Name: Havana Jazz Festival for Musicians and Music Lovers
Start: 2020-01-11T00:00:00.000Z
End: 2020-01-18T00:00:00.000Z
Location: Havana, Cuba

Morningside Music Tours

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20 reviews

Jan 11 - 18, 2020

Group size: 5 - 11

Havana Jazz Festival for Musicians and Music Lovers

Havana, Cuba

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Morningside Music Tours

Email address verified

20 reviews

Jan 11 - 18, 2020

Group size: 5 - 11

Take this once in a lifetime, trip and explore Cuba's rich musical heritage by meeting and working with some of the country's best musicians. In addition to taking in incredible live music at the weeklong Havana Jazz Festival, you will be in for an intense musical experience by collaborating with Cuban musicians with daily private lessons, workshops, masterclasses, ensemble sessions and a final performance. You can join the trip as a non-musician as there will be other activities to do while music lessons are happening. Our trip falls in the category of 'Support of the Cuban People' under OFAC/US Treasury guidelines. . We will interact with incredible, dedicated Cuban musicians who love to share their knowledge.. We will be supporting these musicians thru an independently owned music school by bringing much needed musical supplies to the local musicians. We will also be supporting and interacting with the Cuban people in numerous other ways by visiting art galleries, markets, taking dance lessons and getting historical tours from our local guides. We will also take a day trip to the lush Viñales Valley and visit a tobacco plantation as well as the national park. The whole week you will be learning about Cuba's fascinating history.

Music Lessons
Daily lessons and ensembles with professional Cuban musicians
Lodging
Lodging will be single or double rooms at casa particulares (comparable to 4 star hotel)
Concert Tickets
Nightly excursions to jazz festival events
Walking Tour
Guided educational walking tour of Old Havana
Classic Car Tour
Classic car city tour with educational stops at historic monuments
All meals
Breakfast, lunch and dinner included
Ground Tansportation
All ground transportation in air conditioned 26 seat bus with bilingual guide
Bring along a friend
options for spouses, friends and non-musicians include support of the Cuban people activities such as guided museum visits, history tours, dance classes, cooking classes, and private art galleries.
Day Trip
The Viñales Valley has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for the outstanding karst landscape and traditional agriculture as well as vernacular architecture, crafts and music.

Day 1
Day 1
Get settled in
After getting picked up from airport we will get checked into our lodgings and have a little time to relax before dinner. After dinner we will visit the famed jazz club La Zorra y El Cuevo.
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Day 2
Day 2
Here we go!
After breakfast we will meet up with our teachers for 3 hrs. at a private music school and start to learn about Cuban music. Ensemble sessions will follow the lessons. Activity for non-musicians will be a cooking class, starting with a trip to the open market for ingredients.. Our after lunch activity will be visiting privately owned art galleries. After dinner we will go to hear local talent at Jazz Cafe.
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Day 3
Day 3
Old Havana
We will start with 3 hrs. of morning music with faculty. Non-musicians will have a dance class. After lunch we will have a guided walking tour of Old Havana to learn about the rich culture and history. After dinner we will attend the Havana Jazz Festival.
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Day 4
Day 4
Percussion!
Our amazing faculty will give everyone a crash course on Cuban rhythms and percussion instruments with a separate class for advanced students.

After lunch we will visit a privately owned art gallery and meet the artist. Then there will be time for shopping in an open market with amazing handmade arts and crafts. After dinner we will attend a jazz festival event.
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Day 5
Day 5
Classic Car Tour
We will have our usual morning music lessons. Non-musicians will have time for shopping at privately owned stores run by self-employed Cubans (cuentapropista).

After lunch we will take a classic car tour with our guide, stopping at important historical sites in Havana. After dinner we will attend the jazz festival.
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Day 6
Day 6
Time to jam!
After a short rehearsal we will set up for a jam session/performance with our faculty members that is open to the public. Performance will be after lunch. After dinner we will attend the jazz festival.
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Day 7
Day 7
Day trip to Vinales
Just a couple hours outside of Havana, the Vinales valley is a National Park and a UNESCO World Heritage Center. We will visit the park as well as a private tobacco plantation. Option of attending another concert upon arrival back in Havana.
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Day 8
Day 8
Time to say goodbye!
After breakfast we will hit the open market for shopping and lunch before we have to head to the airport and say nos vemos to our friends.
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Day 1

Get settled in

After getting picked up from airport we will get checked into our lodgings and have a little time to relax before dinner. After dinner we will visit the famed jazz club La Zorra y El Cuevo.

