In Mozart y Mambo horn player Sarah Willis combines two loves: for Mozart and for Cuban popular music - she has been practicing salsa dancing for years. During a masterclass trip to Cuba, Willis was positively surprised to discover how many talented musicians of classical music turned out to be in Cuba. After someone said 'Mozart would have been a good Cuban', she conceived the crazy plan to record
… on a classical album in Cuba and to adapt Mozart's horn and Cuban music with Cuban musicians. She is proud of the collaboration with the Havana Lyceum Orchestra and other talented Cuban musicians. As a 'low' horn player, Willis chose Mozart's horn concerto KV.371, which she also considers the most musical. Mozart's humor, lightness and beauty are an excellent match for the sunny Cuban culture. Three works by Mozart for horn and orchestra are interspersed with infectious, swinging arrangements by Edgar Olivero, Joshua Davis and Yuniet Lombida. Willis concludes the album with two Cuban song classics arranged for horn, trumpet and orchestra. (SvdP)more
