Juan Formell

Name: Juan Formell
Date of birth: 2 August 1942
Place of birth: Cuba


Juan Formell is a Grammy Award winner Cuban musician, bassist, composer and manager, best known as the director of Los Van Van Orchestra. Formell is the creator of popular danceable music and has been credited with bringing electronic instrumentation into the Cuban musical genre.

He spiced up the ”Charanga Típica” with using guitar bass, keyboard, substituting contrabass and acoustic piano, paila for drumer, flute of five keys for flute system,  intensifying violins and cello.

Formell’s professional carer started in 1957 as musician of cabarets orchestras, radio and television. In 1959 he started as bassist of Musical Band of Revolutionary Police and on 4 December founded the ensemble ”Los Van Van”. He started in many ways a musical revolution in Cuban music and has had more than 50 hits over the years of his professional music career.

Juan Formell received a Grammy Award (Latin/Best Salsa Performance) for his work on the album "Llegó Van Van - Van Van Is Here" in 1999.

Discography:
1993    Dancing Wet (Bailando Mojao)
1993    De Cuba Los Van Van
1994    Los Van Van – Azucar
1997    Best of Los Van Van
1997    Los Van Van - Con La Salsa Formell
1998    Songo
1998    Te Pone La Cabeza Mala
1999    Toda Cuba Baila Con Juan
1999    Llegó Van Van
1999    Legendary Los Van Van: 30 Years of Cuba’s Greatest Danc Gruop CDs
2001    Juan Formell – Colección, Vol. 11
2001    Juan Formell – Colección, Vol. 12
2001    Juan Formell – Colección, Vol. 14
2001    Juan Formell – Colección, Vol. 15
2001    Que Voy a Hacer Si Tu Te Vas – Juan Formell y Los Van Van
2002    Songo
2002    32 Aniversario – Los Van Van
2003    Van Van Live at Miami Arena CDs
2004    Juan Formell – Grandes Exitos
2004    Juan Formell – Lo Ultimo En Vivo
2004    Los Cuba Social Club, Vol. 3 – Juan Formell y Los Van Van
2005    Vivo en America
2004    Juan Formell – Soy Todo
2006    Por Encima del Nivel
2006    Chapeando
2008    Los Van Van - Live in America
2009    Arrasando
2009    Havana, Sí! The very best of Los Van Van


by Zsuzsa Melkvi
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About the Author: Zsuzsa Melkvi is a salsa dancer and teacher, having competed in Latin-American and Standard dances from 1995-1998. She is also the founder of Baila Cuba (www.bailacuba.hu), a Dance company focused on giving exclusively pure Afro-Cuban workshops in Hungary. Zsuzsa holds a BA degree in Economics from the University of Hertfordshire.