On Tour
Roberto Fonseca
Jazz
The next Roberto Fonseca concert is scheduled for Sunday, July 20, 2025 at Festival MIMO in Amarante, Portugal. See all 11 upcoming concerts
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About Roberto Fonseca
Hometown
Havana, Cuba
Born
March 29, 1975
Genre
Jazz
Instrumental in the global renaissance of Cuban music, Roberto Fonseca is a world-renowned pianist famous for fusing Latin jazz, urban music, and African rhythms with the sounds of his heritage. Initially emerging in the late '90s as a member of the duo Temperamento, Fonseca has issued a string of genre-bending solo albums including 2001's Elengo, 2009's Akokan, and 2016's ABUC. He has also toured with Buena Vista Social Club and worked with such varied artists as Gilles Peterson, Omara Portuondo, Mala, and others.
Born in Havana in 1975, Fonseca first began playing the piano at age eight. After graduating from university with a master's degree in composition, he teamed up with Javier Zalba under the guise of Temperamento to record their 1999 debut, En el Comienzo. A solo record, Tiene Que Ver, followed in the same year, and after 2001's double whammy of Elengo and No Limit, Fonseca then concentrated on touring with Buena Vista Social Club and Rubén González, and producing records for Asa Festoon and the late Ibrahim Ferrer. In 2007, he returned with Zamazu and followed it up with 2009's Akokan, 2010's Live in Marciac, and 2012's Yo.
In 2015, Fonseca issued Ayt Home: Live in Marcia in duet with Malian singer and songwriter Fatoumata Diawara on Jazz Village. The following year the pianist released ABUC, his recording debut with Impulse Records. The album revisited his Afro-Cuban roots. Among its guests were Trombone Shorty, trumpeter Manuel "Guajiro" Mirabal, vocalists Daymé Arocena and Carlos Calunga, and Buena Vista Social Club guitarist Eliades Ochoa. Yesun arrived in 2019 and found Fonseca further expanding his Cuban traditions with forays into electronic music, reggaeton, funk, and more. ~ Jon O'Brien
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