Cuba, Cultural: Buena Vista Social Club

Me and maybe 99% of Cubans have something in common. We've never seen the Buena Vista Social Club perform live. The reason we have all missed out is probably the same. They are just too darn popular. For me that meant tickets sold out.  For Cubans, that means the tickets cost way too much.

First, the pesky little details. There is no actual Buena Vista Social Club. The name refers to an institution from Havana's Glory (?) Days (the late 1940s) when a group of musicians got together and did play at that venue. Then came the Revolution and things changed. Revival came in the 1990s when Ry Cooder sponsored an album and a film featuring the alumni of the Social Club. It took off like wild fire and sparked a renaissance for the musicians and the music.

Do you want to see (what's left of) the originals? (Do the math - 1950 was 61 years ago) There is a Taberna in old Havana. Make reservations early.  Even at 30 CUC cover it was sold out an hour before the show started. Tipping the doorman would get us nowhere this night. We were shut out.

It’s not like we would have to live without Cuban music, however. That is ubiquitous.  Finding an alternative was just a matter of walking down the street. Every restaurant and bar we passed had a band playing. We picked one and popped in for a beer. Beer was cheap (2 CUC) and the music was good. After about an hour a member of the band would circulate with the basket.  If you like it, you toss in a tip. It being a tourist (CUC) bar, pretty much everyone kicks in.  The band splits 40 to 50 CUC for an hour set. After a break they will be back and do it again. With six in the band and 100 CUC in tips, they could make a weeks wages in one evening. At 10 PM. They knocked off and went home. But my buddies (two software engineers from Vancouver) and I weren’t done. So we followed some locals’ recommendations to go see ‘the best show in town’ at La Casa de la Musica.

It was kind of a surreal experience that sort of encapsulates much of Cuba in a nutshell. As we approach the club, we were met by a guy who pointed out the long line to get in. We might not get a ticket or if we did, we probably would not get a good seat. But he could help us. For 10 CUC apiece plus the 15 CUC cover he could get us straight in. We thought about it - but elected to take our chances with the line. Slowly, it moved. One group at a time, we were allowed through the door. Next stop was the ticket window, no line there. It seemed like the only purpose of the metering was to maintain a line out front because once we got our tickets and went in we found the club only one third full. Lots of open tables, but they were all ‘reserved’. You could get one if you bought a bottle of rum for 40 CUC (eight times the store price) None of us wanted Rum and cola (not CokeTM) so we were given a table at the back. We ordered beer and waited for the show to start. An hour later a crooner came out and did two songs, followed by recorded disco music. Was that it? We wondered, but waited. In the meantime, we did our best to discourage the numerous prostitutes who kept approaching our table of three unaccompanied men. They became more and more assertive - at one point kicking the back of my chair repeatedly so she could ‘apologize’.

Waiting for the next bus load

Finally two and a half hours after we sat down the real show started. More than a dozen musicians and two vocalists, it was good. Maybe even worth the wait.  But on the whole, the experience was pretty sad and tawdry. I was there to experience Cuba and this seemed completely alien to the average Cuban's life.

The music was their music, but it's packaged for tourists only. The cover charge is a couple week’s salary. Getting to the music, you have to wade through layer after layer of Cubans struggling to earn a few CUCs, anyway they can.   The music may be joyous and carefree but the setting is anything but.