Timba.com wants to join Cuban music fans and timberos around the world in wishing Juan Formell a very happy 70th birthday! It is hard to overestimate the importance of the role that Formell had in the development of modern Cuban popular dance music. To refresh your memory check our Los Van Van section, which contains an extensive discography as well as historical articles about Formell and his collaboration with fellow legends Changuito and César "Pupy" Pedroso. Here is a video look back at the early days with a 1974 performance of the changüí "El guararey de Pastora" followed by "La maquinaria" the title track from Van Van's 2011 CD. Felicidades Formell! We are looking forward to seeing what you do in the next 70 years!

Guararey de Pastora - 1974

La maquinaria - 2011

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Orquesta Pomo has uploaded some video clips from their June 30th concert at Kägelbanen in Stockholm. Check it out and see what all the fuss is about!

Mi nena - Cristian Guerra on lead vocals

Vuelve - Cecilia Ferrer on lead vocals

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Good news for Cuban music fans: Los Premios Lucas or Lucas Awards in inglés, has just launched a homepage! If you are not familiar with the Lucas Awards, they are Cuba's annual award show for music video. Founded in 1995 and held under various names during the early years before finally being named Lucas, the program presents the best in Cuban music video ranked on a weekly basis. Each year around November there is an award ceremony for the best videos of the year. Over time Lucas has grown from an awards show to a festival of Cuban music video. It is a true gala event including live concerts. The Lucasnómetro allows fans to comment on their favorite videos, making the awards a genuine reflection of the preferences of the Cuban people.

For those of us outside of Cuba, the only way to follow Cuban music video has been via Cubavision and YouTube, but with the launch of the new Lucas website, we can all easily keep up-to-date with the latest videos. Number 1 right now is Bailando by Yuly y Habana C, Buena Fe & Descemer Bueno are Best Debut with Ser de sol debuting at Number 8 and Havana D'Primera has had the Biggest Jump with Al final de la vida at Number 4. There is also a section where you can watch the winners from the 2011 Lucas awards. Go check it out!

Premios Lucas even has a facebook page that you can "Like" to keep track of important updates.

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Tour season is in full swing in Europe and in some countries they are experiencing summer, while here in Scandinavia only the calender indicates that the summer has arrived. It rarely reaches 70 degrees Fahrenheit and rains almost every day. Fortunately, one constant throughout Europe is the festival season and timba concerts. Each concert has a life of it's own; it is a unique moment in time, and thanks to French DJ extraordinaire Jack El Calvo and Pascualito & FiestaCubana.net, some of the great moments from the current tours by Pupy y Los Que Son Son and Elito Revé y su Charangón are now available at YouTube.

Let's start with Pupy since Los Que Son Son play tomorrow, July 14, at Fiesta in Rome! After getting off to a rough start Pupy is in full swing and rewarding fans for their patience with a new mambo titled Quién me está llamando . I'm not a mambo fan, but somehow Pupy always knows how to please me. Great song! Disfrútenlo!

Pupy y Los Que Son Son estrenando "Quién me está llmando" @ New Morning
video by Pascualito for FiestaCubana.net

And if we are talking about great moments in Timba 2012, check out the video that Jack El Calvo has uploaded: Tirso singing with Orquesta Revé! Need I say more? He has uploaded 3 videos of Revé with Tirso as well as his own video from the Pupy @ New Morning concert, so go to his YouTube channel to watch them all. Here is one example. Candela! Cuida'o que te quema!

Elito Revé y Su Charangon with improvisation by Tirso Duarte & Emilio @ Rignac
video by Jack El Calvo

Elito Revé y su Charangón will be in the Netherlands tomorrow and then heading to Finland for 3 days, 19, 20, 21, at the Pori Jazz Festival before returning to Cuba for a well-earned rest.

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