CubaPLUS Magazine

With the start this Tuesday of the XIX Drum Festival "Guillermo Barreto in Memoriam", the Cuban capital has become a giant stage, where percussion is queen.

This important event of Cuban culture, which will be in session until next Sunday, is dedicated this time to Cuba and its music and, during this week, in many capital communities you can enjoy the performances of the Van Van, the Muñequitos de Matanzas, Havana D'Primera, Yoruba Andabo, Pupy and those who are, are, and Elito Revé and his Charangón.

The opening day of this meeting was in charge of its director and outstanding musician, Giraldo Piloto, who gave a percussion master class at the Hotel Nacional de Cuba, where the qualifying round of the international drum competition was later held.

At night, the neighborhood of San Miguel del Padrón dressed up as its residents were able to enjoy the performance of the well-known Timbalaye group, defender of the rumba. This Wednesday the percussion classes and the qualifying round of the international drum contest will continue, while at night residents of the capital community of Guanabacoa will enjoy a concert by the female group Obiní Batá, the first of its kind in defense of the Bata drums.

As Piloto recently explained to this magazine, this great party takes place under the hygienic-sanitary protocols established by the country's authorities, given the situation that still prevails in the world due to the pandemic.

This year, the great festival of the drum pays homage to the 70th anniversary of the Muñequitos de Matanzas, to the six decades of the National Folkloric Ensemble, to the Afro-Cuban-style painter Salvador González and to the Hamel Alley.