Artemisa, Cuba, May 28 (Prensa Latina) Cuban singer-songwriters, improvisers, and musical bands will pay tribute June 5 to singer and composer Polo Montañez, at Las Terrazas, where he lived his last years. Organized for the first time, the tribute is a dream of relatives, friends and admirers of the musician, whose first CD “Guajiro Natural,” went gold and platinum, said Amauri Romero, nephew of the artist and one of the organizers of the celebration, in remarks to Prensa Latina.
Improvising poets, soloists and groups will perform for three consecutive days on stages set up in the mountain community, located in the Sierra del Rosario’s Biophere Reserve in Pinar del Rio, the western-most province of Cuba. This will be a great “guateque” (a Cuban rural party) to honor the composer of “Un montón de estrellas” on June 5, the day when he should have turned 59 years old.
Romero, director of the Polo Montañez band, stated that most of the concerts will take place around El Palmar and San Juan lakes, where visitors can also go camping.
During the celebration, there will be talks about the life and musical legacy of Guajiro Natural, as he was known internationally. Montañez died in a car accident in 2002.
His first album opened the doors to success in American and European countries. He left behind some 100 lyrics, some of them sung today by Gilberto Santa Rosa and Marc Anthony.
