The clarinet is a challenge to master. In spite of, or perhaps because of this, a musician who has reached a level of mastery in this instrument is capable of conveying musical ideas of great beauty. Ernesto Camilo Vega is such a player. And we hear the ethereal richness of his voice in the composition, “Con Sabor a Cuba.”

Ernesto Vega and Richie Kaye are musical perfomers of heritages so different that one would think it unusual that they might play together. They discovered, however, their distinct individual musical personalities work so well that one can only say they are “on the same page.” (You can read about Richie on the bio page here. )

Ernesto Camilo Vega (clarinet/saxophone) is a musician and composer of exceptional talent. His “Venir al Mundo,” a compilation of his own compositions, won the Cubadisco Award. He played with the Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis on their visit to Habana. He has performed with Chucho Valdez, Carlos Masa, Alejandro Vargas, the Joe Sample Orchestra, the Havana Jazz Collective and performed at The Trinity Jazz Festival, Jazz in Marciac, the North Sea Jazz Festival and the Lausanne Jazz Festival in Switzerland. He currently plays with his own quartet with the pianist Ernán López Nussa and has recently completed the recording of his own music for an independent American film expected to be released in 2017.

(Photographs: Sam Kuslan)