Manuel ‘Guajiro’ Mirabal

A professional trumpet player for almost 60 years, Mirabal joined the Cuban jazz band ‘Swing Casino’ in 1953. Three years later he formed the ‘Conjunto Rumbavana’ and in 1960 he joined the Orquesta Riverside, whose singer Tito Gomez gave him his nickname ‘Guajiro’. He also played with a variety of other top bands, including Orquesta del ICRT the official orchestra of Cuban state radio and television. In 1996 he became a key member of the extended Buena Vista Social Club™ family, playing on all three albums recorded over that extraordinary fortnight in Havana. His vibrant trumpet playing has since been heard on many of World Circuit’s Cuban releases and his own 2004 album, Buena Vista Social Club™ Presents Manuel Guajiro Mirabal, found him paying tribute to the music of Cuban legend Arsenio Rodriguez.