The Instruments for Cuba Campaign was born in 1997 when Amara and Jeff Goodspeed teamed up with Musicstop and NSCuba to get a new trumpet for their new friend from Cienfuegos. He was traveling in Canada to help raise awareness of the open nature of Cuban friendship. The band was from Cienfuegos and even though they played on very bad instruments they were wonderful musicians who could play jazz as well as Cuban music.
At the Acadia Jazz Camp in 1997, Rafael Quinones told everyone about the wonderful music schools in Cuba and also that they were in dire need of new instruments. In some case there are teachers and students for an instrument that the school does not have.
The Los Primos Society has been collecting instruments since 1997 and to day has delivered more than 250 to young musicians in Cuba, with an estimated value of over $80,000. Unfortunately there are many talented young musicians in Nova Scotia who cannot afford to be in the school band so the project has now been expanded to provide the band teachers another option to get instruments into the hands of students who would other wise sit on the side lines.
Where the Instruments come from
Instruments come to the Los Primos Project from all over Canada. They come from people who hear about the project and they have an instrument sitting under a bed, in a closet, up in the attic, in the basement or heaven forbid, in the garage collecting mildew. More often than not they are people who have recently visited Cuba, fallen in love with the people and want to help.
Often these donors are people who used to play in their school band and never sold their instrument because they remember their band days with fondness and would never think of selling. Sometimes they come from professionals who have long since aquired better instruments but just hung on to the old ones. Many times people but instruments at flee markets and yard sales but never take the next step which is to learn to play the thing.
What ever the case is, if you do have an instrument, Los Primos can use it. Any instrument that was decent when purchased is of value because the instruments are fixed by the wonderful staff of Instrument Repair Technicians at the Halifax based music store chain, Musicstop.
To contact the society about donating an instrument just send an email to losprimos@eastlink.ca
Where do they go
After the instruments are given a clean bill of health from Musicstop they are hand delivered to schools or young musicians in Cuba.
Many donations have been made directly to the members of Los Primos bands as travel playing concerts in Canada.
The society has made donations to the following Institutions in Cuba…
The Amadeo Roldan Conservatory Havana
The National School of Music Havana
The National Centre for Art Schools Havana
The Cuban Institue for the Friends of the People Havana
The Cuban National Symphony Orchestra Havana
Culture Province of Havana Havana
Various Elementary schools Havana
The Benny Moré School of Art Cienfuegos
The José Maria Ochoa School of Music Holguin
The Santiago School of Music Santiago
How do they get there
For the most part the instruments are hand delivered by Los Primos members when they visit Cuba. School bands visiting Cuba have also helped deliver instrtuments to music schools.
The airlines have been very good to the project and have very rarely charged for the extra baggage. Cubana Airlines from Toronto to Havana is the prefered way to get to Cuba and the Halifax to Toronto leg is usually made on board Canjet. Canada 3000, Royal Airlines, AirTransat and Air Canada have carries Los Primos instruments at one time or another.
One load of instruments arrives in Cuba, April 2002
There was a desperate need for a good digital piano for use by the schools and jazz festival so, in Dec. 1998 one load of larger instruments was delivered to Havana via the Secunda Marine ship, the JD Mitchell. Jeff and Silvio met the ship in the ship yards west of Havana and with the help their friends from ICAP, took the istruments to Havana in time for the ’98 Jazz Festival.
The Big Band Project
In April/May 2002, 5 students and 3 teachers went to school in Cuba for one week. They joined with students from the Amadeo Roldan Conservatory to form a big band and put on a concert at the Famous Teatro Astral in Old Havana.
In order to have a big band you have to have a Baritone Sax and you have to have a Bass Trombone. The Los Primos raffle of 2002 made buying these specialty instruments possible.
INSTRUMENT DONATIONS
YOU CAN HELP
You can help- Send up instruments or cash
Make sure that the word gets out there and help find those unused instruments that are in closets - forgotten.
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Amadeo Roldan Conservatory so the Los Primos Instrument Campaign is introducing the Music Stand Project. For $50 you can send a music stand to the school with your name engraved on it. As can be seen in the picture below, the few music stands that the school does are made of concrete re-enforcing rebar. Some of the big band rehearsals actually made use of human music stands.
