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30 MIAMI LIVING ML EXCLUSIVE! Afterwards, his impromptu jam session with a group of gifted musicians was awe-inspiring. This isn't the first time Garcia and Cachao worked together to create their unique blend of magic. "Cachao and I collaborated on: 'Cachao Master Sessions: Vol. I' (Grammy winner), 'Vol. II' (Grammy nominee), 'Cachao, Cuba Linda' (Grammy & Latin Grammy nominees), 'Cachao, Ahora Si' (Grammy & Latin Grammy winner), all available thru Amazon.com or Descarga.com. He also performed and recorded songs for the soundtrack of my film, The Lost City," Garcia said. "I consider the work I did with Cachao some of the most important work of my life," Garcia explained. Garcia's father, René García Núñez also had a close bond with Cachao. "My father was a lawyer and gentleman farmer in Bejucal, Cuba in the province of La Habana," Garcia said. "He used to book Arcano y sus Maravillas, one of the most popular bands in Cuba at the time, at the Liceo De Bejucal Social Club. Cachao and his brother Orestes were the principal composers/arrangers for that group, creating/recording the first Mambo, 'Danzon Mambo'… In my mind I probably heard Cachao for the first time in the late fifties during one of the Sunday afternoon family dances. This is why I was so connected to his music when I rediscovered him in exile," he said. "After my father's death, we recorded an original comparsa /conga in his honor, "El Alcalde", which was my father's nickname. It's on the 'Master Sessions: Volume I' album and it starts with a Garcia-Lorca poem, which I adapted in my father's honor." And honor is what Hollywood has done for Garcia. In September 1995, Garcia was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Additionally, in October 2008 he was the recipient of the Outstanding American by Choice Award from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. "Outstanding" is how Garcia describes his feelings of such tributes. "It was a great honor." The Tribeca Film Festival recently awarded the movie Garcia starred in, City Island, the Audience Award Winner. This movie is "about a highly dysfunctional Italian American family in City Island, Bronx, NY," he pointed out. "My oldest daughter Dominik Garcia-Lorido plays my daughter in the film." Now that his daughter has entered the acting profession, what advice does Garcia have to offer the next generation? "I learned everything I know through study and experience. The creative process is an ongoing learning experience. There is always wisdom, conversations and observations that go on between artists that contribute to your overall knowledge," said Garcia. "As Stanislavski says 'Love the art in yourself, not yourself in the art'." What else would he like to tell his fans? "I could go into the art of a good carbonara or the sublime taste of fried eggs in olive oil over rice and fried sweet bananas, but I've discussed too much already and this answer is making me hungry," Garcia laughed. ML