“In May 2015, the Minnesota Orchestra made history with its performance at the Teatro Nacional in Havana, Cuba,” writes Michael San Gabino on Tuesday (9/18) at Chicago radio station WFMT. “Rena Kraut, a [freelance] professional clarinetist who toured with the orchestra … was … inspired … to start the Cuban American Youth Orchestra (CAYO) … a Minneapolis-based ensemble … made up of young Cuban and American musicians. Kraut noted the challenges in creating such an organization, especially with two countries that share a troubled history.… Kraut has managed to take a group of American students, including a string quartet from the Cleveland Institute of Music, to Cuba…. Four Cuban students were able to travel to Minnesota last spring…. CAYO musicians—horn player and pianist Elio Hernández Rojas and clarinetist Ninián Rodríguez Rego—were invited to perform again in the US this fall. Before returning to Minneapolis, their first stop was the Windy City. On Saturday, September 15, the duo took part in a program called ‘Arts Diplomacy in Action in Cuba’ … in Chicago.… Kraut will lead arts delegations to Cuba in October 2018 and February 2019.”
Posted September 21, 2018
