The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) declared this Tuesday the musical genre Bolero an intangible cultural heritage of humanity.
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UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, meeting in Kasane, Botswana, approved the proposal presented in March 2022.
“Bolero: Identity, emotion and poetry made into song” is the title of the binational file presented on behalf of the Cuban Ministry of Culture and the Mexican Secretariat of Culture and in which authors, composers, arrangers, musicians, performers, academics and cultural promoters.
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New entry in the list of #IntangibleHeritage: Bolero: Identity, emotion and poetry made into a song, in #Cuba ���� and #Mexico ����.
Congratulations! https://t.co/Esf5bd38ip #LivingHeritage pic.twitter.com/2dcbxNIYtA
— UNESCO in Spanish ��️#Education #Science #Culture (@UNESCO_es)
December 5, 2023
The Bolero is a musical genre that originated in Cuba in 1883 and reached Mexico and other countries in the region. It is characterized by its lilting rhythm, the lyricism of its lyrics and the song of love and heartbreak.
Because of its melody and the depth of its lyrics, it was passed down from generation to generation, giving Cuba and Mexico an inspiring and incomparable cultural heritage.
Mexico added the bolero to its list of intangible cultural heritage in 2018; and Cuba did it in 2021.
Likewise, UNESCO has already added other musical rhythms to the list of intangible cultural heritage, such as tango in 2009, flamenco in 2010 and reggae in 2018.
The aim of the list is to ensure that elements that states propose as representative are recognized for their relevance and measures to protect them are promoted.