Colombia celebrates with 'Sabrosura' OAS's declaration of the country's rhythms as heritage of the Americas

"From the Andean region the bambuco and torbellino. From the Caribbean the vallenato, the cumbia and the mapalé. From the Pacific the curralao, berejó and contradanza. And from the Amazon region its fantastic indigenous chants," said Colombian Ambassador to the United States, Camilo Reyes, who attended the event. "This declaration of the American States Organization of some Colombia rhythms as heritage of the Americas acknowledges and aims to preserve its legacy to the Americas and to the world."

The announcement was made during an event held in Washington D.C.´s Lincoln Theater, where Colombia launched its international tourism campaign 'Colombia land of Sabrosura', highlighting the country´s great variety of rhythms throughout its different regions. 

"This is a recognition to Colombia's cultural richness, a country with more than 1,000 musical rhythms and other 9 cultural expressions already declared as world heritage. Ours is a country where people not only listen to music but live through it. This is the reason why music is the focus of our international tourism campaign: 'Colombia land of sabrosura'.  Through it we are now singing to the world the reasons why to visit Colombia's multiple destinations," said Felipe Jaramillo, President of ProColombia.

The launch of the campaign is part of a week-long celebration, that through a series of events taking place in D.C., from April 16^th to the 22^nd, will showcase Colombia's culture and diversity.

Colombia as a musical destination

The country has 1,025 rhythms grouped in 157 genres, divided in five regions of the Colombian territory: the Andean, Amazon, Caribbean, Orinoco and the Pacific region.

Bogotá, the Colombian capital, counts on more than 60 festivals and 500 music venues. Since 1995, the city offers free outdoor concerts of local artists of genres ranging from rock, jazz, salsa and hip hop to opera. Along with Medellin, both cities belong to the UNESCO Network of Creative Cities in the category of Music, and the diverse regions of the country host music festivals throughout the year from Cartagena de Indias and San Basilio de Palenque, to Mompox, Cali and Pasto, among others.

SOURCE ProColombia, The Colombian Government Trade Bureau