Cuba’s Pablo Milanes, songwriter and social crusader, dies at 79
— Acclaimed Cuban singer, songwriter and guitarist Pablo Milanes died early Tuesday in Spain, where he had been hospitalized in recent days, his agent said. He was 79.
“It is with great pain and sadness that we inform you that the maestro Pablo Milanes died this morning, Nov. 22, in Madrid,” his agency said on the singer’s official Facebook page.
“May he rest in the love and peace he always transcended. He will remain forever in our memory.”
Cuba’s Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz said on Twitter that “culture in Cuba is mourning the passing” of Milanes.
The writer of songs such as “Yolanda” and “Breve Espacio” had been hospitalized in Madrid, where he had lived since 2017 so that he could receive medical treatment.
On Nov. 11, his office said he was “stable” and being treated for a series of recurrent infections that in recent months had been affecting his health.
The artist rose to prominence following the Cuban revolution of 1959, and gained renown both on and off the island as he became a leader of the Nueva Trova movement alongside fellow Cuban musicians Silvio Rodriguez and Noel Nicola.
He inspired and was influenced by artists from a variety of musical genres in Latin America as well as Spain, Portugal and Puerto Rico.
Nueva Trova, born in the years following the revolution, was smiled upon by Fidel Castro’s government for lyrics that gave voice to its stated political and social imperatives, including the battles against sexism, colonialism and racism.
Milanes had to cancel his final concerts planned for later this month in Spain and the Dominican Republic.