Vocal Sampling

Vocal Sampling took shape in the early 1990s when ex-Ena Jazz Sextet pianist René Baños, singer/guitarist Reinaldo Santer, and percussionist/bassist Abel Sanabria gathered at Havana's National Superior Institute of Arts. The lineup reached six members once singer/guitarist Jorge Chaviano, tropical trombonist Oscar Porro, and percussionist Renato Mora came aboard. The musicians had met during their studies and elected to create an a cappella ensemble rooted in longstanding Afro-Caribbean forms such as son, bolero, guaracha, and salsa.

After placing the track “Diablo Al Infierno” on a compilation issued by David Byrne’s Luaka Bop label, producer Faro Figueroa guided the group’s debut album, Una Forma Mas. In 1995 the Cuban ensemble made its first live appearance in the United States and soon afterward performed across Latin America and Europe.