.

Carlos Varela performed in several Chilean cities in 1991; in 1992, he returned to Spain and promoted his work in countries such as Sweden, Denmark, Colombia, and the Dominican Republic. That same year, he recorded his album Monedas al Aire in Venezuela, thanks to the collaboration of Franco de Vita. It includes the song “Muro,” which was performed by Miguel Bosé on his CD Once Maneras de Ponerse el Sombrero. This song became one of the renowned Spanish singer’s most popular songs in the 1990s.

Como Los Peces, Carlos Varela’s 1994 musical production, is the singer’s most popular album to date. Winner of Spain’s Ondas Award for Best Latin New Artist, presented by Cadena Ser’s Grupo Prisma. At the awards ceremony, Carlos Varela performed alongside guitarist Mark Knopfler, Celine Dion, Joaquín Sabina, and the group Ketama. On this album, the artist was accompanied by his band “Señal en el asfalto.” Most of the songs became classics. Guests included Joaquín Sabina, Tino de Geraldo, and Atxi Urchegui.

That same year, she performed in Madrid and Barcelona with Spanish singer Joaquín Sabina, which she repeated in other Spanish cities in 1995, and in Logroño with Antonio Flores. In 1995, she traveled to Buenos Aires, Argentina, and performed here with Silvio Rodríguez at the Teatro de la Ópera; later in the Dominican Republic, she shared the stage with Sonia Silvestre.

In 1996, he performed with his band in Costa Rica. The following year, he participated in the Rio Film Festival in Brazil; and in 1998, he toured various cities in the United States and Puerto Rico with his music.

Nubes, from 2000, is an acoustic album recorded between Cuba and Spain. This album features the song Una Palabra for the first time, undoubtedly Carlos Varela’s most covered and popular work to date. The album features Amed Medina, providing backing vocals and playing solos and guitar highlights.

The Karl Marx Theater (1010 1st Ave., Miramar, Playa, Havana) in Havana has been the stage for Carlos Valera’s most important concerts in Cuba, where he has appeared alongside major artists such as Silvio Rodríguez, Joaquín Sabina, Fito Páez, Santiago Feliú, and Joan Manuel Serrat. He has also performed at the Hubert de Blanck Theater (654 Calzada, Vedado, Plaza de la Revolución, Havana) with Pedro Luis Ferrer; and at the Chaplin Cinema (1155 23rd St., Vedado, Plaza de la Revolución, Havana) with the Spanish rock group Gabinete Caligari.

Their 2003 album, Siete (Label: Grafitti Music Records / SGAE), was recorded in Cuba and mixed and mastered in Spain. It is an excellent musical production, featuring, alongside the original lyrics, a band that exudes energy and talent. This album features guest artists such as Grammy Award winners Bonnie Raitt (USA) and Juan Formell y Los Van Van (Cuba).

In 2004, Varela toured England and various European countries with Jackson Browne. In 2005, his album, Los Hijos De Guillermo Tell Vol. 1, his first compilation of songs, was released. The song selection was made by the composer himself.

In 2005, award-winning Mexican director Alejandro González Iñarritu chose Carlos Varela’s song “Una Palabra” for his short film “The Hire – Powder Keg.” A year later, the song was selected by renowned American director Tony Scott for the final scene of his film “Man on Fire,” starring Denzel Washington and Dakota Fanning.

On December 8, 2006, Varela gave a memorable concert at the stadium of the José Antonio Echeverría recreational center in Havana (Calle 12 No. 106, Vedado, Plaza de la Revolución, Havana). Dedicated to the 26th anniversary of John Lennon’s death and also to the 28th International Festival of New Latin American Cinema, the concert lasted nearly two hours, under inclement weather. “Blessed rain,” Varela declared, continuing to perform one of his most memorable concerts to date.

On “International Dream Day 2008” on October 24, Carlos Varela performed another of his major concerts, this time on San Carlos Island in Venezuela alongside renowned artists such as Raly Barrionuevo, Bárbara Luna, Grupo Iven, and others.

In 2009, his album, No es el Fin, was recorded at Estudios El Bosque and Vieja Linda Records on the Grafitti Music Records/SGAE label. This album has already been considered by many to be, if not the best, one of Carlos Varela’s best albums. The artist himself has said, “(…) that I consider it his best album to date, the most musical and coherent (…)”.

Later that year, the CD Carlos Varela – All His Greatest Hits (on the same label) was released, compiling the artist’s greatest hits. The album was first sold during the concerts of the No Es El Fin USA 2010 tour in May 2010, and subsequently exclusively through Carlos Varela’s website.

He participated in the Paz Sin Fronteras concert, along with other famous singers, on September 20, 2009, the second edition. The event, held in Revolution Square in Havana, Cuba, drew 1,150,000 attendees.

Carlos Varela has also composed music for films, documentaries, and plays and dance productions. His songs recreate urban, social, and romantic themes, with a strong influence primarily from New Cuban Song and rock.