New York guitarist Roni Ben-Hur continues his exploration of Cuban music with Abriendo Puertas, the second release in Dot Time Records’ Cuban Notes series. What stands out about this album and the series in general is that it does not barge into Cuban music with tourist enthusiasm. It is built around encounter: recording in Havana with Cuban musicians, to let another rhythmic world reshape Ben-Hur’s phrasing from the inside.
The result is a quietly beautiful Latin-jazz record that’s warm and conversational. The key here is balance, as Ben-Hur comes in as a bebop-rooted guitarist with a lyrical, singing tone. He handles the guitar phrases with elegance, but the music’s center of gravity comes from the Cuban ensemble around him. Alejandro Falcón’s piano is especially important, as he contributes four of the seven compositions, including the title track.
The opener, “Abriendo Puertas,” establishes the record’s tone beautifully. It has movement and elegance with Ben-Hur’s guitar lines unfolding with a patient clarity. The rhythm section: Pedro Pablo Gutiérrez on acoustic bass, Ruy López-Nussa on drums, and Octavio Rodríguez Rivera on percussion, gives the music an elastic Cuban pulse without overcrowding it.
“Gua’ One Blues Pal Bobby” is the first real standout track on this record. a tribute to Bobby Carcassés, this single is part blues and part guaguancó, and that combination captures the album’s spirit: familiar jazz feeling tilted toward Havana until the groove starts answering back differently.
The vocal tracks deepen the album’s emotional register. Osdalgia Lesmes sings on “Dos Gardenias” and “Esta tarde vi llover,” and her presence turns the record inward. Lesmes treats the songs as living material, while Ben-Hur accompanies with real sensitivity, leaving space around the melody rather than filling every gap.
The album’s strength is the restraint it shows across all seven tracks. A showcase of Afro-Cuban virtuosity from start to finish would be the easiest way to accomplish their goal, but that would miss the point. This is a record about musical hospitality: how one artist enters another culture’s rhythmic space without flattening it, and how Cuban musicians illuminate his own melodic language in return.
Abriendo Puertas is a graceful, deeply musical Havana-recorded jazz album that favors listening over display. Warm, elegant, and emotionally mature, it’s one of those records that does not demand attention, but rewards it handsomely.