The Diplomat
The Brazilian artist Carlinhos Brown starred in the event organized in Madrid by the Ibero-American General Secretariat (SEGIB), on the occasion of Ibero-American Day, which is celebrated every July 19.
At the start of the party, held at the Casa de América, with the aim of highlighting the richness, diversity and historical and cultural affinities of the 22 countries of the community, Carlinhos Brown stated: «I am a messenger that SEGIB has established For my word to inspire new young people, it is not only an honor, but also an obligation. Let’s stay strong.”
Under the title “Ibero-America Dialogue”, the Brazilian artist spoke with the singer Marina Valdés, great-granddaughter of the pianist Bebo Valdés and granddaughter of Chucho Valdés, and both agreed to reiterate the importance of culture, music and art as necessary goods and that They transcend borders.
The filmmaker Fernando Trueba also participated in the talk electronically, who 20 years ago filmed The Miracle of Candeal, a documentary about social work that involved Carlinhos Brown’s proposal to replace the violence of a humble neighborhood with the music of its drums. and timpani.
“The ‘Miracle of Candeal’ allowed me to get to know Carlinhos as a human being, as a person, and it allowed me to get closer to Bebo, whom I never had the opportunity to meet in life,” said Marina Valdés.
And between question and question, the timpani sounded, the Cuban rhythms, the award-winning song from the film El Milagro de Candeal (Goya for best documentary and best song) and the tune of 100% Latin American roots music. A version adapted to Brazilian rhythms of the Ibero-American Anthem was also heard.
The event, organized by SEGIB, with the support of the Spanish Cooperation Agency and the collaboration of Casa de América, was inaugurated by the Ibero-American Secretary General, Andrés Allamand, who highlighted how culture – a great guest of the day – has been always a priority element for Ibero-American identity and cooperation, «a culture that is American, European and African; which is sung in Spanish, Portuguese and also the languages of native peoples; which is tradition, is avant-garde and innovation.
For his part, the Director of Casa de América, León de la Torre, also spoke at the opening, pointing out that “it is a great day for Ibero-American culture and the values that unite us every day.”
In addition to the activity with Carlinhos Brown and Marina Valdés, the second edition of “Iberoamerica Future” took place a day earlier at the headquarters of the Iberoamerican General Secretariat, a space created within the commemoration of Iberoamerica Day for reflection on issues of cutting-edge science written and thought from the region.
On this first occasion, the topic was “Neuroscience, rights and artificial intelligence”, and included the participation of the Spanish neurologist Rafael Yuste, the former Chilean senator Guido Giraldi and the Spanish computational linguist, Carmen Torrijos. The need to deal with science, with a focus on people and from a multiple perspective, which includes an ethical, legal, political and philosophical perspective, was the great issue of the day.
In November 2019, the ministers of Foreign Affairs of the 22 countries in the region approved celebrating Ibero-American Day every July 19, the date on which the first declaration of heads of state of the region was signed in Guadalajara (Mexico), in 1991.
The SEGIB has been actively participating in the commemoration of this day, mainly placing emphasis on the values that unite the 22 countries of the region, on the joint work carried out in favor of the progress of Ibero-America and underlining the importance of cooperation horizontal and the agreements signed between countries as valid instruments to achieve more just and sustainable societies.
