Doc Stars of the Month: Aldo Lopez-Gavilan and Ilmar Gavilan, 'Los Hermanos'

Aldo López-Gavilán and Ilmar Gavilán, the sibling protagonists at the heart of Marcia Jarmel and Ken Schneider’s Los Hermanos (The Brothers), are two Cuban-born virtuoso musicians, now in their 40s, whose lives have forever been at the mercy of ideological politics. While still in his early teens, elder brother Ilmar was sent to the former Soviet Union to perfect his string instrument talent — eventually ending up as a chamber violinist in the US, never to live in Cuba again. Meanwhile, kid brother Aldo stayed home to train with some of the most respected classical and jazz pianists on the island, becoming a musical force in his own right. Yet through the years the brothers nurtured a shared dream of combining their musical talents in person — which proved ever more elusive as the decades passed. And then, to everyone’s surprise, the Cold War-era ice began to crack. Seizing opportunity, Documentary enlisted the renowned duo as our May Doc Stars of the Month. Speaking via phone the week of the film’s premiere, the siblings were gracious enough to give us the scoop on growing up in separate worlds, sidestepping politics, and finally coming together as grown men and as artists. And doing so in front of the lens.

To read my interview with the musical twosome visit Documentary magazine.