another cellist: the one and only Martín Meléndez! / by Toni Ricart

2H4A7268.jpg
2H4A7276.jpg
insta.jpg

This morning I had the honor of portraying Martín Meléndez, one of my favorite jazz cellists.

From Cuban parents he was born in Moscow in September 1982. From an early age he began his music studies in the specialty of cello in Havana, Cuba, at the Conservatorio Amadeo Roldan and later at the Instituto Superior de Arte (ISA). Used to improvise, his musical tastes takes inspiration from Jazz, Cuban Music, Funk, and later Flamenco, developing his own and fascinating style, taking the violoncello towards a new language.

He currently lives in Barcelona where he is a member of the Aupa Quartet, the Carlos Saura’s company Flamenco Hoy and also has participated for 7 years in the show Opera y Flamenco (Rafael Amargo). He has collaborated in recordings and shared stage with artists such as: Pablo Milanés, Chano Dominguez, Macaco, Dorantes, Renuad Garcia-Fons, Yusa, Descemer Bueno, Antonio Rey, Kiko Veneno, Ernesto Aurignac, Reynald Colom, Kinan Azmeh among others, playing in many parts of the world, Canada, Australia, Chile, Turkey, Russia, China, Argentina, Germany, to name a few.