Polo Montañés in Wax

(Prensa Latina – Cumbancha) Havana, Cuba – By: Laura Mendoza (World Data Service)

Havana.- The late singer Polo Montañés, revered in Cuba for his modesty,
which he maintained in spite of his popularity abroad, will be the first figure
in wax to be exhibited in the planned Wax Museum in the City of Bayamo, capital
of the eastern province of Granma. It took brothers Leander and Rafael Barrios,
who define themselves as popular artisans, a year to complete the figure of the
musician, who died in a car accident at the end of November, 2002. This incident
shook Cubans to the extent that many people from all over the country attended
the burial of the singer songwriter in his Candelaria, Pinar del Rio birthplace.
The excellent replica of Montañés, shows him standing, wearing a white shirt
and dark pants with his country hat on his head. The music of Montañés continues
to be played by his band with the integration of singer Yoslier Charponier. The
18-year-old Yoslier is a resident of the Las Terrazas Community in Pinar del
Rio, where Polo lived. The house of the singer is currently a museum in which
some of his belongings are exhibited, including his hat, belt, lighter and some
of his medals and trophies. Polo’s band recently returned from a promotional
tour in Colombia, where they will return soon to record an item titled "Cuestion
de Suerte", which includes unpublished songs of Polo and several members of the
band, currently led by Amaury Romero Borrego, a nephew of Polo.