Dunia

A chance musical encounter between a prominent local businessman and a young Cuban singer resulted in changing both their worlds for the better.Last February, as guests of a nonprofit group called Tropical Research Ecological Exchange, Alan Spitzer, his wife, Pat, and his children, accompanied group members on a humanitarian trip to Cuba.

The people who sponsored our trip had a young lady serenade us. She had beautiful, black, curly hair. When she opened her mouth and sang "Ave Maria," we all had tears in our eyes. She took our breath away. She has an opera-quality voice," Spitzer said.

That singer's name is Dunia Ortega, 20, a resident of a small Cuban village named Cumanayagua. Spitzer now calls her professionally by her first name only, in the manner of Cher or Madonna.

Spitzer said he was so impressed with her voice, her talent and her overall star quality, that he met with her father, Lozaro Ortega and over the course of the next six months, took the necessary bureaucratic steps to get Dunia a visa and booked a flight to America. After he heard Dunia sing that first time, Spitzer said, "Her dad and I started talking that night and began the process a week or two after. Her dad knew that we were well-known and had a high degree of trust in us," Spitzer said.

A songwriter from Walton Hills named David Barton wrote nine songs for the young singer's first CD. The 10th song was written by a Cuban songwriter named Espinosa and is titled "Hechicera" or "Sorceress." Dunia worked on her CD at Lava Studio Recordings in Cleveland and shot her first music video of one of her songs titled "Lost in the Music" at Aces Grill in North Ridgeville and Brothers Lounge in Lakewood.

As for Spitzer's efforts to get her novice career in high gear, Dunia said, "I think he is my angel. He comes from the sky. He gets in my life. He's everything for me, my manager, my second father, my United States father, my friend. His family is wonderful."

When Dunia returns to the U.S., Spitzer said, "My vision is to have her release her album at a CD release party. Then, I would like to have her go on tour or be an opening act. I plan to manage her career. It's a once in a lifetime thing. I just believe she's got virtually unlimited potential. There's a mystique about her," Spitzer said.

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