Many students in Nova Scotia have come up with their own ways to help out their cousins in Cuba. The school band from Cornwallis High in Canning gave up their trip so to help by a piano amp so that Los Primos 2001 could rehearse in their school.
These band members from Ellenvale Jr. High decided to organize all the school supplies left in lockers at the end of last year. These things will go to the Benny Moré School after the visit of Los Primos 2003 this spring.
Band students from all over Nova Scotia are selling Los Primos Raffle tickets each Nov to Feb. As your band director or musical organization if you can sell the raffle tickets next year.
BIG BAND PROJECT
Musicstop To date over 360 musical instrument have been delivered to music schools and musicians in Cuba. Most have travelled by plane with Jeff, Amara, members of HavanaFax, members of school bands visiting Cuba, members of NSCuba or friends of Los Primos. Some have gone by ship when Secunda marine was making regular trips to Cuba. Most of these instruments were restored to like new playing condition through the generosity of Musicstop and the repair technicians who work there. Thank you Musicstop! |
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Date |
Number | Instrument | Donor |
2002 |
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flutes clarinets trumpets Buchuer alto sax trombone boxes of reeds mouthpieces drum set maintainance supplies baritone sax bass trombone flutes trombone trumpet alto sax classical guitar bass guitar drum set guitar gig bag snare drum big band arrangements box of reeds mouth pieces flutes sax/flute/clar pads maintainance supplies bass/gtr/violin strings computer system printer computer Roland JV-1 keyboard basson Buchuer alto sax clarinets flute violin trombone drum skins Instrument guitar amp guitars mandolin Jupiter alto sax trombone flutes clarinet alto sax drumset drum set Instrument clarinets clarinets clarinet clarinet flute flute tenor sax cornet trumpet trumpet trombone trombones guitar guitar guitar violin violin sax case/repair supplies electric guitar french horn bass clarinet violin Bundy alto sax Artley clarinet Mercedes trumpet Zenith trumpet Ambassador clarinet Hutle clarinet violin Fender acoustic guitar Hutle trumpet soprano sax tenor sax congas Yamaha trombone french horn tenor recorder violin practice drum set electric bass Traynorguitar amp trumpets trombones drum skins/accessories typewriters clarinets Yamaha DX 27 violin cello guitar Yamaha trumpet electric guitar snare drum trombone clarinet trumpets microphone SM58 mic flugel horn violin acoustic guitar classical guitar violin drum sticks concert snare drums xylophone clarinets clarinet Instrument Various digital piano Yamaha DX 7 Digital EQ guitar amp piano amp bass amp DX 27 microphone Instrument Various guitar guitar timbales drum set |
Armand DeGrenier Los Primos raffle Los Primos raffle Musicstop Los Primos raffle the Luthers the Luthers Wolfville Don Brewer Hammonds Plains Musicstop JG Hammonds Plains Doner Kinsgton Kinsgton Donor Dartmouth High various Chris Huck Micheal Montcombroux John Henniger-Shoe Fred Wendt Jazz East Richard Tong- Toronto John Henniger-Shoe Dartmoth High Micheal Robb Michael Casey Rotary International Sharon MacLeod Clarke Payater Layne Francis-"Horn Shop" Lionel Simpson Craig Riener Craig Riener Ken Henderson Gruchies Gruchies Gruchies Doug Skinner Theresa Morier-Waverly Yom Gerard (Rotary) George Smith - St John Ken & Pat MacRitchie Concert Donation Jar Concert Donation Jar Concert Donation Jar Concert Donation Jar Atlantic Jazz Festival Atlantic Jazz Festival Atlantic Jazz Festival Atlantic Jazz Festival Atlantic Jazz Festival Atlantic Jazz Festival Atlantic Jazz Festival Atlantic Jazz Festival Al Stanhope Atlantic Jazz Festival Atlantic Jazz Festival New Glasgow Riverfront friend Rotary International Harvey Miller Alex Vantassel Johnson family private Road Sound JG Andrew Alcorn Rockingham Galt Ont Lou & Audrey Lepage Valerie Golden Merritt Gibson (Rotary) Carolyn Townsend Donor from all over Fabco/Dover Flour/GenMac JG JG Cornwallis High-Canning Musicstop JG CEC Band JG Donor LaHave Bakery Dance Jim Mullin John Teatrault Jazz East Al Stanhope |
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