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Afro-Cubanism like you’ve never heard it before.  

Amadeo Roldán’s masterpieces reinvented for Sitar, Piano & Percussion.

Afro-Cubanism like you’ve never heard it before.  

Amadeo Roldán’s masterpieces reinvented for Sitar, Piano & Percussion.

Release date: 07/03/2026

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Roldán Transmutado

  This EP brings together Amadeo Roldán’s El Diablito Baila (Dance of the Little Devil) and Canción de Cuna del Niño Negro (Lullaby for a Black Child) in a contemporary setting for sitar, piano, and Afro-Cuban percussion. Rooted in Roldán’s pioneering Afro-Cuban aesthetic, the work expands the original sound world through the resonant timbre of the sitar, the structural clarity of the piano, and the rhythmic vitality of traditional percussion. The result is an intercultural reinterpretation that honors the composer’s spirit while offering a fresh, global perspective on two of his most evocative piano pieces.

  

Arrangement / Interpreters: 

Arsenio Diaz (Sitar)

Yan Carlos Artime Perez: (Piano)

Eduardo Rodriguez (Percussion)

Recorded by:

Pavel Urkiza

Mixing and Master: 

German Landaeta

Sound Cloud Private Listening Links

El Diablito Baila

Canción de Cuna del Niño Negro

Canción de Cuna del Niño Negro

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Canción de Cuna del Niño Negro

Canción de Cuna del Niño Negro

Canción de Cuna del Niño Negro

Click to listen here

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Roldán Transmutado

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About Arsenio Diaz

 

After earning a degree in Music and Classical Guitar, Arsenio Diaz embarked on a transformative journey through the intricate world of the sitar. Immersing himself in its mysteries, he uncovered a powerful artistic voice rooted in ethno-convergence and cultural storytelling.


Blending the meditative sonorities of the sitar with the rich melodic and rhythmic traditions of Afro-Cuban music, Arsenio creates a cross-cultural soundscape that transcends borders. His music is not just fusion, it is a dialogue between traditions, a call to preserve cultural heritage while reimagining its possibilities.


Every composition is an invitation: to feel the pulse of Afro-Cuban rhythms meeting the mysticism of Eastern melodies, to witness traditions intertwine with reverence and innovation. With each performance, Arsenio builds bridges between worlds—connecting people through the universal language of music.


Recognitions and awards:

 

The Miami Individual Artists (MIA) grant program, awarded by the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs, has recognized exceptional talent in the arts for 4 consecutive years (2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025). 


InterContinental Music Awards (ICMA). Best of Pangea in World Music category with the song "La Rumba de Sandokan". (2025)


International Songwriting Competition (ISC). Semi-Finalist with the song "El Güije y la Nereida" (2025)


Global Music Awards. Silver Medal in the World Music category with the song "El Güije y la Nereida" (2026)

Featured Artists

Yan Carlos Artime Perez

  

Yan Carlos Artime Perez is a Cuban pianist, violinist, composer, and producer trained at the Manuel Saumell and Amadeo Roldán conservatories, where he developed a strong foundation in both classical music and jazz. After performing with several notable Cuban groups, he continued his career in Puerto Rico, collaborating with leading artists and participating in major jazz festivals and recording projects. In 2009 he launched his creative project Memories of the Wind. Since relocating to Miami in 2015, he has remained an active force in Latin music, working with renowned figures including Malena Burke, Eliades Ochoa, Meme Solís, Willy Chirino, Francisco Céspedes, and Aymée Nuviola.

Eduardo Rodriguez

 Eduardo Rodríguez, originally from Santa Clara, Cuba, graduated from the Amadeo Roldán Conservatory of Music in Havana before settling in the United States, where he has established himself as a highly sought‑after percussionist. Now based in Miami, he has recorded and toured with internationally renowned artists such as Gloria Estefan and Miami Sound Machine, Celia Cruz, Paquito D’Rivera, Ricky Martin, Marc Anthony, Carole King, Stevie Wonder, Bacilos, Chayanne, Tito Puente, Barry Gibb, Son by Four, among many others. 

