Elio Revé
The musician who brought changüí from Guantánamo into Cuban popular music — Elio Revé's Orquesta Revé was a proving ground for several important timba musicians and the band that kept the eastern Cuban sound alive in Havana.
About
Revé was born in Guantánamo and was a master of changüí — the rougher, African-derived cousin of son that originated in the eastern province. He moved to Havana and founded his orchestra, which became known for incorporating the changüí rhythmic style into popular dance music. His band functioned as an incubator for talent: Juan Formell worked with Revé before founding Los Van Van, and several other important timba musicians passed through his orchestra.
Revé's contribution is often underrecognized because he worked in the shadow of larger-profile bands, but his role in keeping the Afro-Cuban rhythmic tradition connected to the popular music scene was significant. His son Elio Revé Jr. continued the orchestra after his death.
Timba is the music this site is dedicated to exploring. It emerged as a distinct genre in the late 1980s and crystallized in the early 1990s — born in a moment of social crisis, built on the full accumulated history of Cuban music, and still evolving today.
Lees meer >Songo is the direct bridge between traditional Cuban music and timba. Developed by Los Van Van in the early 1970s, it rewired Cuban popular music by absorbing funk, rock, and jazz into the Afro-Cuban rhythmic foundation — and laid the groundwork that timba would build on.
Lees meer >Cuban Dances Originating in Havana
Havana, the cultural heartbeat of Cuba, played a central role in the creation and evolution of several iconic Cuban dances. Some were born directly in the capital, while others were transformed there into the forms we know today.
Lees meer >Changüí is one of the oldest surviving forms of Cuban popular music, originating in the Guantánamo province of eastern Cuba in the early 19th century. It is widely regarded as a direct precursor to Son Cubano, and its raw, syncopated energy offers a window into what Cuban popular music sounded like before Son was refined and urbanized in Havana.
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