Nelson Camacho

Pianist. Doctor María Teresa Linares categorizes him as "one of the best accompanying pianists in Cuba".

He was born in Santa Clara, Villa Clara. From childhood, Nelson Camacho had inclinations and a vocation for the piano. Later, at eleven years of age, he overcame the prejudices that existed at that time regarding whether men should or should not study piano, and began his education on that instrument at the Conservatorio Falcón in Santa Clara, his native city, with professor Zoila Benítez. There he graduated in piano, solfège, theory, harmony and music history.

It was during this period that he became intensely interested in the work of Federico Chopin and took to performing his ballades, sonatas, études, preludes, nocturnes, mazurcas and polonaises. In Havana he continued his musical career with maestro César Pérez Sentenat and studied the most important Cuban and foreign pianists of the era and especially enriched his taste for the best Cuban music repertoire. pedagogue César Pérez Sentenat. He spent nine years alongside Pérez Sentenat, where he prepared himself technically, because to be able to tackle the Cuban concert repertoire one must have academic training and with the maestro he studied the great European composers.

He decided to make his career in Cuban music; this brought him problems, since it was not well regarded for a pianist with certain specific training and qualities to dedicate himself to playing Cuban music. "I overcame those difficulties, and today time has proven me right, because the great Cuban pianists are playing that music, in addition to European music. I, however, have preferred to maintain the line of Cuban music primarily and at times I expand the spectrum by performing Latin American pieces. I always like to search in the roots of popular music to subsequently take it to the level of concert music".

Between the 1970s and 1990s, Camacho experienced a breakthrough toward important goals and a harvest of successes in the world of piano. During his 50 years of artistic life, he has worked with all the symphony orchestras on the Island and has performed in numerous musical programs on Cuban television, as well as in the most demanding performance venues. He received various tributes from Cuban institutions that recognize him as an outstanding interpreter identified with the music of his country.

He has offered recitals and has performed as a soloist in concerts.

Since 1972, he worked as an accompanying pianist alongside Esther Borja. He has produced television and radio programs, and has recorded albums. He has composed Cuban danzas and concert songs.

Without a doubt, Nelson Camacho occupies a prominent place among the greatest piano masters of Cuba, as distinguished by both international and national critics, but above all by the public who at all his numerous performances, whether as a soloist or concert performer, stands to applaud him in a spell of admiration and respect.

He worked with Esther Borja for around 15 years on the memorable and excellent television program Álbum de Cuba. He said that she was ingenious in some way and gave him encouragement to continue performing the music of Lecuona. We recorded three long-play albums with Lecuona's music. With Esther Borja he recorded three LPs as an accompanying pianist, the first made in 1975 with the Egrem label; these were the first recordings of this music made here, as there was difficulty with copyright, especially from the Maestro's family, who were abroad, but there were also many taboos regarding Lecuona. We made three albums and in 1995, a tribute to Lecuona on his centennial was presented on a compact disc, a compilation of titles included in these productions.

He also recorded an album with soprano Lucy Provedo titled "Lucy Provedo sings Lecuona", awarded at Cubadisco 2009 and which had the musical production of maestro Félix Guerrero.

Nelson Camacho's artistic life is crowned with successes and awards, both as a concert performer and as an accompanist for distinguished singing figures. Both inside and outside Cuba he is recognized as the best interpreter of Lecuona's work. It was precisely Esther Borja who, upon hearing him play the piano for the first time, commented to him: It seems to me I am hearing Ernesto himself.

Today he possesses numerous recognitions and distinctions, as well as other laurels that have been conferred upon him in the national and international sphere. In 1993, he received the Silver Disc award, granted by the Siboney Recording Company, for his discographic production Joyas de la Canción Cubana. Currently, every night he performs at the Monseignor Restaurant, in Vedado, where he offers a fine show that begins with Lecuona's work titled: Always in My Heart. At this welcoming venue, he plays the same piano that Bola de Nieve used.

I have said many times that Bola gave me permission to play his piano, but after he gave me permission, he didn't let me leave, because I've been there twenty-four years. It means something very beautiful because it was his piano, where he would sit night after night. I have tried to maintain it always, with the conditions it should have; it's an old piano, but it's a great piano and I particularly like it that the Bola piano continues to sound at the Monseñor.

Source: Cubarte