Harold López-Nussa (Cuba) - Bray Jazz Festival 2026

About this event

Havana-born pianist Harold López-Nussa’s music pulses with the richness of Cuban music, with its distinct combination of classical, folk and popular music elements, as well as its embrace of jazz improvisation. 

The son of a pianist mother and jazz drummer father, López-Nussa released a series of trio and quartet albums before being signed to jazz music’s most famous and influential label, Blue Note in 2023. On the New York label he has since released two critically acclaimed albums, the five-star rated ‘Timba a la Americana’ in 2023, and its follow-up ‘Nueva Timba,’ late last year.

Championed as the future sound of Cuban jazz by none other than the legendary godfather of the genre, Chucho Valdes, Harold López-Nussa’s playing is beautifully virtuosic with energetic quick-fire flourishes and high-wire musical configurations.

Classically trained at Cuba’s National School of the Arts, López-Nussa studied jazz at Havana’s foremost music conservatory, The Instituto Superior de Arte.  He quickly established his credentials, winning both the first prize and the audience prize for solo piano at Switzerland’s prestigious Montreaux Jazz Festival when he was aged just 21.  

It’s joyous, upbeat Afro-Cuban jazz, delivered with infectious energy by a trio that includes his brother, drummer Ruy Adrián, and long-time collaborator, bassist Gaston Joya.

“One of the most gifted of his generation” – Le Monde

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