Blackouts in Cuba disrupt exchange between Minnesota, Cuba orchestra students
Cuban and American students rehearse in Havana through the Cuban American Youth Orchestra program.
Courtesy Rena Kraut
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Cuba is suffering a nationwide blackout after the collapse of its electrical grid on Friday, days before Tropical Storm Oscar hit the island as a Category 1 hurricane on Sunday. The first night of the blackout, a handful of Minnesotans — along with other American and Cuban classical musicians and teachers — were set to play a concert celebrating a diplomatic exchange between young Cuban and American performers. Let’s just say the concert did not exactly go as planned.
MPR News host Cathy Wurzer talked with Minnesota high school sophomore and violinist Mary Hess and her mother, Anne Marie Hess. They were in Cuba through the historic Cuban American Youth Orchestra program, also known as CAYO.
Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.
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Audio transcript
CATHY WURZER: You may have heard that Cuba is suffering a nationwide blackout after the collapse of its electrical grid on Friday, which was just days before tropical storm Oscar hit the island as a category 1 hurricane. The first night of the blackout was the same evening a handful of Minnesotans, along with other American and Cuban classical musicians, were set to play a concert celebrating the diplomatic exchange between young Cuban and American performers.
Well, let's just say that the concert did not exactly go as planned. Joining us right now is Minnesota high school sophomore and violinist Mary Hess with her mother Anne Marie Hess. They were there through the historic Cuban American Youth Orchestra Program, also known as CAYO, I believe that's correct. Mary Anne, Marie, welcome.
ANNE MARIE HESS: Thank you.
MARY HESS: Thank you.
CATHY WURZER: Thanks for being here. Appreciate your time. Say, Mary, you joined a program that was historic for Cuba, right? I mean, this program began as part of the-- gosh, I believe, the first North American orchestra to perform in Cuba back in 2015. So why did you want to get involved in this?
MARY HESS: Well, I was just really intrigued because I've always loved to travel, so the idea of going to Cuba for violin was just amazing to me. And then the more I heard about the program, the more interested I was in it, because I've always loved to share music with as many people as possible. And so just the thought of playing with students in Cuba-- it was just amazing to me.
CATHY WURZER: So did you have an opportunity to take classes with any professors?
MARY HESS: I had one master class with a professor from Northwestern University.
CATHY WURZER: And what did you learn? It sounds like it was great.
MARY HESS: Yes, it was. I learned a lot about my sound and my sound production and just a lot of dynamic things about music.
CATHY WURZER: And I could only imagine how much fun it was to play with the Cuban students.
MARY HESS: Yes, it was amazing. And being in an orchestra with them, the pieces we played, the rhythms were so unlike anything I've ever heard. There was a bit of a learning curve, but it was amazing to be able to do that.
CATHY WURZER: Say, Anne Marie, I want to bring you in here. Tell me about what music education looks like in Havana.
ANNE MARIE HESS: Well, if a child is going to be a musician, their education starts in a musical elementary school at the age of 7 for a string player and about age 10 for brass or woodwind.
They continue on in the music schools through high school and then can go on to a university music program. So really, it's at the age of 7, I suppose you would say parents are deciding for their children that they will become musicians.
CATHY WURZER: And it sounds like it's pretty rigorous. Would you agree?
ANNE MARIE HESS: I would agree with that. The level of playing that we heard among the Cuban students was amazing.
CATHY WURZER: And you accompanied your daughter to Havana for this trip. I can only imagine how much fun that was.
ANNE MARIE HESS: It was very fun. We weren't always together. The students did a lot at the schools, and then in the afternoons, rehearsed for several hours as part of the chamber orchestra. The parents, on the other hand, were able to do some small tours together with a guide in Havana and a few things just outside of the city. So we had a different experience of Cuba than the students did.
CATHY WURZER: So folks who've been to Cuba say that there are blackouts in the city from time to time, but evidently, this was different. The entire island was without power. Was that for the whole week? Mary, how did that play out for you?
MARY HESS: It wasn't for the whole week. It started Friday, I think. That was when the whole country went without power. But I'm pretty sure there were-- if I'm remembering correctly, I'm pretty sure there were small, shorter blackouts throughout the week. I think so.
CATHY WURZER: Wow. Anne Marie, what was it like?
ANNE MARIE HESS: Well, you kind of forget what all you need power for sometimes, crazy habits like walking into the room and turning on the light switch, even though nothing will happen. There were a lot of unknowns. We had had reservations at a restaurant one evening, which we found out did not have power.
