Pablo Milanés

Pablo Milanés Arias (born February 24, 1943) is a Cuban singer-songwriter and guitar player. He is one of the founders of the Cuban nueva trova, along with Silvio Rodríguez and Noel Nicola. His music, originating in the Trova, Son and other traditional styles of early 20th Century Cuban music, set him apart from the style of Silvio Rodríguez.

This article uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family name is Milanés and the second or maternal family name is Arias.
Pablo Milanés
Milanés in concert in 2015, Medellín, Colombia.
Background information
Birth namePablo Milanés Arias
Born (1943-02-24) February 24, 1943
OriginBayamo, Oriente, Cuba
Genres
Occupation(s)Singer-songwriter
Instruments
  • Guitar
  • vocals
  • piano
Years active1956–present
Associated acts
Websitemilanespablo.com

Biography

Pablo Milanés, widely known as Pablito, moved with his family from Bayamo to Havana in 1950. He studied in the Conservatorio Municipal de La Habana, at the time the most prestigious musical school in the country. His first public performance was in 1956.[1] By age 15, he was active in "bohemian" musical circles in Havana, associated the so-called "filin" musicians.

Although he supported the Cuban Revolution, in 1965 he was sent to the UMAP agricultural forced-labor camp in Camagüey.[2] In 1967, he escaped and fled to Havana to denounce the injustice of the labor camp.[2] This resulted in his imprisonment, first for two months in La Cabaña, an 18th-century fortress in Havana, and then for a time in a prison camp.[2] He was released when the prison camp was closed due to international pressure.[2]

In 1969, he became part of the Grupo de Experimentación Sonora, a seminal group of young musicians, many of whom became founding members of the nueva trova, which started as a movement with a concert given by Pablo, Silvio Rodriguez, and Noel Nicola on February 18, 1968. Until the late 1980s, nueva trova was the unofficial musical style of the Cuban Revolution.

Since his first recording ("Versos sencillos de José Martí" in 1973),[1] he has issued more than 40 solo records, and many more in collaboration with other artists from Cuba, elsewhere in Latin America, and Spain. His first record with original songs (the eponymous "Pablo Milanés") was not issued until 1976.[1] The heyday of his creativity occurred probably in the early 1980s, with his records "El guerrero", "Yo me quedo", and "Comienzo y final de una verde mañana".

Within the context of the nueva trova, Pablo is widely considered one of the closest to the traditional roots of Cuban music, while being open to diverse musical influences from other contemporary traditions, such as Brazilian music and Blues. The range of his compositions extends from starkly political anthems to inspired love songs. He has set the poems of Cuban writers such as José Martí and Nicolás Guillén to music. Some of his most important musical influences have been María Teresa Vera, Lorenzo Hierrezuelo, Barbarito Diez, Benny Moré, Lucho Gatica, and Johann Sebastian Bach.

He has lived in Vigo, Spain, with his Spanish wife and two sons since 2004.[3] In 2014, he received a kidney transplant, receiving an organ donated by his wife.[3]

Since relocating to Spain, Milanés has been publicly critical of some aspects of the Cuban government, though he remains dedicated to the Cuban Revolution. His willingness to speak openly about the failures of the revolution strained his relations with Silvio Rodriguez.[4] Lately, he has not participated in pro-government campaigns.[5][6]

Discography
  • 1974 – Versos José Martí Candados por Pablo Milanés
  • 1975 – Canta a Nicolás Guillén
  • 1976 – Pablo Milanés
  • 1978 – No me pidas
  • 1979 – Aniversario
  • 1979 – Años with Luis Peña
  • 1980 – Canta a la resistencia popular chilena
  • 1981 – El pregón de las flores with Lilia Vera
  • 1981 – Filin
  • 1982 – Yo me quedo
  • 1983 – El guerrero
  • 1984 – Comienzo y final de una verde mañana
  • 1984 – Ao vivo no Brasil
  • 1986 – Querido Pablo
  • 1986 – Años 2 with Luis Peña and Octavio Sánchez (Cotán)
  • 1987 – Buenos días América
  • 1987 – Trovadores with Armando Garzón
  • 1988 – Proposiciones
  • 1989 – Filin 2
  • 1989 – Filin 3
  • 1990 – Identidad
  • 1991 – Canto de la abuela
  • 1991 – Filin 4
  • 1991 – Filin 5
  • 1992 – Años 3 with Luis Peña (El Albino), Compay Segundo, and Octavio Sánchez (Cotán)
  • 1994 – Canta boleros en Tropicana
  • 1994 – Evolución
  • 1994 – Igual que ayer with Caco Senante
  • 1994 – Orígenes
  • 1995 – Plegaria
  • 1995 – Si yo volviera a nacer
  • 1995 – Blanco y negro with Víctor Manuel
  • 1997 – Despertar
  • 1998 – Vengo naciendo
  • 2000 – Días de gloria
  • 2000 – Live from New York City
  • 2002 – Pablo querido
  • 2005 – Como un campo de maíz
  • 2005 – Líneas paralelas with Andy Montañez
  • 2007 – Regalo
  • 2007 – Pablo Milanés en vivo: Amor y desamor
  • 2008 – Raúl y Pablo with Raúl Torres
  • 2008 – Más allá de todo with Chuco Valdés
  • 2008 – Feeling 6
  • 2011 – Pablo y Lynn Milanés en concierto with daughter Lynn Milanés
  • 2013 – Renacimiento
  • 2014 – Canción de otoño
  • 2015 – 50 de 22
  • 2016 – Flores del futuro with Miguel Núñez
  • 2017 – Amor with daughter Haydée Milanés
gollark: ++tel hangup
gollark: Oh no.
gollark: ++tel graph
gollark: Oh dear.
gollark: ++tel unlink apionet `#a`

References
  1. "Bio". Sitio Oficial Pablo Milanés (in Spanish). n.d. Archived from the original on February 16, 2015. Retrieved March 5, 2017.
  2. Vicent, Mauricio (February 13, 2015). ""La apertura cubana es un maquillaje"" ["The Cuban Opening Is a Masquerade"]. El País (in Spanish). Spain. Retrieved March 5, 2017.
  3. Cartaya, Rolando (June 27, 2014). "Pablo Milanés recibe un riñón de su esposa" [Pablo Milanés Receives a Kidney from His Wife]. Martí (in Spanish). Retrieved March 5, 2017.
  4. Aquevedo, Eduardo (September 10, 2011). "Cuba: Polémica entre Pablo Milanés y Silvio Rodríguez se endurece (II)" [Cuba: Controversy Between Pablo Milanés and Silvio Rodríguez Endures (II)]. CIENCIAS SOCIALES HOY – Weblog (in Spanish). Retrieved March 5, 2017.
  5. Sánchez, Yoani (August 16, 2011), "Todavía yo no sé si cantarás", Generación Y (in Spanish), Cuba: Desde Cuba, archived from the original on September 3, 2011, retrieved September 4, 2011
  6. —————— (August 27, 2011), "Querido Pablo", El País (in Spanish), ES
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