Personalities of the island’s art, cultural and thinking world received the Maestro de Juventudes Award by the Hermanos Saíz Association (AHS), grouping the island’s avant-garde young artists and performers.

The ceremony took place at the José Martí Memorial, just a few hours before the AHS marks its 28 anniversary on October 18. Seven celebrities of the Cuban art and thinking world received the top distinction that the association grants to those who are an example to the new generations of Cuban creators. They included poet, writer and essayist, Pablo Armando Fernández; professor and composer Alfredo Diez Nieto; pianist, arranger and composer, César Pupy Pedroso; actor Carlos Pérez Peña; critic and researcher Raquel Carrió; sculptor, painter and drawer Alberto Lescay; and historian and Professor Eduardo Torres Cuevas.

Speaking in the laureates’ name, Torres Cuevas said that the award was a distinction that expressed not only how much they had worked, but also that they had been useful, even though they are still indebted to Cuban youth, to the country and to humanity. Young sax player Michel Herrera and his band played remarkably well after the ceremony, presided over by  First Vice-President, Miguel Díaz-Canel; Cuban President’s aide, Abel Prieto; Culture Minister, Julián González; Young Communist League First Secretary, Yuniasky Crespo Baquero; and Cuban Writers and Artists Association President, Miguel Barnet.