New generations at the 6th Meeting of Cantoras Ella y yo
The 6th Meeting of Cantoras Ella y yo is set to take place from September 6th to 10th. The event will bring together several generations of Cuban Trova singers, along with representatives from Latin America.
At a press conference held at the Salón de Mayo of the Pabellón Cuba, Heidi Igualada, the event’s organiser, highlighted the presence of new venues like the Centro Fresa y Chocolate and the Café Longina, both of which will host different activities. The closing ceremony will be held on Sunday, September 10th, at 6 p.m. at Café Longina, while other activities will take place in the theatre of the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes and the Casa de Artistas y Creadores de Centro Habana.
This edition places emphasis on the new generations and the opportunity to interact with different groups of singer-songwriters. In this regard, Heidi highlighted the presence of the duos Mantra and Dulce Kapricho, as well as personalities such as Alejandra del Risco and Yeni Turiño. She also highlighted the children’s activity that will take place on Saturday, September 9th, at Línea y L Park in Vedado, with the participation of Iraida Williams, Yamira Díaz, and the Arte Patio project.
Trova singer Marta Campos described the event as an opportunity to get to know and see the different generations. She believes that everyone has their own world and everyone expresses themselves differently, but women have something special. She also encouraged people to attend the concerts to see the different ways of singing the songs.
The Cantoras Ella y yo event will also feature a theoretical moment on Friday 8th at 10:00, which will take place in the Salón de Mayo of the Pabellón Cuba. The Argentinean Paula Ferré, founder of the Mujertrova Movement, will participate in the event. She will be accompanied by the Argentinean Cintia Brava and Cecilia Gauna, and the Chilean Concha Laborde. In addition to these artists, other national artists such as Ivette Cepeda, Marta Campos, Heidi Igualada and Liuba María Hevia will also be present.
The director of the Centro Nacional de Música Popular (CNMP), Víctor Rodríguez, explained the procedures for organising the event, which was originally scheduled for June. He also highlighted the steps taken to ensure the accommodation and presence of singer-songwriters from the interior of the country.
The event will kick off with a concert by the Cuban Trova singer Tony Ávila on Wednesday 6th at 5pm at the Centro Fresa y Chocolate. Tony Ávila expressed his honor and responsibility to lead this concert, and mentioned his intention to perform lesser-known songs and share them with the Trova singers. He also stressed the importance of the initiative, which he said deserved support because of its significance.
The Meeting of the Cantoras Ella y yo aims to defend the creation of women in music in genres such as song and trova, and is sponsored by the Cuban Institute of Music (ICM) and the National Centre for Popular Music.
Translated by Luis E. Amador Dominguez
