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Cuban singer Omara Portuondo (Havana, October 29, 1930) started her career in 1945 as a dancer in Havana's Tropicana Club (following the lead of her sister, Haydee). The two sisters sang for family and friends and were briefly involved with the band Loquibambla Swing. In 1952 they formed the singing group Cuarteto las d'Aida with two friends. They were quite successful; they toured the United States, performed with Nat King Cole, and recorded an album for RCA Victor. In 1959 Portuondo recorded the solo album Magia Negra, in which she combined jazz with Cuban music. In addition to her solo work, she sang in the 1970s with charanga band Orquestra Aragon, with which she toured. In 1974 she recorded one of her most controversial albums with guitarist Martin Rojas; she pays tribute to Salvador Allende and the Chilean people, a year after the coup d'état of General Pinochet. In the 1970s and 1980s Portuondo was still quite successful in and outside Cuba with tours, albums (including her unrivaled 1984 collaboration with Adalberto Alvarez), films and her own television series. After that it went downhill with her popularity. But in 1996 Portuondo sang duets with Ibrahim Ferrer on the album The Buena Vista Social Club. This not only led to more tours but also to two new albums: Buena Vista Social Club Presents Omara Portuondo (2000) and Flor de Amor (2004).
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