And for a group of 16, it's not always easy to change those kinds of plans. Well, none of us could really use our phones, because we didn't get service there. But you couldn't charge any kind of device, so several of us were wearing dead watches for a day or two. No air conditioning, and it was very hot and very humid in Cuba.
CATHY WURZER: I can only imagine. My goodness.
ANNE MARIE HESS: Yes. And no air conditioning ever in the schools.
CATHY WURZER: Yes, I've heard that. My goodness.
ANNE MARIE HESS: Much different circumstances for these students.
CATHY WURZER: I have to ask, by the way, who's in the background singing?
ANNE MARIE HESS: That is my granddaughter.
[LAUGHTER]
CATHY WURZER: Sounds great.
ANNE MARIE HESS: Yes. She's not quite two, so she's contributing as she can.
CATHY WURZER: That's OK. That's all right. Say, Mary, I'm wondering from you--
GIRL: Hi.
CATHY WURZER: Hi.
[LAUGHTER]
Say, Mary, I'm wondering about the concert venue. I mean, you were rehearsing. I'm sure you had an idea of what this was going to look like and sound like, and then you got these power outages. How did it go down?
MARY HESS: Yeah. So we were supposed to be in a concert venue, but the venue had no power. We weren't going to perform in the dark, so we performed where we had rehearsed, which was the top, kind of terrace level of the Airbnb we were staying at. And so the concert, we were all pretty much sitting in this little outdoor kitchen. I was sitting in front of a refrigerator. Other people were on the stove.
[LAUGHTER]
We made it work.
CATHY WURZER: So how did it sound? I mean, were you happy?
MARY HESS: Yeah, I think it was great. It was such a great experience. Not even a power outage could dull it at all.
CATHY WURZER: And Anne Marie-- I mean, you were there. What'd you think?
ANNE MARIE HESS: It was amazing. There was not a complaint amongst the Cuban people. There was not a question of whether or not this performance would occur. The kids were thrilled. There were some people from the neighborhood who came.
And after the concert, the Airbnb had a small generator, so we were able to have some light. But the people celebrated for hours after the performance. And the entire city-- you'd look out over the city, and everything was dark. But boy, the spirit of the Cuban people could not be stopped.
CATHY WURZER: And everyone who's gone to Cuba says it is a life changing experience. Mary, would you agree with that?
MARY HESS: Yes. It was very eye opening, I guess. I never realized-- again, how my mom said, you turn the light switch. You expect the light, and nothing came out. I've never had that before. And so it made me realize how much we really take for granted.
CATHY WURZER: Well, Mary and Anne Marie Hess, thank you for your time. What a trip. Thanks for telling us about it. Take care of yourselves.
ANNE MARIE HESS: Thank you for having us.
CATHY WURZER: Likewise. Mary and Anne Marie Hess from South Minneapolis. Appreciate you all joining us here on Minnesota Now. It was a heck of a show. Check out the podcast if you missed anything.
Well, let's just say that the concert did not exactly go as planned. Joining us right now is Minnesota high school sophomore and violinist Mary Hess with her mother Anne Marie Hess. They were there through the historic Cuban American Youth Orchestra Program, also known as CAYO, I believe that's correct. Mary Anne, Marie, welcome.
ANNE MARIE HESS: Thank you.
MARY HESS: Thank you.
CATHY WURZER: Thanks for being here. Appreciate your time. Say, Mary, you joined a program that was historic for Cuba, right? I mean, this program began as part of the-- gosh, I believe, the first North American orchestra to perform in Cuba back in 2015. So why did you want to get involved in this?
MARY HESS: Well, I was just really intrigued because I've always loved to travel, so the idea of going to Cuba for violin was just amazing to me. And then the more I heard about the program, the more interested I was in it, because I've always loved to share music with as many people as possible. And so just the thought of playing with students in Cuba-- it was just amazing to me.
CATHY WURZER: So did you have an opportunity to take classes with any professors?
MARY HESS: I had one master class with a professor from Northwestern University.
CATHY WURZER: And what did you learn? It sounds like it was great.
MARY HESS: Yes, it was. I learned a lot about my sound and my sound production and just a lot of dynamic things about music.
CATHY WURZER: And I could only imagine how much fun it was to play with the Cuban students.
MARY HESS: Yes, it was amazing. And being in an orchestra with them, the pieces we played, the rhythms were so unlike anything I've ever heard. There was a bit of a learning curve, but it was amazing to be able to do that.
CATHY WURZER: Say, Anne Marie, I want to bring you in here. Tell me about what music education looks like in Havana.
