Sur Caribe, a Cuban popular dance music group, hails from the province of Santiago de Cuba and owes its name to the city’s location (located in southern Cuba). Its origins lie in the celebrated group known as Renovación Santiago. The distinguished musician Ricardo Leyva has served as the orchestra’s director and singer since 1987.

Upon taking office, its director changed the orchestra’s format, which stands out for its powerful, defined, and uneven sound. Sur Caribe is composed of professional musicians who demonstrate a high level of technical skill. Currently, the orchestra is comprised of more than a dozen highly technical musicians from Santiago de Cuba, graduates of music schools in that area.

Sur Caribe’s repertoire is composed of diverse genres of Cuban popular music and rhythms of Caribbean origin. The lyrics of the compositions they perform are highly intellectual. These include songs such as “Hay, qué felicidad” (Conga), composed for the end-of-year festivities; “Noranza por la conga” (Longing for the Conga); “Aprendí caminando” (I Learned Walking); “Por y para María” (For Maria’s Sake); “La pelota de la suerte” (The Lucky Ball); and “Ponte que te toca ahora” (You Play Now). Leyva is the arranger and composer of most of the songs.

The song “Yearning for the Conga” was a breakthrough in Cuban music, as it fused the rhythm of the Santiago de Compostela conga with strings and brass, creating a symphonic feel. This conga was selected as the song of the year at the 2006 Cubadisco Awards.

Songs performed by this popular dance music group have established themselves in important places in the media, remaining at the top of the charts for months.

In 1989, Leyva’s group was among the most popular musical groups in eastern Cuba, a privilege they still enjoy today. In 1990, they performed at the famous Santiago Carnival, where songs like Mi Cafetal and La Maldad became very popular.

The first phonogram won the EGREM Award in the Dance Music category in 2002 and was released under the title Sur Caribe con tó’. It contains twelve songs, some of which enjoyed national acclaim, such as El poder de las mujeres and El sábado es sensacional.

During this period, the South Caribbean, which until then had worked in Santiago de Cuba, settled in Havana, the Cuban capital.

In 2006, they performed at the London Carnival, an event in England, where they performed their version of The Beatles’ “Hey Jude” to a conga rhythm, to enthusiastic acclaim from the audience.

Sur Caribe’s most recent album, Horizonte Próximo, was released in 2010 under the label Empresa de Grabaciones y Ediciones Musicales (EGREM) (1008 3rd Street between 10th and 12th Streets, Miramar, Playa, Havana). It consists of a selection of the most popular musical genres rooted in Santiago de Cuba. It featured notable figures such as pianist Frank Fernández, vocalist Omara Portuondo, and Juan Formell; on the track Sí.

Other musicians appear, such as guitarist Elmer Ferrer, Lester (El Santiaguero) on cellos, and Coco Freman on backing vocals. Ricardo composed most of the pieces on this album, which also features Alberto Pujol and Roberto Valdés. The album is accompanied by a DVD containing nine video clips, showcasing the stages of his professional career, which Sur Caribe has gone through.

According to Leyva, it’s a presentation of the flavor, aspirations, and idiosyncrasies of the people of Santiago to define ourselves to the world.

In 2010, they performed numerous concerts in various locations across Cuba, where they presented songs from this album.

Since its founding, Sur Caribe has brought its music to the most important dance venues throughout the Cuban archipelago. It has also performed at significant Cuban music events, including the Jazz Plaza Festival, the Boleros de Oro Festival, the Matamoroson Festival, the Cubadisco Festival, and the Pepe Sánchez Trova Festival, among others.

They have performed in Latin American and European countries. Among the international venues and major competitions, the group’s presence was particularly notable at the 2006 London Carnival.

Sur Caribe, one of the most popular orchestras in Cuba today, takes us back to the purest roots of Cuban music.

Discography: South Caribbean with you (2002), Walking (2004), Credentials (2005) and Next Horizon (2010).