by Craig HarrisThe sounds of Havana, Cubas dance music were introduced to North American audiences by Fernando Storch (1904 – 2001) and his band, Cuarteto Caney. A breeding ground for future Latin music stars, including Panchito Riset, Frank Machito Grillo, Pablo Tito Rodriguez, Johnny Lopez and Alfredito Valdes, Cuarteto Caney helped to transform the Latin jazz style, tumbao, into a worldwide sensation.Forming Cuarteto Caney shortly after moving to the United States in the early-1930s, Storch based the group on Cubas classic soneros groups. While rooted in the tradition set by tumbao septets, Storch greatly expanded on the traditional format, often breaking tunes down to bare-bone percussion and vocals.Signed by the Columbia record label in 1936, Cuarteto Caney was extremely prolific, recording more than one hundred tunes before 1942. The group remained active, until the mid-1970s, when Storch retired and settled in Jacksonville, Florida.