ANNE MARIE HESS: Well, if a child is going to be a musician, their education starts in a musical elementary school at the age of 7 for a string player and about age 10 for brass or woodwind.
They continue on in the music schools through high school and then can go on to a university music program. So really, it's at the age of 7, I suppose you would say parents are deciding for their children that they will become musicians.
CATHY WURZER: And it sounds like it's pretty rigorous. Would you agree?
ANNE MARIE HESS: I would agree with that. The level of playing that we heard among the Cuban students was amazing.
CATHY WURZER: And you accompanied your daughter to Havana for this trip. I can only imagine how much fun that was.
ANNE MARIE HESS: It was very fun. We weren't always together. The students did a lot at the schools, and then in the afternoons, rehearsed for several hours as part of the chamber orchestra. The parents, on the other hand, were able to do some small tours together with a guide in Havana and a few things just outside of the city. So we had a different experience of Cuba than the students did.
CATHY WURZER: So folks who've been to Cuba say that there are blackouts in the city from time to time, but evidently, this was different. The entire island was without power. Was that for the whole week? Mary, how did that play out for you?
MARY HESS: It wasn't for the whole week. It started Friday, I think. That was when the whole country went without power. But I'm pretty sure there were-- if I'm remembering correctly, I'm pretty sure there were small, shorter blackouts throughout the week. I think so.
CATHY WURZER: Wow. Anne Marie, what was it like?
ANNE MARIE HESS: Well, you kind of forget what all you need power for sometimes, crazy habits like walking into the room and turning on the light switch, even though nothing will happen. There were a lot of unknowns. We had had reservations at a restaurant one evening, which we found out did not have power.
And for a group of 16, it's not always easy to change those kinds of plans. Well, none of us could really use our phones, because we didn't get service there. But you couldn't charge any kind of device, so several of us were wearing dead watches for a day or two. No air conditioning, and it was very hot and very humid in Cuba.
CATHY WURZER: I can only imagine. My goodness.
ANNE MARIE HESS: Yes. And no air conditioning ever in the schools.
CATHY WURZER: Yes, I've heard that. My goodness.
ANNE MARIE HESS: Much different circumstances for these students.
CATHY WURZER: I have to ask, by the way, who's in the background singing?
ANNE MARIE HESS: That is my granddaughter.
[LAUGHTER]
CATHY WURZER: Sounds great.
ANNE MARIE HESS: Yes. She's not quite two, so she's contributing as she can.
CATHY WURZER: That's OK. That's all right. Say, Mary, I'm wondering from you--
GIRL: Hi.
CATHY WURZER: Hi.
[LAUGHTER]
Say, Mary, I'm wondering about the concert venue. I mean, you were rehearsing. I'm sure you had an idea of what this was going to look like and sound like, and then you got these power outages. How did it go down?
MARY HESS: Yeah. So we were supposed to be in a concert venue, but the venue had no power. We weren't going to perform in the dark, so we performed where we had rehearsed, which was the top, kind of terrace level of the Airbnb we were staying at. And so the concert, we were all pretty much sitting in this little outdoor kitchen. I was sitting in front of a refrigerator. Other people were on the stove.
[LAUGHTER]
We made it work.
CATHY WURZER: So how did it sound? I mean, were you happy?
MARY HESS: Yeah, I think it was great. It was such a great experience. Not even a power outage could dull it at all.
CATHY WURZER: And Anne Marie-- I mean, you were there. What'd you think?
ANNE MARIE HESS: It was amazing. There was not a complaint amongst the Cuban people. There was not a question of whether or not this performance would occur. The kids were thrilled. There were some people from the neighborhood who came.
And after the concert, the Airbnb had a small generator, so we were able to have some light. But the people celebrated for hours after the performance. And the entire city-- you'd look out over the city, and everything was dark. But boy, the spirit of the Cuban people could not be stopped.
CATHY WURZER: And everyone who's gone to Cuba says it is a life changing experience. Mary, would you agree with that?
MARY HESS: Yes. It was very eye opening, I guess. I never realized-- again, how my mom said, you turn the light switch. You expect the light, and nothing came out. I've never had that before. And so it made me realize how much we really take for granted.
CATHY WURZER: Well, Mary and Anne Marie Hess, thank you for your time. What a trip. Thanks for telling us about it. Take care of yourselves.
ANNE MARIE HESS: Thank you for having us.
CATHY WURZER: Likewise. Mary and Anne Marie Hess from South Minneapolis. Appreciate you all joining us here on Minnesota Now. It was a heck of a show. Check out the podcast if you missed anything.
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