5
P
rince
of
A
sturias
A
wards
1981-2014. S
peeches
Speech XXVIII
Filled with the deep emotion we feel each year when holding our Awards Ceremony and the
satisfaction and joy of having among us people and institutions worthy of the most universal
recognition, we meet once more in Oviedo, capital of this beloved land, Asturias. A land and a city
that always offers us a warm and generous welcome, and which once more constitute the lighthouse
that casts its light on a day such as this over the most generous dreams, the most heartfelt desires
for the concord and progress of Earth’s inhabitants.
We offer our most cordial congratulations to our Laureates, who, through their work and
example, enrich human existence as well as instilling it with hope. Our deepest gratitude goes out
to the personalities, representatives of the various institutions and all those who have wished to
accompany us here today so that this great cultural celebration may grow in stature.
We also welcome those who have come from abroad to this beautiful Principality of Asturias,
home to historical exploits, unique cultural creations and privileged natural landscapes that all
Asturians have known how to conserve and enhance.
We also wish to especially thank those who help us to make our aspirations a reality: the
Governments of Spain and of Asturias, Oviedo City Council, the Foundation’s Trustees and
Patrons, the members of the different Juries, the media, the people of Asturias, who so fondly
embrace our initiatives, and so many anonymous people who encourage us in our work and who
feel a sense of solidarity with our noble ideals.
The combination of all these parties has defined the exceptional path that our Foundation and
its Awards has followed for almost thirty years now. This success is not a goal for us, regardless of
how noble it might be, but rather a stimulus to go even further, because, as Don Quixote said, we
prefer to set out even before sunrise. And we have wanted to tread our already long path humbly,
while attempting at all times to be guided by caution, which, as an age-old saying goes, is a light
whose clarity never goes out.
Along this path, our Foundation has undergone a change in President. We offer our gratitude
to Matías Rodríguez Inciarte for enthusiastically leading us into the future with the confidence
with which he admires our past journey. Precisely in this regard, we wish to render tribute and
express deep gratitude today to our dear José Ramón Álvarez Rendueles, who, in the footsteps of
Plácido Arango and PedroMasaveu, presided over us for the last twelve years with great dedication,
generosity and loyalty.
I would now like to devote a few words to our Laureates, who are the true protagonists of
this solemn event that our Foundation organizes and holds annually, which we see as a factory of
dreams that come true to serve Spain, because the grandeur of a nation is also measured by what
it generously gives to the world to make it a better place, to fight against all that would extinguish
hope in humanity and its future.
Music has always been conceived of as one of the higher arts,
as possessing great transformational power, not only due to it
being the expression of that which is beautiful, but also because
it is undoubtedly the art which is closest to harmony, the most
sublime medium for conveying feelings and communicating
emotions. Since —as has been said in a thousand different
ways— it is so very true that the mission of art transcends the
horizon of aesthetics and vigorously projects itself onto other fields such as humanistic education,
social promotion and ethical commitment. Good and beauty —as in the words of Octavio Paz—
are inseparable. An example of this is the National Network of Youth and Children Orchestras of
Venezuela, which has received the Award for the Arts.
“The grandeur of a nation is also
measured by what it generously gives to
the world to make it a better place.”
