PILOTO'S HEADACHES

The XVII Festival Internacional del Tambor Guillermo Barreto in Memoriam (XVII International Drum Festival “Guillermo Barreto in Memoriam”) has come to an end. Giraldo Piloto Barreto, also director of Klímax, welcomes Arte por Excelencias magazine representatives in his cozy home of El Cerro.

"The Festival is a pleasant headache, because we like to give the audience a broad idea of the reason we defend in each edition. There are some reasons that repeat themselves. One of them is the tribute to women in music, because in several editions the International Women's Day has coincided with the dates of the festival. This year we dedicated it to Merceditas Valdés, my uncle´s - Guillermo Barreto - wife.

»Currently the festival has different goals. The first is the defense of tradition, the Cuban musical heritage and dance, as well as the importance of linking ourselves to young people interested in percussion and our music, who are attracted to shows that are not monotonous. This is a country with a great wealth of percussion and music.

»Brazil is the Latin American giant due to many reasons: its extension, culture, the tradition that they have managed to save and transmit to the world. The first country to which we were to dedicate one night was Brazil, precisely because of its strength in Latin American culture, music and percussion. "

Other reasons for the festival are the rumba, casino and percussion competitions. "Among the winners we had the participation of many young people, and that was what the jury liked best; in my case, as the organizer and president of the festival, that confirmed to me that we were on the right track.

There will be Fiesta del Tambor for a long time: the next edition will be from March 3 to 9, 2019 and will have the African continent as the guest of honor.