Isole/Islands/Inseln on Radioarte
On random rotation at Radioarte/ Accademia Chigianaon Friday 28 August and Friday 4 September: Colaboración Cubana - Todos sus voces. Islands, Cuba, isolated not only through water but through the brutal measures the Unites States are taking against its population. Tune in at radioarte.it About the piece:
“When the United States aggravated their illegal embargo against Cuba with the blockade in January of 2026, life was altered drastically on the island. Ships bringing oil and other goods to Cuba were intercepted by the US military, throwing the island into an acute state of emergency. Leonie was supposed to fly to Cuba in February to teach courses in field recording and composition at the Universidad de Ciencias Pedagógicas Enrique José Varona. At the same time, a sonic postcard exchange project between the Prinsehagheschool elementary school in The Hague and the Academía I-SABER in Havana had been prepared. As a direct consequence of the blockade, Leonie could not fly to Cuba since airplanes could not longer lift off the ground in Cuba. The country had run out of kerosene, and the children’s music academy I-SABER had to cancel their classes because they no longer had electricity for their E-Pianos and loudspeakers. What followed were many conversations, exchanges about the situation, a fundraiser for a solar system for Academía I-SABER (with the generous collaboration of BUG Radio, LOOS Foundation, and the Solidariteitsnetwerk voor Cuba in Amsterdam). And out of it all grew this small project, for which our friends and colleagues Reynier Ribalta and María Isabel Moinelo Hernández, both educators in art and music, sent sounds of daily life during the time of the blockade. Sounds of life, education, and music continuing under adverse conditions. Leonie tied their sonic contribution together with a recording she took of the Caribbean Sea in Havana in 2024. A sound that most likely stayed the same through the blockade. It is important to state that the blockade has not been lifted or eased. As a direct consequence child mortality has increased and many patients are not receiving necessary operations. Cuban citizens are often without electricity for days on end, which makes it difficult to keep food fresh, and to even guarantee access to clean water. The island is being crushed by the United States and is, just like many other Latin American nations at this moment, in great danger of losing their natural resources to the USA.” This piece was premiered at On Air - On Site in May 2026.