Gustado Dudamel and the Simón Bolívar Youth Orchestra of Venezuela made their debut at the Latin Grammy Awards on November 13. Along with Calle 13 (made up of René Pérez Juglar, Eduardo Cabra and Ileana Cabra), they performed Latinoamérica at the 12th Latin Grammy Awards.

Upon request of Gustavo Dudamel, the orchestration of the song by Calle 13 —made by the El Sistema alumni Alex Berti— incorporated a Venezuelan cuatro (played by Jorge Glem, one of the finest performers of the Venezuelan instrument) as well as maracas and some African musical instruments.

“This is the message we wanted to transmit: we are a growing and hard-working continent. We are an emergent people with hopes and aspirations. Every member of El Sistema is a reflection of that; each one of them is helping in building a country, a continent, and a society,” said Gustavo Dudamel after leaving the stage.

“This song means a lot to us and we wanted to perform it with a big orchestra. The Bolívars and Gustavo were the right choice, not just because they are Latin Americans, but also because of their achievements. (…) Here we are bridging the gap between classical and popular music,” explained Eduardo Cabra, also known as Visitante.

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Dudamel had this to say about their performance with Calle 13:

A joint performance by an El Sistema orchestra and Calle 13 seems very odd, but I always say that regardless its genre, music is music, and we blended together perfectly. It is an honor for us to be here because of the importance the orchestra and the El Sistema are being given. (...)"

After the rehearsals, a visibly touched Ileana Cabra commented:

I believe that Calle 13 and El Sistema are united by an awareness of the importance of music to give voice to those who do not usually have it.”

The performance of Latinoamérica earned Calle 13, Dudamel and the Bolívars a standing ovation from the audience and was highly praised by the press that attended the award ceremony at the Mandalay Bay, in Las Vegas.