Orquesta Buena Vista Social Club is the First Cuban Group to Perform at the White House for Hispanic Heritage Month

A musical act from Cuba is set to perform at the White House for the first time in five decades.

The Orquesta Buena Vista Social Club will grace the White House on Thursday in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month. This is another indication of the thawing relations between the U.S. and Cuba after half a century of severed relations due to the Cold War, CNN wrote.

A White House official said that President Barack Obama will also make remarks at Thursday's reception, CTV reported from The Associated Press.

The event will serve as the 25th anniversary of the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics, CNN further wrote. Cuba's ambassador to the U.S. is also invited to the reception.

The Cuban band, formerly known as the Buena Vista Social Club, is in the midst of its global farewell tour. They gained prominence in the U.S. in the late 1990s because of their traditional Cuban "big band" sound that has not been heard by listeners in decades, CNN noted. Some of the team's hits are "Chan Chan" and "Candela."

A documentary by Wim Wenders based on the act's elderly Cuban musicians was nominated for an Academy Award in 1999 after they reunited to perform for the American audience, the news outlet added. On Oct. 15, the Grammy Award-winning band will perform at Mesa Arts Center as part of their North American "Adios" tour, Broadway World wrote.

The group's newest album, "Lost and Found," was unveiled last March via World Circuit Records and Nonesuch, according to Rolling Stone. The collection contained previously unreleased tracks, some of which were cut from the initial sessions of "Buena Vista Social Club," the 1997 record produced by Ry Cooder that also brought together the brightest Cuban names in music in the 1950s.

Other "Lost and Found" songs were recorded following the success of the group's self-titled album, Rolling Stone noted.

"Over the years we were often asked what unreleased material was left in the vaults," World Circuit's Nick Gold said of "Lost and Found" in February, as quoted by the news outlet. "We knew of some gems, favorites amongst the musicians, but we were always too busy working on the next project to go back and see what else we had. When we eventually found the time, we were astonished at how much wonderful music there was."

Buena Vista veterans have toured globally and gained commendation for their recordings, including solo music from singers Ibrahim Ferrer and Omara Portuondo, pianist Rubén González, and bassist Cachaíto López, Rolling Stone listed.