Rolando Baró Rivero

Pianist and orchestrator. From a very young age he studied music at the Municipal Conservatory, obtaining good results.

He was born in La Habana.

Between 1939 and 1950 he studied music at the Municipal Conservatory: piano, Violeta Gómez; solfège, Aida Teseiro; theory, Georgina Ramos; musical pedagogy, Argeliers León; music history, Edgardo Martín; ear training and sight reading, Mario O'Hallorans and harmony, Harold Gramatges. In 1952 he studied harmony and counterpoint with Enrique Bellver.

From 1948 onwards he worked as a pianist for various groups: Kubakán, Nené Enrizo, Nueva América, René Álvarez and Casablanca, and orchestras: Pedrito Calvo, José Antonio Díaz, Metropolitana, Hermanos Martínez and Julio Cueva.

Around 1952 he formed a group with singer Vicentico Valdés. Between 1953 and 1956 he worked as pianist and orchestrator for Conjunto Casino, with which he made his first international tour in 1955, to Aruba and Curaçao, English-speaking Caribbean.

In 1956 he was one of the founding members of Conjunto de Roberto Faz, of which he was musical director; later he moved to the Sans-Souci cabaret with Rubén Romeo's orchestra, and subsequently with Senén Suárez to Tropicana. In 1957 he returned to Conjunto Casino, with which he traveled to Panama and Dominican Republic.

Upon his return from this tour he joined the Orquesta Cosmopolita as pianist and director. Later he was pianist for the Radio Progreso orchestra and for Riverside Grabaciones y Ediciones Musicales, EGREM.

In 1965 he formed a group with singer Fernando Álvarez, of which he was pianist and director until 1969. He was also pianist and orchestrator for the Orquesta Cubana de Música Moderna.

An excellent orchestrator, Rolando Baró acknowledges the influence on his orchestrations of Dámaso Pérez Prado, Pedro Justiz (Peruchín), Bebo Valdés and Andrés Hechavarría (El Niño Rivera)