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This book attempts to fill a vacuum by directing its attention to the XIX-Century Cuban Danza, in which lay the beginnings of Cuban music as a distinct national expression. An understanding of the development of the Danza from a classic European figure dance to a stylized piano piece, with characteristic Cuban qualities, is basic to an understanding of Cuban music. The foremost Cuban composer of the Danza was Ignacio Cervantes. A study of his output is, therefore, basic to an understanding of Cuban music. This study seeks to penetrate the confusion and controversy surrounding the origins of the Cuban Danza and to clarify its historical and stylistic traits. The path of the Danza is traced from Europe to Cuba and its development there throughout the XIX-Century, examining Cervantes' contribution and that of the other important composers of this dance form during that period.
About the author
Salomón Gadles Mikowsky was born in Cuba where he studied piano with Pérez Sentenat, who introduced him to Cuban music. He graduated from The Juilliard School under Gorodnitzki and later completed his doctorate at Columbia University. A long-time piano faculty member at Manhattan School of Music, he also taught at Juilliard and New York University.
