Humility comes thick and fast in a country such as Colombia. On Saturday we went to visit a project called 'Red Loma Sur' in the southern Bogota community of San Cristobal. The long drive through the labyrinthine streets lined with red bare brick houses gave me another glimpse of the difficult life of those that dwell there.
For me this was an important journey as it took me to meet with a group that we have not been in contact with for a while. After our first mission to Bogota the studio that we set up got moved to this district of the city to be used by more people than it was reaching before. Thanks to a donation from Christian Aid, Red Loma Sur started to build a studio on top of the house of a friend of the collective. That is the point that we lost touch with the group.
We went to visit them and find out exactly what they have been doing with the equipment that we donated to them. Unfortunately the studio is not yet finished, it still has a bit of work yet to do but is well along the way. To my delight we heard from the group that they had been working hard by using the equipment to produce 'live' radio shows by setting up in communities and running live shows on a stage with local participants forming part of the show. This a form of direct action that they are able to do with the equipment as they unfortunately do not currently have a means to broadcast.
However the recordings that they have made are going to be shared with us and we will put it out there for others to listen. This was a great first step in bringing this fantastic group of people back into the FairTunes family. We are going to send one of their technicians to our upcoming workshops to learn more, and help them out in whatever way we can to build another FairTunes studio.
We see this as an important part of the project that we have been developing in Bogota. This smaller studio can operate on a local level and work in tandem with the larger more central one that we have.
Tuesday 28 February 2012
Sunday 26 February 2012
Big City Trip
I had the great pleasure to meet a fantastic person the other day. Reynaldo Jose Urueta Restrepo is a young man of 18 from El Salado with a bright future.
Over the past year and a half Reynaldo has been learning different aspects of studio engineering - radio and music - from the workshops and classes that have taken place in the small town. Perhaps the most amazing part of this is that Reynaldo had never even used a mouse or a computer keyboard before his first studio session with our very own Nick Minton. Now Reynaldo is in charge of the studio activities for his community.
Reynaldo is currently in Bogota - his first visit to the Colombian capital - looking for a place to study studio engineering. Inspired by what he has learned so far in El Salado, Reynaldo now wants to advance his learning and make a career out of it.
Fundacion Semana, a foundation who we worked closely with in El Salado, are helping Reynaldo to find a scholarship in a Bogota university to study.
For him this trip to the big city has been one of discovery and amazement. It is really cold for him here compared to the constant heat of his home region in the Caribbean interior.
We are going to see more of Reynaldo and introduce him to Pacho, our studio engineer in Bogota, so he continues his learning to take back to El Salado.
For the time being Reynaldo wants to continue the project in the 'Coco Salado' project in El Salado, which uses the FairTunes studio to make and broadcast radio programs around the local community.
Over the past year and a half Reynaldo has been learning different aspects of studio engineering - radio and music - from the workshops and classes that have taken place in the small town. Perhaps the most amazing part of this is that Reynaldo had never even used a mouse or a computer keyboard before his first studio session with our very own Nick Minton. Now Reynaldo is in charge of the studio activities for his community.
Reynaldo is currently in Bogota - his first visit to the Colombian capital - looking for a place to study studio engineering. Inspired by what he has learned so far in El Salado, Reynaldo now wants to advance his learning and make a career out of it.
Fundacion Semana, a foundation who we worked closely with in El Salado, are helping Reynaldo to find a scholarship in a Bogota university to study.
For him this trip to the big city has been one of discovery and amazement. It is really cold for him here compared to the constant heat of his home region in the Caribbean interior.
We are going to see more of Reynaldo and introduce him to Pacho, our studio engineer in Bogota, so he continues his learning to take back to El Salado.
For the time being Reynaldo wants to continue the project in the 'Coco Salado' project in El Salado, which uses the FairTunes studio to make and broadcast radio programs around the local community.
Exciting Times
It's quite amazing being back in Bogota, each time I come back there is more to see and like.
As ever, I find it is the people here who make it such a special country.
It was great to spend some time in the Bogota studio watching a young punk band record. Pacho, our new studio coordinator and engineer has really taken up the mantel and has been busy recording 4 bands over the last month. Furthermore, he, along with a few others, will be starting a new program of studio workshops giving participants basic skills in a number of disciplines.
It has been great spending time with Pacho and the rest of our dedicated crew over here and to be able to plot the next year in the studio's development.
Another exciting development is that we are helping the amazing Carmelo Torres to release his first album. Carmelo has contributed on countless other albums playing accordion for other artists. He is regarded as a pioneer in style and has been a major influence for traditional musicians all over the country.
Much of the album was recorded in our El Salado studio by Laurie Sauloy, a FairTunes engineer and one of our program coordinators in Bogota. The rest of it was done by her either travelling to record sections of music, such as bass tracks, in different parts of the country, or in our studio in Bogota. The album is currently being mastered and we will have a unique product for Carmelo to distribute to his fan base.
Speaking with all the people that have helped to make this happen really demonstrates the unity that musicians and those connected with them have in this country. Without such togetherness much of the truly important musical culture that exists here would not come to light.
As ever, I find it is the people here who make it such a special country.
It was great to spend some time in the Bogota studio watching a young punk band record. Pacho, our new studio coordinator and engineer has really taken up the mantel and has been busy recording 4 bands over the last month. Furthermore, he, along with a few others, will be starting a new program of studio workshops giving participants basic skills in a number of disciplines.
It has been great spending time with Pacho and the rest of our dedicated crew over here and to be able to plot the next year in the studio's development.
Another exciting development is that we are helping the amazing Carmelo Torres to release his first album. Carmelo has contributed on countless other albums playing accordion for other artists. He is regarded as a pioneer in style and has been a major influence for traditional musicians all over the country.
Much of the album was recorded in our El Salado studio by Laurie Sauloy, a FairTunes engineer and one of our program coordinators in Bogota. The rest of it was done by her either travelling to record sections of music, such as bass tracks, in different parts of the country, or in our studio in Bogota. The album is currently being mastered and we will have a unique product for Carmelo to distribute to his fan base.
Speaking with all the people that have helped to make this happen really demonstrates the unity that musicians and those connected with them have in this country. Without such togetherness much of the truly important musical culture that exists here would not come to light.
Thursday 23 February 2012
Back in Town
It's a great feeling to be back in Bogota after such a long hiatus.
I am here to plan the coming year of the studio with the crew here and work with the new project coordinator that we have here. Lots of meetings, interviews and planning over the next week.
The Bogotrax music festival is in full swing at the moment so the city is awash with dance music aficionados from around the globe and, of course, Colombia.
With lots of positive discussion so far, this could be a really good year for FairTunes in Bogota.
I am here to plan the coming year of the studio with the crew here and work with the new project coordinator that we have here. Lots of meetings, interviews and planning over the next week.
The Bogotrax music festival is in full swing at the moment so the city is awash with dance music aficionados from around the globe and, of course, Colombia.
With lots of positive discussion so far, this could be a really good year for FairTunes in Bogota.
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