Havana, Cuba. - Pedro Izquierdo was born to give new flavor to music and especially to our carnivals.
He renamed himself as Pello, el Afrokan, who brought glory to this country with the sound of his Mozambique rhythm. Thus, he found a way so that nobody would ever doubt the respect of Cuba’s children for their ancestors, dragged from the distant African lands in a humiliating way.
Three bells and a frying pan to replace the clackers, four drums that in Lucumi language are known as oloddu-mare, make up the sonority basis, melodically complemented by trumpets and trombones.
Elements of conga, rumba and Iyesá beats converge in the catchy rhythm that immortalized Pello and made him the fundamental attraction of Havana carnivals since the 1960’s.
Since then, no one questioned his presence in the world-renowned Tropicana Cabaret, with his productions Fantasia and Sen-se-ribó. He and his group played at the International Festival of Folk Music and Dance, of Schöten, Belgium; and at the Carnival of Gran Canarias.
He toured different countries, which allowed him to disseminate pieces such as the anthological "Maria Caracoles", with the acceptance of publics and critics in Latin American and European theaters, as well as in the famous Carnegie Hall, of New York.
The jolly and innovative musician also designed the accompanying choreography of Mozambique, in which the knees are gently rhythmically and gently bent, while the body is lowered and one foot steps forward. The motion is completed withdrawing the foot, while the body returns to its normal position. It is danced in tune with a low drum beat, attached to the bass drum.
Pello el Afrokan means catchy, cheerful, sensual Cuban music; of the kind that is never missing in the carnivals of this Island
Translated by Pedro A. Fanego
