The Hon. Mr. Alfred Tanduk Palembangan, Indonesian Ambassador to Cuba, said yesterday during the cultural gala of his country in this city, the ties of friendship between the two nations for 57 years.
Tanduk Palembangan spoke at the Dolores Concert Hall here, during the celebration of the anniversary of diplomatic relations, and for the reception of the group.
He thanked the authorities of Santiago and representatives of International Relations of People's Power and cultural institutions, "for facilitating and jointly organizing the commemoration," he said.
"This is a sign that Indonesia and Cuba are still so far apart because of the friendship."
Seven MPs from the Indonesian Parliament and senior officials also attended the "Dolores" after "coming directly to visit the beautiful Santiago de Cuba," Tanduk explained.
The diplomat greeted the Cuban side and mentioned Odessa Fuentes and Dimela Palacios, Secretaries of the Provincial and Municipal Assemblies of People's Power respectively, and Orisel Chacón, provincial director of Culture, who welcomed the visitors.
Dances such as the puspanjali and indang, and traditional songs and the international staff such as "Bésame mucho", "Yesterday", "In my own way" ... were performed by Indonesian artists and the angklung orchestra (typical and percussive instrument of Indonesia , With more than a millennium and a half of existence).
The novelty is that the 11-year-old angklung group consists of students from the José White Conservatory of Music in Camagüey under the direction of the teacher and teacher Eugenio Silva, the only one in Cuba who teaches this instrument, Created a musical method.
Indonesia has donated these instruments to the Camagüeyan center and the group, in coordination with the Indonesian Embassy, has also performed in Cienfuegos, Havana, Santa Clara, and now for the first time in Santiago de Cuba. More than 60 songs, including more than 20 Indonesian authors, form the repertoire.
The puspanjali is the name of a floral offering to the gods and is also traditional dance originating in Bali; Indang is another traditional dance originating in East Sumatra, and the angklung is a musical instrument, originally from West Java, consisting of two to four bamboo tubes suspended in a framework of the same type of reed and joined by rattan strings.
Each angklung produces a single single note or string, hence the group of performers requires a perfect collaboration in the execution to obtain the melody.
To close the celebration and greet the audience, all the artists of the gala appeared again on the stage of the "Dolores" and with them Ambassador Tanduk, the visiting Deputies, and the Cuban authorities.