It has taken the Buena Vista Social Club phenomenon to bring Orlando Cachaito Lopez to true world fame for followers of Cuban music.

He was already well known from work with the great Irakere, who began developing the big-band Cuban sound in the Sixties.

His family's tradition is strongly musical, with his violinist grandfather Pedro being a particular influence.

His father Orestes and uncle Israel (Cachao) became renowned bassists and musical directors. Each has played a key role in the development of Latin forms such as the mambo.

Cachaito had roles in cabaret bands, being with the National Symphony Orchestra, and with established singers such as Omara Portuondo.

The richness of Cuba's cultural life found Cachaito working equally in classical studio and jazz contexts during the early Sixties.

Coincidentally, this was the greatest creative period in the life of US bassist and composer Charles Mingus, an iconic figure to many musicians and especially to double bassists, his being the first serious front-line presence for the instrument in modern jazz.

In 1965, Cachaito played the bass part in a symphonic tribute to Mingus by Leo Brouwer, which featured other young stars such as alto-saxist Paquito D'Rivera and pianist Chucho Valdes. He was later to work with Valdes on Orquestra Cubana de Musica Moderna and Irakere.

Mingus' sound was as steeped in Latin as it was in blues and soul from Cumbia And Jazz Fusion to Haitian Fight Song, which appears on Cachaito's freewheeling World Circuit CD as Tumbao No 5.

It seems fitting that a performer as venerable as Cachaito should bring his inimitable talents to a wider stage with his years of experience allied to a constantly fresh approach.