For the Valera family, music is a family affair. Félix, the father, sings, while his wife Carmen Rosa plays the maracas and their three sons, Ernesto, Raúl Félix and Enrique, share the bongos, acoustic bass, tres and cuatro (guitars with three and four double strings). The tres and cuatro solos take on amazing jazzy colors without in any way betraying the spirit and orthodoxy of the son.
Since the 19th century, several families have played a significant part in Cuban culture, acting as a crucible of ethnic groups, collecting deep-rooted local traditions which have a bearing on the country’s identity as a whole. The Familia Valera-Miranda is one of the most interesting family groups of this type.
The family is descended mainly from two early branches: the Durañona/Román-Valera branch and the Cutiño/Basulto-Miranda branch, both existing in the 19th century. For a very long time the family managed to subsist by farming, growing trees for timber, and cultivating minor crops. Over the years, it gradually spread to various rural areas of Oriente (eastern Cuba): the River Cauto valley, near the villages of Bayamo and Tunas. From there it later spread also to the areas around San Luis, Santiago de Cuba, Guantánamo and to the vicinity of the legendary Sierra Maestra.
The fact that the family group gradually moved further afield was important in that it favored exchanges: in daily and social life, but also in music. Furthermore, members of the family, including the famous separatist Cutiño, were freedom fighters, who took part in the anti-colonial events of 1868-1898. Another Valera was an adventurer who, over the years, has gained the aura of popular legend.
From the Durañona/Román-Valera branch, through its customs, expressions and songs, came Spanish elements (secular and festive, and popular religious), elements of African origin (the Román-Valera side being indirectly of Bantu descent), and also Afro-Cuban elements (through the influence of Jamaicans and Haitians who had settled in those parts).
These influences are to be detected not only in their songs, but also in the musical instruments they use: the bandurria (a type of plucked lute) of Spanish origin, the Cuban tres (a hybrid instrument with the double courses of the Spanish guitar – as its name indicates, it has three – and forms of accentuation of Afro-Spanish and Cuban origin), the tumbandera or bajo en tierra (a ground harp, or ground bow). A leaf or thin section of royal palm is stretched and fixed over an open pitat some distance from the covered pit, a flexible stick is fixed in the ground, a cord is attached to the end of this stick. The other end of the cord is secured beneath the center of the palm covering. The string is then played).
From the Cutiño/Basulto-Miranda branch came elements that were specific to the Canary Islands (Spain) and Andalusia (Spain), as well as the unusual Afro-Spanish and indigenous mixture represented, in particular, by Cutiño and several of his descendants, including his granddaughter, the singer Milla Miranda, the mother of Félix Valera.
The most important element in this family’s musical heritage lies not so much in its impressive technical skill (vocal and instrumental) or its spectacular vocal qualities, as in its purity of style, the simplicity and authenticity of its expression.
Félix Valera has formed a group, the Familia Valera-Miranda, which includes his sons, Raúl, Ernesto and Enrique, his wife, Carmen Rosa Alarcón, and the family’s great friend, Radamés González. Together they show us the fruits of the rich musical heritage of the Valera-Miranda family. In their own very personal way, they take up their family heritage, and that of other popular musicians from Oriente, and pay tribute to one of their greatest forebears, the famous Cutiño, who fought for Cuba’s independence.
Félix Valera, as solo vocalist, imitates the style of his mother, Milla Valerahe sings the same types of song, uses the same vocal inflexions. It was also he who taught his eldest son Enrique (known as Quique) to play the tres in the authentic style.
Raúl Felix Valera (who is also a good dancer) plays the acoustic bass in the styles of the marímbula and the tumbandera or bajo en tierra (described above). Ernesto Valera, vocals and bongos, introduces improvisation, influenced by the urban styles of eastern and western Cuba.
The eldest son, Enrique Valera on the Cuban cuatro (instrument of the guitar family, similar to the tres but with four double courses of strings) brings some interesting enrichment to the chords and improvisations. His playing is the result of his own family heritage, but also of the island’s great treseros and the musical environment of Oriente in certain passages, he comes very close to the style of the famous tresero from Santiago de Cuba, the late Guataquita. He also includes elements borrowed from the son and the trova. The latter is typical of the city atmosphere of Santiago, where the family has been living and playing for several years now.
Félix’s wife, Carmen Rosa Alarcón, sings with the group, joining in the refrains, and she also plays the maracas. Their friend Radamés González alternates with Enrique on the claves and the cuatro (played in a more conventional style) and he also takes part in the choruses and provides a second voice in the boleros.
Discography:
Music from Oriente de Cuba: The Son (Nimbus, 1995)
Cuba: La Familia Valera Miranda (Ocora, 1997)
Caña Quemá: Music from Oriente de Cuba (Nimbus, 1997)
A Cutino (Naïve, 2001)
Cantos de Ida y Vuelta (Long Distance, 2006)
Son Asi (Discmedi / Zunzún Cuba, 2006)
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.
