Representatives of diverse artistic manifestations celebrated on Saturday in Cuba the 150th anniversary of the singing for the first time of the National Anthem, commemorating on this date the Day of Cuban Culture.

 

The beginning of the struggles for national independence, on October 10, 1868, motivated the creation of an anthem ‘that would be like the Marseillaise of the Cuban revolutionaries,’ according to several historians.

The commission of a musical composition and lyrics was given to Pedro Figueredo, who was shot dead by Spanish troops in August 1870 for singing ‘La Bayamesa’, the song that became the first National Anthem.

Here is still a manuscript of the piece in his own handwriting, and the director of the National Museum of Cuban Music, Jesus Gomez Cairo, launched this Saturday the book ‘Brief Review of the National Anthem’, in the closing session of the 24th  edition of the Cuban Festival, held in Granma province.

The closing day of this event featured the participation of Havana historian Eusebio Leal; actress Eslinda Nuñez; musicians Eliades Ochoa and Patria Quartet; Pancho Amat and the Cabildo del Son; the Moncada group and several theater artists.

From October 17 to 20, historians and cultural managers met in the municipality of Bayamo, Granma province, to carry out some 230 activities in order to celebrate National Culture Day.

The event’s program included literary presentations, conversations, conferences, workshops, concerts, audiovisual projections; as well as the 26th Theoretical Event Crisole of the Cuban Nationality.

Within the day, it was also celebrated the declaration by UNESCO of the Punto Cubano as Intangible Cultural World Heritage and the 40th anniversary of the creation of the Houses of Culture.


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