A discussion organised by Casa Amèrica and Catalonia International explores the power of song in transmitting cultural and linguistic legacies

Today (Friday, 14 March), a discussion took place under the title "Canto de allà, canto de acá" ("Songs From Here, Songs From There"), organised by Casa Amèrica Catalunya and Catalonia International within the context of the agreement between the two organisations to share best practices on both sides of the Atlantic.  Sandra Bautista, the Catalan singer-songwriter and winner of the Enderrock and TV3 competition Sona9, and Emilio Guarnizo, a Colombian artist who grew up in an indigenous village in the Amazon region, discussed the importance of music in transmitting cultural and linguistic legacies, experiences and stories.

Although they live in completely different environments, Bautista and Guarnizo both agreed that their experiences overlap in certain respects, and that there are aspects of each other's life that they identify with. For example, they both use music and song lyrics to channel their memories. At the start of their conversation, they focused on the subject of origins and family: for Guarnizo, his grandparents play a central role, as it was from them that he inherited his Tucano identity. From his grandfather, he learned how to make guitars; and from his grandmother, he learned how to compose songs by fusing Spanish and Tucano, like she did when she spoke.

Guarnizo uses music to express and celebrate the stories of his people, the millennia-old traditions and culture that his grandparents taught him and which he, in turn, wants to share with younger generations. To this end, music serves as a kind of cultural warehouse for his community. In Bautista's case, she drew upon memories of her grandmother, who was born in Andalusia and learned the Catalan language and traditions when she came to Catalonia. The two musicians rounded off their discussion with a rendition of the songs "Mare rema" ("Row, Mother"), dedicated to Bautista's mother, and "El tucán voló" ("The Toucan Flew"), a composition that Guarnizo created with his grandmother and which talks about the history of his people.

The Colombian artist also presented some of the instruments that he makes from pieces of wood he finds floating in the river. Combining ingenuity, tradition and technology, he has transformed rudimentary everyday objects into instruments that are entirely original. Examples include a guitar, which he crafted out of an oar that was more than a century old and made from a type of wood that no longer exists; and the totumo - a type of gourd used by tribes as vessels for food and drink - he converted into a soundproof mask that can be used as a kind of portable recording studio while in the forest and even incorporates a built-in tuner. As well as instruments, he also brought a number of traditional items from his culture, such as carayuru, an unguent used in rituals, and coca, which is frequently used by tribes in the region.

Towards the end of their conversation, both musicians made reference to the experiences of war - whether first-hand or learned about through family members - that they also explore in some of their compositions. Bautista recalled the stories she had been told by her grandmother and those of a generation marked by the Spanish Civil War and the hardships of the post-war period, explaining that those stories were the inspiration for the song "Y si vuelve un general" ("What If a General Comes Back?"), her most political composition. Bautista's rendition of this song was followed by a very emotional moment in which Guarnizo, with tears in his eyes, explained how it had brought back memories of when he was eleven years old and FARC guerrillas came to his village, resulting in one of the most violent and destructive episodes experienced by his people. He then went on to explain how he had promoted the "Sounds for Peace" programme, which is supported by the Colombian government and offers music workshops and courses designed to foster peace. Lastly, Guarnizo performed the final song of the event, "Origen y destino" ("Origin and Destination"), which explores the subject of war.

The dialogue between these two musicians provided an insight into the transmissive capacity of music and the important role it can play; not only in telling stories, but also in empowering communities and individuals, whether in Catalonia or the heart of the Amazon.