By José Gandue @Gandour Photo by Karin Richter @karinrichter
Let's begin with the curious story that prompted this article: A character who usually presents himself as a journalist, cultural manager, and musician, has just filed a protective action against the District Institute of the Arts (Idartes), since he considers himself discriminated against by this entity, which has been in charge of organizing the Rock al Parque festival. The individual in question, who claims to be speaking on behalf of an association of independent Colombian musicians (although his complaint actually only mentions himself), accuses Idartes of marginalizing him because, in his opinion, the parameters the institute uses to define Rock are too broad and mistakenly include all kinds of contemporary fusion and reinterpretation, harming those who practice the genre in "its purest essence." This individual, who has been trying to convince both supporters and detractors of his position for several years, and that he has no problem trying to smear anyone who contradicts him, He hopes that this time the courts will rule in his favor and thus disrupt the structure of the festival.
Let's imagine the scene: A judge enters his office and finds on his desk a writ of protection that He asks him (and forces him) to decide what Rock is. This judge, who lives in a country where the tutela action was created from the 1991 Constitution for events of utmost importance, related to health, education, civil rights and other vital points for society, must decide if Bomba Estéreo, Systema Solar or Chocquibtown (to give examples of artists related to the fusion of sounds in Colombia) fit within the Rock al Parque program or if their presence harms those who claim to defend the purity of classic rock. And all this is because the musical proposal of the complaining character has never surpassed the district calls of the festival. At this point, we leave it to you to choose the adjective that could describe this situation.
We must be aware of a reality related to the development of contemporary music in Bogotá, and this is surely also a situation that can be observed in many cities in Latin America: There is a lack of music development programs, the market has become elitist, and private concerts are becoming increasingly expensive. The vast majority of new musical acts based in the Colombian capital cannot find a way to occupy stages where they are allowed to face the public. Bogotá, designated as a creative city for music, A category that only four other cities in the world have, is far from having enough space to expand its cultural offering to the level that this designation requires.
All of this is true, but let's be clear: Things are not going to get better. through fascist ineptitude that some misguided individuals want to implement. Asking legal entities to decide the limits of a musical genre is not only a huge waste of time, but also It is thinking in terms of hatred and resentment. It's absolutely ridiculous to ask, in a country rich in sonic nuances and with a long cultural tradition, that we not embrace sonic fusion. No one is obligated to accept these possibilities for mixing, but it's absurd to deny these musical proposals the opportunity to be included in rock events simply because they use traditional instruments. They are adding, not subtracting.
The complaint is also absurd when one looks at the lineups of Rock al Parque in recent years, which feature metal, rock n roll, southern rock and blues., and where more than seventy percent of the participating bands subscribe to these styles. Where is the gender discrimination? Perhaps, rather, there is an inability on the part of some artists to produce satisfactory material for the selections made each year by the festival jury.
This protest discourse is dangerously close to what some radical groups proclaim when they call for the expulsion of immigrants and the denigration of those who are "different"., The proponents of these measures are as mixed-race as the rest of the people around them. This is playing the post-truth game, designed to trick any number of naive, disappointed people into believing the liar's narrative. This is a classic case of an opportunist who wants others to share in their misfortunes in order to manipulate the situation for their own benefit.