Havana, September 10 (RHC) – A cultural gala to mark the 74th anniversary of Indonesia’s independence and Havana’s 500th birthday will be held at the National Theater September 12. The statement was made by the Asian country’s ambassador to Cuba, Alfred Tanduk Palembangan. The show is a free-admission performance.

Also organized to celebrate 60 years of diplomatic relations between Cuba and Indonesia, the gala is aimed at getting the Asian country’s culture closer to Cubans, the ambassador said. Tanduk Palembangan recalled that the first president who visited the island nation after the victory of the Cuban Revolution was his country’s and referred to the friendly ties between Cuba and Indonesia.

Traditional dances and songs will be performed in the show, plus bands and groups of the Cuban art schools. Standing out among them is Angklung (a typical Indonesian musical instrument). The group is made up of students from the José White Music School in the eastern city of Camagüey, to which Indonesia has donated the instruments. The orchestra, in coordination with the Asian nation’s embassy, has played in several Cuban provinces. The angklung is from Western Java and has four bamboo tubes suspended from the same type of cane tied by rattan strings.