The top prizes of the Ibero-American Youth Orchestra Program in its Young Ensemble Competition and Young Performer of the Year Award 2021 were won by Cuban artists.

In the young ensemble category, the Orquesta Infantil de Guitarras Clave de Sol received recognition, while in the Young Performer Award, Cuban pianist Malva Rodríguez González was awarded first place, in front of a large group of young artists from Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Mexico, and Uruguay, among other countries.  The Orquesta Infantil de Guitarras Clave de Sol is a sociocultural project whose objectives are to contribute to the development of vocal and instrumental skills of children and young people, and also to promote traditional Cuban music, using choral singing and instrumental practice.

Founded on 2 May 2009, by Yamilé García Zurita and Nuria García Reyes as musical director, the ensemble is more than a teaching experience because all the members play the guitar and sing, using the teaching method developed by Clara Romeo Nicola, which is based on collective singing and the incorporation of the practical system for teaching the popular guitar; in addition, they also read music notation and study music theory according to the interests of each member.

Recently, this children's and youth ensemble won the National Prize for Community Culture in 2021, in the category of sociocultural projects.

The young Cuban pianist Malva Rodríguez González has been trained under the tutelage of the renowned maestro Hortensia Upmann, who put her hands on the piano and marked her in particular with her teaching system. She continued her work with Aimée Herrera, a pupil of Hortensia's and therefore very familiar with her teaching method. She is currently a pupil of the maestro and outstanding performer Aldo López-Gavilán Junco.

During her training, she has won awards in three editions of the Amadeo Roldán National Piano Competition; in 2021, she won second prize in the Latin American Piano Competition America for All.

These awards presented to the Orquesta Infantil de Guitarras Clave de Sol and the pianist Malva Rodríguez - for the Iberoquestas Juveniles Program - underline the commitment of these artists to the community, as well as their willingness to work, the companionship, and innovation demonstrated by them during their performance. The competition has also, of course, recognized the technical and interpretative skills of both award winners.

The Iberorquestas Juveniles Program is an important link between the countries, which develop community and professional music education projects. Through this platform, the children, and young people who participate in the projects are enriched in their knowledge of their sister countries and form a community in which they share realities and learn to value the diversity of Ibero-America. 

Enjoy the piece Habanera melancólica, by composer Aldo López-Gavilán Junco, performed by Malva Rodríguez and her mother, flutist Niurka González: