Ivan Llanes

Ivan Llanes was born on in 1985 in Camaguey, Cuba. He made his way to Havana in 2008 and joined Ricardo Leiva y Sur Caribe, and the Grammy-nominated Orlando “Maraca” Valle y Otra Visión.

After a US tour with Maraca in 2011, Llanes relocated to New York to expand his musical career with a variety of world-renowned musicians. Since then, he has become an indispensable member of the Latin and Latin jazz communities. The versatility on his playing has added to his success, leading to collaborations with many artists performing a wide variety of music. He has performed/recorded with Katreese Barnes, Colin Hay, Arturo O’Farrill and the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra, Nella, Carlinhos Brown, Descemer Bueno, and Mario “Mayito” Rivera, to name a few.

Llanes is currently working on his own project, the Cuban Way, which is an effort to reflect the wide variety of his musical influences, while incorporating elements from Cuba and US, in a creative setting that showcases both his energy and passion.