Bringing culture to the mountains of Cuba

By María Josefina Arce

For more than 30 years, the Conjuntos Artísticos Integrales de Montaña (Integral Mountain Art Concerts), popularly known as the Houses of Travelling Culture, have been bringing the diverse manifestations of art to the most distant places in Cuba's geography.

These days, in the eastern city of Santiago de Cuba, the Twenty-first National Meeting of these projects is being held to share experiences and continue to strengthen the meritorious work they do.

These groups are very well received by the inhabitants of the mountainous massifs of Sierra del Rosario, in the province of Artemisa; Escambray, which includes Villa Clara, Cienfuegos and Santi Spiritus; Sierra Maestra, in Granma and Santiago de Cuba; and Sierra de Cristal, in Guantanamo.

They were born on the initiative of the leader of the Cuban Revolution, Army General Raul Castro, and have been a valuable option for recreation and spiritual growth for the inhabitants of the mountains, where art did not reach before the revolutionary triumph of January 1959.

They have also played an important role in saving and preserving the traditions of these places, which is essential to counteract the cultural colonization to which the peoples are subjected.

They have also played an outstanding role in saving and preserving the traditions of these places, which is essential to counteract the cultural colonization to which the people are subjected.

Throughout these years, they have helped to train generations of artists from the national education system and young people from these mountain communities.

The five projects of this type that exist in the Cuban territory are an important part of the Program of Attention to the Integral Development of the Mountain Regions of the Country, better known as the Turquino Plan, created more than 35 years ago for the benefit of the inhabitants of these areas.

The Conjuntos Artísticos Integrales de Montaña are part of the Cuban State's will to take culture, synonymous with patriotic values and emancipation, to every corner of the country, and their tireless and dedicated work has made it possible to provide healthy recreation for the mountain dwellers, but also to enrich the lives of all Cubans and form better citizens.