The Swiss Embassy and its Agency for Development and Cooperation (COSUDE) are launching the Youth Art Fund (FAJ) starting this year, aimed at the professional development of young artists, with an inclusive nature and to provide support to projects creatives from Cuba.
In a note published by the Embassy in Cuba it is explained that in the period 2022-2024 the FAJ “will develop cooperation actions in visual arts and music with the intention of expanding to other artistic manifestations representative of the Cuban cultural heritage, according to its imprint future in the national and international context”.
Regarding this initiative, the Swiss nationalized Cuban violinist, singer and composer, Yilian Cañizares, will perform on January 29 at the theater of the National Museum of Fine Arts.
“It will be a very special concert because we officially inaugurate the Youth Art Fund, a project of the Swiss Embassy in Cuba and COSUDE. This initiative is very necessary because it aims to support emerging art on the island with concrete actions. I have the happiness of being linked to this project since its management and now offering this launch concert where I will be accompanied by young Cuban musicians”.
“I know from my own career how important these types of actions are and I am happy to be able to contribute and do my bit. On a personal level, I feel more than excited because I haven’t played in Cuba for many (too many) years. It was a dream that my grandmother had in life and that I am fulfilling posthumously,” she told OnCuba.
Qualified by the great Chucho Valdés as “one of the most incredible talents of the new generation of Cuban musicians”, Yilian celebrates in 2023 his ten years of recording career. Among other novelties, the publication of the album is planned soon Havana-Bahia.
About her work with the renowned dancer, choreographer and director Julio Arozarena, she commented:
“Julio and I have a relationship of friendship and mutual admiration. We both really like to build bridges between different artistic disciplines and that is why our collaborations are born in a very natural and spontaneous way. The last project we did together was the creation «Akokan», a beautiful work that Julio has created and for which I had the pleasure of composing part of the music and performing live. The truth is that working with an artist as creative, intuitive and intelligent as Julio Arozarena nourishes me a lot. It is the very evidence that art has no borders”.
Yilian Cañizares published in 2018 with his group, The Maroons, the album Erzulie dedicated to the Haitian deity of love and freedom, and in 2021 she was recognized with the “Radiant Musician of the World” award during the Swiss Music Awards.
