History of Cuba Between 22 and 24 June 1898 the Americans landed under General William R. Shafter at Daiquirí and Siboney, east of Santiago, and established a base. The port of Santiago became the main target of U.S. naval operations, and the American fleet attacking Santiago needed shelter from the summer hurricane season. Nearby Guantánamo Bay, with its excellent harbour, was chosen for this purpose and attacked on 6 June. The Battle of Santiago de Cuba, on 3 July 1898, was the largest naval engagement during the Spanish–American War, and resulted in the destruction of the Spanish Caribbean Squadron. Resistance in Santiago consolidated
Music of Cuba of the modern Italian violins, which began to become popular since the 16th century. On February 8, 1764, Esteban Salas y Castro, the new Chapel Master, arrived at the Santiago de Cuba Cathedral. To fulfill his musical duties, Salas counted with a small vocal-instrumental group that included two violins. After the arrival in Santiago de Cuba, in 1793, of numerous colonists that fled from the slave revolt in Saint Domingue, "someone named Karl Rischer and a Madame Clarais, that had brought with them a clavichord, founded an orchestra : flute, oboe, clarinet, trumpet, three horns, three violins, viola, two violoncellos