Pianist and charismatic band leader Roberto Fonseca extends his take on his Cuban roots, performing his new album ABUC with a new brass driven direction.

Pulsing percussion and bolshie brass centre around Fonseca’s exuberant piano in an exhilarating extension and reinvention of the music of his homeland. Not since Cachaito Lopez’s ground-breaking 2001 release Cachaito has Cuban music been made to sound so fresh as in Fonseca’s ‘Electro Cha’, ‘Son Beat’ and ‘Mambo Afro’ – this concert is a chance to experience the historic past and joyous future of the genre in one evening.

Part of the renaissance in Cuban music over the past two decades, Roberto Fonseca toured with Buena Vista Social Club before releasing solo material and collaborations with musicians of other world music styles, cementing himself as one of the most inventive and creative Latin Jazz musicians of this new generation.

“One of the most gifted, adventurous spirits of his generation” The Observer

“One of a new breed who can transcend musical boundaries through sheer quality” The Guardian

Support comes from Ariwo, combining the raw energy of Cuban rumba with the deep melancholy of Iranian electronic music. A Cuban/Iranian quartet, they focus on the unexplored intersection between electronica and Afro-Cuban folkloric music. Ariwo comprises Iranian electronic composer, Pouya Ehsaei (Entr’acte), and three of London’s most influential Cuban musicians: Oreste Noda (Sambroso Sambroso), Yelfris Valdes (Sierra Maestra) and Latin Grammy winner, Hammadi Valdes (Carlos Acosta / Irakere).

Children 5+ only. Must be accompanied by an adult.

No booking fee when tickets are booked in person at the Barbican Advance Box Office, Silk Street entrance
Mon-Sat 10am-9pm
Sun and bank holidays 12 noon-9pm