Roberto Ondina

He received initial music studies from his father, and later studied flute with several teachers, although his learning was mostly self-taught. In 1916, at twelve years of age, he played flute in cinemas in Ciudad de La Habana, which were silent at that time, as well as in musical groups that played dance music.

He worked under the direction of maestro Gonzalo Roig as a soloist with the Banda Municipal de la Habana, and was part of orchestras that performed on radio programs.

He was the principal flautist of the Orquesta Filarmónica de La Habana and soloist of the Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional. He is considered one of the first Black flautists to perform classical music. His sound was praised by critics of the time.

He had a commendable career as a flute teacher, and many of his students were among the most outstanding flautists in the country, a distinction that was also given to Ondina himself.

In an interview conducted by Cesar Penago with Maestro Israel López "Cachao," it is recorded:
Maestro, did you know Roberto Ondina?
C.: Yes, we worked together in the Orquesta Filarmónica. He was fabulous. He was one of the best flautists in the world. When Maestro Kleiber was conducting the "Philadelphia Symphony" and came to Cuba, he heard Ondina. There is a work by Ravel that he played very well and had him repeat it ten times, saying: Maestro, am I playing very badly? And he replies to him: "No sir, it's that I want to hear it because you are playing very well" and offers him money to go abroad to work. In those days they didn't pay much at the Filarmónica de Cuba. Nevertheless, the tempting offer did not manage to convince Ondina to travel because he thought that dealing with the English language and furthermore the environment was very difficult because of the discrimination that was very strong.