Before Fidel Castro took power in 1959, American travelers regularly jumped on the hour-long flight from Miami to Cuba to enjoy the pulse—and rhythm—of Havana. In the 1940s they piled into Latin jazz clubs; dancers moved to the rumba in the ‘50s. Even after the embargo, when the island was off limits to American businesspeople and jet setters (for 55-plus years), music remained a key channel of communication between the two nations. “Music gives us a way of understanding Cuban-U.S. relations during that time in a way that politics can’t,” says Dr. Frank Guridy, an associate history professor at Columbia University.
Thanks to the recent thaw in relations with the island nation, it’s a great time to visit Cuba—and we don’t know how long we’ll be able to say that). Now, imagine visiting Cuba with Rufus Wainwright. Or Melissa Etheridge. Or Ben Folds. This summer and fall, the musicians will host trips to Havana that combine quintessential experiences—convertible car trips, rum and cigar tastings, Old Havana walking tours—with private and group concerts, meet-and-greets, and exclusive musical seminars.
Singer-songwriter Rufus Wainwright has been to Cuba a handful of times in the past five years on his Canadian passport (he’s a dual U.S.-Canadian citizen); he “instantly fell in love with the country and its culture,” and is eager to go back with his fan base in tow. “Every time I’ve visited, [Cuba] has changed pretty drastically but it also remains itself,” he tells Condé Nast Traveler. “It has a wonderful equilibrium in that regard.” On the trip from September 21 to 25, along with a private concert for guests, he’ll perform alongside Carlos Varela, a singer-songwriter who’s toured the world over (he’s currently in Europe with Dave Matthews) and is often referred to as the Bob Dylan of Cuba (and the Poet of Havana). “He’s a mythic figure down there,” Wainwright says of Varela, who in turn is thrilled to show off his island. “Cuban life is recounted through its rhythms, dance, and sense of humor,” Varela says. “You can count on understanding the story of this country through its music.”
Each of the three trips will also touch on the musicians’ extracurricular passions. In Wainwright’s case, participants can visit artists in their private studios. Wainwright and his husband Jörn Weisbrodt, an arts administrator, are longtime fans of the island’s visual art. “There is this sophistication and dedication to contemporary art in Cuba that is very fervent and palpable,” Wainwright says. He hopes to make a few purchases himself. “We have several pieces that need little friends.”
Meanwhile, Grammy-winning artist Melissa Etheridge is a first-time traveler to the island—her four-day excursion will take place from June 22 to 26. “Cuba has always been interesting to me,” says Etheridge. “All my lifetime it’s been this place that’s so close and yet so far away. We’ve kept it at bay and now we can start bridging that relationship back.” Along with meet-and-greets and concerts, she’ll do her part by co-hosting gatherings (to which fans will be invited) with LBGT activist groups—notably Cinesex, a Cuban agency that oversees gay support groups—as well as Cuban women’s rights organizations. “I know I’m not the easiest artist to wrap your head around as I’m a musician and activist, but when I told [tour organizers] that I wanted to meet with the LBGT leaders, they were on board,” she says. “The way a country treats its women and LBGT community reflects on how they’re going to land in the cycle of progress.” Musical events such as a performance by the Canelas, an activist and all-female salsa group, also touch on the trip's theme.
Piano-rock pioneer Ben Folds, who will also get his first Cuban passport stamp when he arrives on May 25, is especially looking forward to playing alongside the island’s artists. “When you play music with someone, there is an interesting common ground that you can’t explain. It’s very powerful,” says Ben Folds. He’ll be accompanied by Otto Santana, a famed percussionist, at his group concert.
Folds is also a photography lover and is inviting trip participants (whom Folds is calling his “long camera chain gang”) to join Cuban photographers on scouting trips around Havana. “I want to see what Cubans like to show off, what they’re proud of,” says Folds. He and his fans will be in good hands: Renowned photographer Nestor Marti will lead architecture-focused sessions; Gabriel Bianchini, who is known for portrait photography, will also head up shoots. Tour participants can also sign up for Cuban dance lessons. Will Folds be hitting the floor? That’s still TBD. “I was always playing in the band. I was never dancing,” he says with a laugh. “But what the hell, I might rumba or something.”
All three of these person-to-person trips—one of the 12 authorized travel categories outlined by the U.S. Department of State—are organized by Music & Arts Live, whose owner Daniel Heaps has deeply rooted connections to the island that facilitate private tours and select access. His contacts range from top Cuban musicians—travelers will attend concerts by Obini Bata, an all-female folkloric group, funk fusion band Interactivo, and Cuban jazz pianist Roberto Carcassés—to government officials that are able to open doors to little-visited sites. Folds, Etheridge, and Wainwright will host seminars and music masters classes in the Instituto Superior de Arte (ISA), for example, the island’s national arts school, which is housed in a revolution-era building that’s also on the World Monuments Fund Watch List. Travelers can also sign up for a private tours of Fusterlandia, a residential neighborhood that’s been transformed by artist José Rodríguez Fuster into a public arts mecca, glittering with mosaics and sculptures reminiscent of works by Picasso and Gaudí. “Havana is like a Spanish New Orleans in the 1970s,” says Heaps. “Music and the arts are the threads of life.”
For more on each trip, visit the individual sites for the trips with Ben Folds (May 25-29), Melissa Etheridge (June 22-26), and Rufus Wainwright (September 21-25).
Check out a sample of the American and Cuban musicians involved in the exchanges:
