Tiempo Libre to give free concert at Weill Hall with

The Santa Rosa Symphony and the Green Music Center at Sonoma State University will present a free concert, “A Symphonic Night in Havana” at 7 p.m. Sept. 6 at Weill Hall and Lawn in Rohnert Park.

Under the baton of Santa Rosa Symphony Principal Pops Conductor Michael Berkowitz, the free, community concert will feature three-time Grammy-nominated Cuban music group Tiempo Libre performing with the Santa Rosa Symphony.

Tickets to the concert are free but must be reserved in advance, starting at 10 a.m. Monday, June 1. Limit is four tickets per person. To reserve: 546-8742 or santarosasymphony.com; 866-955-6040 or gmc.sonoma.edu.

Classically trained at one of Cuba’s premier conservatories, the members of Tiempo Libre started playing together during a time in Cuba when listening to American music was forbidden, but they crowded around a homemade radio and listened to the beats of Michael Jackson and Earth, Wind and Fire.

Upon emigrating to the U.S., they formed Tiempo Libre, which blends together the sounds of Cuban timba, classical melodies and Latin rhythms. Their most recent Grammy nomination was for their album, “Bach in Havana,” which melds classical tunes by Johann Sebastian Bach with the rhythms of salsa, merengue and cha-cha. The band’s new album, “Panamaericano,” will be released on June 30.