Eduardito Sandoval: The Rhythm Promising to Shake Up the 2026 Salsa Festival in Cuba

When salsa calls, there are artists who were simply born to answer… and one of them is Eduardito Sandoval. With the 2026 Salsa Festival in Havana—one of the most explosive stages for the genre in the region—just months away, the young musician Eduardo Sandoval is already igniting social media and public anticipation. With his irresistible blend, he will arrive from February 26 to March 1, 2026, at the capital's Club 500, determined to leave his mark on the Island's musical landscape. In this exclusive interview, he shares how he is preparing for a performance that he promises will be full of surprises and all the energy that has made him one of the new voices of the salsa movement. His presentation will be at the opening gala dinner on the 26th at the Hotel Memories Miramar Habana.

Eduardito, this is your second year participating in the Salsa Festival. What does it mean to you to be invited back?

First of all, I am very grateful to Maykel Blanco and the entire Festival team and all the people who make this magnificent festival possible. For me, it's a huge boost for my career. We all know that beginnings are very difficult, and in these times, managing to be back at the festival after a first time, with a great reception, meeting all the parameters and all the expectations of the public, is super special for me. I am very grateful to be part of this festival, which is the tenth edition, and this time, it pays homage to the 70th anniversary of Elito Revé's orchestra and his Charangón, and of course the ten years of the festival.

Your career as a trombonist has been marked by your ability to fuse salsa with other genres. How do you define your style, and what musical influences have been key to developing your unique sound?

My style is free because I have tried to move through all genres and all classic styles: salsa, timba, jazz, Cuban music in general. I've had many influences, not just as a trombonist, but as a musician. To name a few, Juan Formell, César 'Pupy' Pedroso, Alexander Abreu, Alain Pérez, Chucho Valdés, among others. On the trombonistic side specifically, well, my teachers, Batista, Pipi, Collado, and internationally, many great trombonists. But, fundamentally, I have been influenced by Cuban music in general. I mean, we were born on an island that is music, from the moment we get up until we go to bed, and there is no greater influence than that.

In your opinion, what is needed for salsa to remain relevant for new generations of musicians and listeners? Is there an element of tradition that must be preserved?

All elements of the tradition—be it son, guaracha, rumba, guaguancó, danzón, bolero, or bachata—must be preserved because they are part of the essence of Cuban music. What's needed today is to make it more attractive. Young people prefer to listen to a reggaeton track rather than, sometimes, a beautiful piece of Cuban music. Those who are established have an easier path, but in my case, it's harder, more difficult because I am just starting out, because breaking through all this cloud of reggaeton is very difficult, almost impossible. Of course, I don't give up because I have no other option. I am a musician. I believe we must make it more attractive and spark that interest in young people, by doing concerts in the street, like the urban artists do, by uniting the exponents of timba and also having the urban genre work with timba, because evidently, urban music is the one having the boom right now, and you can't hide the sun with a finger.

Throughout your career, you have worked with great salsa artists. What has been your most memorable collaboration and how has it influenced your artistic evolution?

As a trombonist, I have collaborated with many trombonists. In fact, I made an album that hasn't been released yet, called A Trombón Limpio, where I had 12 of the world's greatest trombonists, both Cuban and international, and they were 12 collaborations. I am the only trombonist in Cuba who has done that in the history of the Cuban trombone. I did two concerts as a trombonist. In one, I had over 30 trombonists and in the other, over 50—exactly 52—which no one has done in the history of the Cuban trombone. And those are beautiful and great collaborations. Now, as a singer, I've been with my orchestra for almost two years. I've had collaborations with Alexander Abreu, with Issac Delgado, with Darío Álvarez and Team Havana, with Diván, with Andy Rubal... All collaborations have contributed in one way or another to my career. I can't say one is better than another because that would diminish the others. But all, in their moment, have had value. But I could highlight the first one I did, which was with Issac Delgado. He is the first artist to collaborate with me, and moreover, I didn't ask him. He asked me. And Diván, on the urban side, was the first to collaborate with me.

So, besides the fact that everyone knows how much I admire Issac, how much I care for him, I love him as if he were a father; he is an excellent artist and person. I could also tell you that Alexander Abreu, not just because I worked with him, but because he is one of the biggest artists in Cuba right now. He is an artist who opened the doors of a platform and a record label for me. So, everyone has their part and their support. There I can also talk about Maykel Blanco, with whom we will soon release a collaboration.

The Salsa Festival is a showcase for many musicians, both established and emerging. What does it mean for you to be on this stage, and how do these types of events prepare you for new musical projects or challenges?

Imagine, when they called me for the Salsa Festival, I hadn't even had my career for a year. I wasn't expecting that call. Imagine, a musician starting with his orchestra, taking firm and sure steps, and receiving that in 6 or 7 months. For me, it is a great blessing, one of the most beautiful blessings I've had in my career. It was very beautiful and it still is very beautiful. And I am sure it will continue to be very beautiful because my career will continue to grow little by little.

The Cuba Salsa Festival is the most important one we have, but it's not the only one that helps us; all festivals, all the spaces where one performs, are very important. And this festival, evidently, is very important because it brings together the best musicians in this country. So, finding yourself immersed in that whole wave, I believe, makes you an important musician. It puts you in a place that sometimes you don't think you are, and that is extremely important.

Throughout your career, how has your perspective on salsa changed? As a musician, what do you still have to discover within this genre?

You have to discover things every day. There are always many things to show, to find, to know, and to learn. And in my personal case, I ask a lot of questions to a musician I admire very much, Guillermo del Toro from Havana D'Primera, and I am a person who is always asking everyone questions. I am creating my own trademarks, and not based on Havana D'Primera, not at all.

So, what remains for me is to find myself. To find my trademark, my language, my way of expressing myself, which I know, but what remains now is not only to find it but to transmit it to the people. And that's why I'm working on my first album, which still doesn't have a name, but already has four tracks and I'm super happy with it. I know it's an album that will mark a before and after for me.

Finally, what message would you give to the young trombonists and salsa musicians who admire you and see you as a reference?

First of all, I thank all the musicians and all the trombonists. The other day someone told me: your word has weight, Sandoval, your word is heard. What you say is taken into account. And so, when that person told me that, I started to take myself a little more seriously. What do I say to the trombonists? What do I say to all the musicians? To believe in themselves, to trust in what they do, even if they fail, to bet on what they do, to feel happy with what they are doing, to feel fulfilled, to study hard, to improve themselves, and to build on a solid foundation. Sometimes the best way to move forward is to know where you come from and what foundation you have in order to achieve things. The path is super long, super difficult. I say it, well, I have had everyone's help, everyone's support, but sometimes that is not enough. You have to work. And consistency is the path to success. You have to be constant, even if we never achieve it, but we cannot die or go to bed with the fact of saying no. You have to do it. If it didn't work, well, in this life it won't, but it will work in the next.