Giovany Arteaga is a Cuban saxophonist born in Havana in 1977 into a family of musicians. He began his musical education at the age of 11 at the Manuel Saumell School, later continuing at the National School of the Arts (ENA) and the Amadeo Roldán Conservatory. Early in his career, he collaborated with iconic figures of Cuban music such as Xiomara Laugart and Omara Portuondo (Buena Vista Social Club).
Based in Canada since 1998, Arteaga pursued jazz performance studies at the University of Montreal, where he joined the university’s Big Band and performed alongside Ginette Reno, Alain Caron, and Gregory Charles. A recipient of several prestigious awards, he won the General Motors Grand Jazz Prize in 2008 with Arden Arapyan’s group and later founded his own project, Cuban Conexion, which earned the Grand Prize at the Syli d’Or in 2011.
An eclectic and virtuosic musician, he blends jazz, Latin music, pop, and world sounds. He has performed on renowned stages such as the Francos de Montréal, the Québec Jazz Festival, Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club (London), and as the opening act for Diana Ross in North America.
Since 2022, he has been touring with Corneille across Canada and Europe. He is also active as a composer for film and video games, having won the Best Original Song award at Diversity in Cannes for Fuego. He is currently preparing the release of Timescape (July 2025), an album featuring Giovanni Hidalgo and Horacio “El Negro” Hernández.
A dedicated educator, Arteaga takes part in music camps alongside legends such as Mike Mangini and Dennis Chambers and is developing an innovative approach to immersive sound (Dolby Atmos).
