Clasicos a lo cubano

LATEST NEWS – NRK (Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation) are taking down their content on YouTube. That also affects «Clasicos a lo cubano». Content is said to be made available world wide on NRKs own streaming service. It has still not happened. Info will follow.

ALMOST LATEST NEWS – a concert recording of «Clasicos a lo cubano» from Havana will (quite) soon be released on streaming platforms and the YouTube channel.

Sverre Indris Joner´s ingenious salsa-arrangements have achieved the most authentic-sounding classic-latin-fusion ever and has refuted the prejudices and taken classic-music-lovers and the latin community by surprise. It went viral on YouTube as performed by KORK (Norwegian Radio Orchestra) and Hovedøen Social Club, and the album even reached the #1 on the Mexican World Music Charts Mixup.com.

The project has been acclaimed by latin music fans worldwide and confirms the profound understanding of Latin music and its mystified key parameter: clave… The sole fact that the legendary bass player Carlos del Puerto (Irakere) is a part of the soloist group should confirm that this is so much more than just another “gringo showing of his borrowed feathers”.

Clasicos a lo cubano is both danceable partym,usic and music for conoceurs of the classic repertoire. And for anybody without a necessity for rigid rules and walls between musical genres, t, quite unlike other symphonic crossover concerts.

This project was first recorded with the renowned Munchner Rundfunk Orchestra and Klazz Brothers & Cuba Percussion (who commisioned several of the arrangements). It has later been played in Cuba, Italy, Germany, Turkey and in Asia.

This performance by KORK in Norway has achieved huge popularity on the net.

The “counterfactive music-history-simulation”-idea of transforming music from its original into a different stylistic language has been one of Joners specialties for decades. First with his tango-quartet Tango for 3 doing classics as well as popular tunes as if it came from Buenos Aires´ golden tango-era.  Later doing Norwegian popular tunes with the band Hovedøen Social Club, turning them into Cuban dance music of the sixties.

Clasicos a lo cubano is the most ambitious form of counterfactive music-history-simulation: with symphony orchestra.  Classics from the great masters are filtered through Joners strange imagination, filling them with the Caribbean flavor. He has transformed these musical pearls into a different kind of tropical pearls – with the unconfoundable taste and swing of Cuba and the Caribbean…

Starting with Bach, Mozart and Beethoven, via stage music of Bizet and Tchaikovsky to Strauss jr. Grieg and even Wagner, the baroque, classical and romantic eras are treated with a kind of loving disrespect.

The beauty of the idea is that Joner in the arrangements has equal respect for both the old classic pieces – with all their harmonic and melodic richness – as well as for the Cuban rhythmic traditions and structures that is far more sophisticated that any other popular genre. And the new fusion is communicating on a different level than both the classic originals and the salsa genre.  Luckily it’s not just another cheesy adaptation as seen many times before…

Mexican World Music Charts Mixup.com.

The recording being acclaimed by numerous latin musicians worldwide confirms what its all about: a profound understanding of Cuban/latin music and its mystified key parameter: clave… The sole fact that the legendary bass player Carlos del Puerto (Irakere, Cubanisimo) is a part of the soloist group should confirm that this is more than just another “gringo showing of his borrowed feathers”.

This project was first recorded with the renowned Munchner Rundfunk Orchestra and Klazz Brothers & Cuba Percussion. It has later been played with several orchestras in Germany and in some Asian countries. The performance from Oslo, Norway has achieved huge popularity on YouTube.  It is from two concerts on national television (NRK), and the orchestra is the Norwegian Radio Orchestra (KORK) with Sverre Indris Joner and Hovedøen Social Club as soloists.

The “counterfactive music-history-simulation”-idea of transforming music from its original into a different stylistic language has been one of Joners specialties for decades. First with his tango-quartet Tango for 3 doing classics as well as popular tunes as if it came from Buenos Aires´ golden tango-era.  Later doing Norwegian popular tunes with the band Hovedøen Social Club, turning them into Cuban dance music of the sixties.

And here as the logic consequence; this is the most ambitious form of counterfactive music-history-simulation: with symphony orchestra.  Classics from the great masters are filtered through Joners strange imagination, filling them with the Caribbean flavor. He has transformed these musical pearls into a different kind of tropical pearls – With the unconfoundable taste and swing of Cuba and the Caribbean…

Starting with Bach, Mozart and Beethoven, via stage music of Bizet and Tchaikovsky to Strauss jr. Grieg and even Wagner the baroque, classical and romantic eras are treated with a kind of loving disrespect. Or is it disrespect at its core?

The beauty of the idea is that Joner in the arrangements has equal respect for both the old classic pieces – with all their harmonic and melodic richness – as well as for the Cuban rhythmic traditions and structures that is far more sophisticated that any other popular genre. And the new fusion is communicating on a different level than both the classic originals and the salsa genre.  it’s not just an easy adaptation as seen many times before…

This is music for conoceurs of the classic repertoire as well as for the ”Latino”-fans. And for anybody that likes music without a necessity for rigid rules and walls between musical genres, this is a unique experience, quite unlike other symphonic crossover concerts.

more videos of Clasicos a lo cubano at the record page

1# on the mexican world music charts at Mixup.com