Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
05ASUNCION431
2005-03-29 17:20:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Embassy Asuncion
Cable title:  

AMERICAN VOICES BRINGS BLACK HISTORY MONTH TO

Tags:  PA KPAO SCUL 
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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ASUNCION 000431 

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR ECA/PE/C/CE (MERANTE),ECA/PE/C/CU (ROUSE),ECA/PE
(THOREL),ECA/PE/C (LPEREZ),WHA/PDA (GOULD),WHA/BSC
(MURRAY)
POSTS FOR PAOS AND CAOS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PA KPAO SCUL
SUBJECT: AMERICAN VOICES BRINGS BLACK HISTORY MONTH TO
PARAGUAY


UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ASUNCION 000431

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR ECA/PE/C/CE (MERANTE),ECA/PE/C/CU (ROUSE),ECA/PE
(THOREL),ECA/PE/C (LPEREZ),WHA/PDA (GOULD),WHA/BSC
(MURRAY)
POSTS FOR PAOS AND CAOS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PA KPAO SCUL
SUBJECT: AMERICAN VOICES BRINGS BLACK HISTORY MONTH TO
PARAGUAY



1. Summary: In conjunction with performances for Embassy
San Jose, Embassy Tegucigalpa and Embassy Managua, Embassy
Asuncion hosted Daniel Washington, baritone, and John
Ferguson, pianist, for four concerts the week of 2/21 in
commemoration of Black History month. An estimated 750
people attended the concerts. Media coverage was unusually
extensive and included a live broadcast by a Ciudad del Este
radio station with an estimated listernship of 500,000. The
musicians also provided training for Paraguay's up-and-
coming vocalists at the National Conservatory of Music.
Audience members offered the band a standing ovation in
several venues and staff received many expressions of
profuse thanks for having brought such skilled musicians to
Paraguay. The enthusiasm and fantastic talent of Washington
and Ferguson contributed significantly to the resounding
success of the program. End summary.

Performances
--------------

2. The concerts were held at the Ambassador's residence, at
the Asuncion bi-national center, in Villarrica (a mid-sized
university town) and in Ciudad del Este, Paraguay's second-
largest city located in the strategic Tri-Border region. The
Asuncion bi-national center, Villarrica and Ciudad del Este
performances were free and open to the public.


3. The guest list for the reception and performance at the
Ambassador's residence consisted of forty of the most
influential Embassy contacts. The Minister of Finance, a
very high-profile government official, was in attendance.
This elite group was impressed by Ferguson and Washington's
remarkable talent and enchanted by their moving renditions
of little-known African-American spirituals.


4. The following day the duo gave a master class at the
National Conservatory of Music. Several of the students
were so impressed by the musicians that they attended the
concert that same evening at the Paraguayan American
Cultural Center. The Ambassador also attended this
performance, which was preceded by the Center's annual VIP
anniversary reception. The 300-seat theatre was virtually
full and enthusiastic spectators from all walks of life were
heard marveling at the speed with which Ferguson's fingers
danced across the keys. At the conclusion of the program,

the master class students could be seen, wide-eyed, with
programs in hand, tentatively asking for autographs from
Washington and Ferguson, who graciously provided them and
offered the students advice on how to continue their
professional development.


5. Villarrica, a university town of approximately 50,000
situated 3 hours outside of Asuncion, was the next stop on
Ferguson and Washington's Paraguayan tour. As there was no
piano to be had in the town nor anywhere in the surrounding
area, post's PAO sent her Clavinova electronic piano for the
performance, which was transported in the back of an Embassy
Suburban. The predominantly college-aged crowd was
captivated by the performance and many stayed afterwards to
practice their English and chat with the musicians.


6. Ciudad del Este was Ferguson and Washington's final
venue. Approximately 400 people attended this performance,
ranging from the newly appointed bishop to the local
director of tourism to members of the area's large Lebanese
community to a group of recently immigrated Chinese piano
students. The crowd demanded an encore with a standing
ovation and many individuals approached Embassy staff and
enthusiastically lobbied for future cultural programming in
their area.

Media Coverage
--------------


7. Media coverage of the tour was unusually extensive. All
three major Paraguayan dailies published multiple stories on
the tour. "La Nacion", Paraguay's third largest, business-
oriented daily, ran articles for four consecutive days. In
addition, the Ciudad del Este paper covered the performance.


8. Radio Nanduti, the most listened-to radio station in
Paraguay, aired an interview with the musicians and
broadcast cuts from their CDs for several days leading up to
the performances. Ciudad del Este-based Radio Magnifico,
with an estimated listenership of 500,000, carried the
concert live and in its entirety, vastly increasing the
reach of this program.


9. A local cable television station in Villarrica
interviewed the musicians prior to the concert and also
broadcast the first few songs to their audience of several
thousand.

Funding
--------------

10. American Voices' Paraguay/Costa Rica/Honduras/Nicaragua
tour was Post-funded by the four participating Embassies.
International airfare was shared between the Posts while
local institutions provided in-kind support.


11. Comment: One of Post's MPP strategies is to broaden
the audience reached by public diplomacy programs. Since
Paraguay is a music-loving country and U.S. groups are a
rarity, musical events, and in particular public-access
performances, are a perfect way to help meet this goal. In
addition, as the program consisted of songs selected in
commemoration of Black History month, awareness of cultural
diversity within the U.S. was increased among attendees. The
program also gave Post the opportunity to promote mutual
understanding with the Paraguayan people by sharing a unique
part of American culture through the universal medium of
music. End comment.

KEANE