Amadeo Roldán, the composer

 Amadeo Roldán y Gardes (1900–1939) was a Cuban composer, violinist, and a leading figure of Afrocubanismo, recognized as one of the pioneers of modern Cuban symphonic music. Born in Paris to a Cuban mother and Spanish father, he trained at the Madrid Conservatory before moving to Cuba in 1919, where he quickly became concertmaster of the Orquesta Sinfónica de La Habana and later conductor of the Orquesta Filarmónica de La Habana. 


Roldán was among the first Western classical composers to integrate Afro‑Cuban percussion and folklore into symphonic writing, producing groundbreaking works such as La Rebambaramba (1928), El milagro de Anaquille (1929), and the Rítmicas (1930), the latter including some of the earliest percussion‑only pieces in the classical tradition. 


A central cultural voice of 1920s–30s Cuba, he collaborated with writer Alejo Carpentier, helped introduce European modernism to Havana’s concert life, and influenced a generation of composers. Roldán died in Havana at age 38, leaving a legacy that reshaped Cuban art music and expanded the possibilities of orchestral sound.

Project Narrative & Technical overview

1. Aesthetic, Academic, and Conceptual Justification
This project reimagines Amadeo Roldán’s El diablito baila and Canción de cuna del niño negro through an unprecedented contemporary trio for sitar, piano, and Afro-Cuban percussion. Grounded in Roldán's intercultural afrocubanist legacy, this arrangement expands his vision into a "South-South" dialogue (Latin America and India) that challenges Eurocentric academic norms. Far from superficial exoticism, the sitar serves as a legitimate timbral equivalent to ancestral African chordophones (like the kora or ngoni). While the piano provides a rigid Western temperament, the sitar’s microtonal flexibility and meend (string bending) organically capture the inflections, portamentos, and ritual mysticism of Afro-Cuban liturgical chants (lucumí and arará). Together, the ensemble forms a perfect triad: the piano anchors the harmonic architecture, the percussion drives the rhythmic motor, and the sitar elevates the piece as a lyrical, experimental voice.

2. Technical Description of the Work
The arrangement strictly preserves the formal structure and expressive essence of the original pieces. The piano maintains its core harmonic and rhythmic role, with minor adaptations to accommodate the counterpoint. The sitar's melodic lines are derived directly from Roldán's piano writing, enhanced by idiomatic ornamentation that enriches the texture without altering the thematic identity. Concurrently, the percussion reinforces the composer's signature rhythmic patterns, adding polyrhythmic layers that accentuate the works' character. The final result balances stylistic fidelity with global timbral expansion.

3. Description of the Creative Process
The process began with an analytical deconstruction of both scores to identify the core elements to preserve rhythmic energy, melodic clarity, and expressive intent. The work then focused on integrating the sitar and percussion without overshadowing the piano. Motifs were translated into the sitar's phrasing while respecting its modal nature and atmospheric capability. Meanwhile, the percussion layer was built directly from Roldán's rhythmic foundations to avoid crowding the soundstage. The final phase balanced the three sonic planes, ensuring that historical research, timbral sensitivity, and intercultural experimentation blended seamlessly.

4. Personal Artistic Statement
This project is born from a desire to build bridges between distant yet deeply expressive musical traditions. By working with these masterpieces, the purpose is to honor Roldán’s avant-garde legacy while establishing an egalitarian space for the sitar, piano, and Afro-Cuban percussion to interact. Rather than changing the identity of these works, this arrangement seeks to unlock new resonances, expand their timbral palette, and place them in a global context that mirrors the cultural diversity of our time. It is, in essence, an act of cross-cultural encounter, respect, and deep listening.

Contact

mysticalsitar@outlook.com

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