Morningside Music Tours

20 reviews

Multi-instrumentalist Dan Fox started Morningside Music Studio in 2007 in Arlington, MA as a music school specializing in ensembles for adults. After bringing groups of students to summer workshops abroad in Genoa, Italy and Mallorca, Spain, it was clear that the combination of an immersive musical environment plus signature destinations made for a rich and fruitful creative experience! Morningside Music Tours provides the opportunity for musicians to learn new skills, perform in an exciting environment, and learn from the best.

Another great trip led by Dan and Mila! It was great to explore different styles of music other than samba that we dug into on the previous trip in Aug 23. The space for the workshops and ensembles was really nice and a big step up from the previous trip. It was nice to have mornings to relax bit and enjoy Rio. The daily group workshops were interesting and informative and the instructors were all great giving their personal perspectives and interpretations on the different styles of music. I think the workshops could have been just a little longer and links for reference tracks shared in advance. The ensembles were great. Tune selection was really good representing different styles. Every instructor was really great and helpful to me with suggestions on how to play the new styles I didn't have experience with. These sessions could have been 1/2 hour longer. The evening music was not quite as good as last August (which was amazing and also exhausting!). It's always good to see talented musicians perform but for this trip I would prefer to see them play Brazilian music, not American jazz as we got one evening. Even so I got to sit in with some really great players. The Maracatu class was totally fun and a great experience! It would have been good to have our performance nigh later in the week to allow for more practice time. All in all a great trip with many great instructors. I will plan to do it again! Thanks to Dan, Mila and everyone!

By Mike C for The Brazilian Music Experience 2024 on Aug 06, 2024

This was a truly memorable experience. It was beautifully organized, with lessons, private and in ensemble; workshops with stellar musicians; the opportunity to perform at a gig at a famous club in Rio; dinners; dancing; introduction and invitation to participate in an amazing percussion ensemble; a boat ride around Copacabana bay; a stay at a lovely hotel on Copacabana beach; ground transportation provided to all events; and the opportunity to study and play with a group of wonderful, dedicated musicians. Many thanks to our great tour organizers, Dan Fox and Mila Schiavo, and best wishes to all. Jill Borenstein

By Jill B for The Brazilian Music Experience 2024 on Jun 26, 2024

A great trip - put together extremely well. The Brazilian Music Experience and Morningside Music Tours combined to create a fantastic musical and cultural experience !!

By Larry B for The Brazilian Music Experience 2024 on Jun 25, 2024

Thanks for joining the trip, Larry! It was a blast!

By Morningside Music Tours on Jun 25, 2024

Awesome authentic Brazilian music experience! Thanks to Dan, Mila and Guilherme for making it come together. Samba school, Roda de Samba, Choro - all amazing and great learning experiences. Great music at the Bottle Bar close to the hotel. If possible would be nice to know in advance who will be there and book the main area so everyone could have a great seat (or just get there earlier). For performance night, would be good to have a roof over the stage to avoid cancellation, although the venue was a beautiful comfortable place with good food and good acoustics! The hotel was perfect for what we were doing. The location was also perfect in my opinion. Perhaps some improvements could be made with daily sessions. Ensemble practices felt a bit rushed. I think a minimum of 2-1/2 hours would be good. Improvements could be made in the setup - sound system etc., possible a little larger space for the size group we had. Would be nice to get a little more one-one instruction on drums, at least 2 lessons would be good (but a lot to fit in). Lots of nit-picking above to help with future planning. Overall a really great trip and no complaints at all!!

By Mike C for The Brazilian Music Experience 2023 on Sep 22, 2023

This was a wonderful opportunity to immerse myself in Brazilian music, in the company of people who love it as much as I do. Everything was extremely well organised - transport, accommodation, meals and tuition. The music program was very valuable. The organisers were knowledgeable and caring, and were responsive to my particular needs.