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Golden Congo
Congo de Oro
A Golden Congo being held by a Burro Corcoveón [es] in 2023
Country	Colombia
Presented by	Barranquilla Carnival
First awarded	1969
Website	carnavaldebarranquilla.org/tradicion/congo-de-oro/

The Golden Congo (Spanish: Congo de Oro) is a Colombian music award that since its founding in 1969 has been presented annually at the Orchestra Festival (Spanish: Festival de Orquestas) of the Barranquilla Carnival.

The current Golden Congo award comprises six genre prizes: Vallenato (since 1978), Merengue (since 1994), Tropical (since 1994), Salsa (since 1994), Urbano (since 2012), Folk (1992–4, and again since 2018), and four additional prizes: Newcomer, Best Vocalist, Best Instrumentalist and Lo Nuestro ("What's Ours").

Winners

2024

In 2024 the Barranquilla Carnival celebrated its 20th incarnation since being proclaimed intangible cultural heritage by UNESCO in 2003. As part of the celebrations, the Orchestra Festival did not hold a competition for the Golden Congo, but instead awarded one to every performer.

2012–2023

In 2012 Golden Congos for "best performance" (Spanish: variations on mejor intérprete or mejor instrumentista) and "urbano music" were given for the first time, and the "newcomer" (Spanish: revelación) prize was reintroduced. In 2016 the Golden Congo for performance was split into separate prizes for vocalists and instrumentalists, and in 2018 "folk" was reintroduced as a genre category.

On the 50th anniversary of the Orchestra Festival in 2019 no awards were given; instead, past competitors and winners returned to perform at the festival, including Los Corraleros de Majagual, Los Gaiteros de San Jacinto, Pacho Galán, Checo Acosta, Juan Piña [es], Poncho Zuleta [es], Sergio Vargas, Beto Zabaleta [es], Eddy Herrera, Bazurto All Stars, and Jorge Oñate. In 2021 there was no Barranquilla Carnival due to the Covid-19 pandemic; the Orchestra Festival held a virtual event featuring past performances.

1995–2011

In 1995 the categories "newcomer" and "folk group" were discontinued, and a prize was introduced called the "Premio Rescate de lo Nuestro" (English: rescuing what is ours prize). It later became known as simply "Lo Nuestro", and at one point as "Lo Nuestro 'Roberto de Castro'".

1994

In 1994 prizes for the musical genres of merengue, tropical, and salsa were introduced, in place of "orchestra" and "ensemble". 1994 was also the last year that "newcomer" and "folk group" were awarded until their return in 2012 and 2018 respectively.

1989–1993

In 1989 the category of "newcomer" (Spanish: revelación) was awarded for the first time, and in 1992 "folk group" (Spanish: grupo folclórico) was introduced as a category; both were discontinued after 1994 and reintroduced in the 2010s.

1978–1988

In 1978 the category of "vallenato" was introduced, which was also sometimes awarded as "accordion". The "ensemble" prize was occasionally awarded as "group" (Spanish: combo) instead. From 1981 the ensemble prize was regularly split by either genre (tropical/salsa) or by nationality.

1969–1977

From 1969 to 1977 the only categories were "orchestra" (Spanish: orquesta) and "ensemble" (Spanish: conjuto).

Special awards

Occasionally special Golden Congos are given to recognise particular achievements.

The Super Congo

The Super Congo (also called the Super Congo de Oro or the Supercongo) was created in 1990 specifically to honour Joe Arroyo, who had won a Golden Congo at each of the 6 preceding festivals. Since then the Super Congo has been awarded several times.

Rey del Pueblo

Twice a Rey del Pueblo (King of the People) has been crowned at the Orchestra Festival, decided by a public vote.

Unique awards

Some Golden Congos have only been given once. In 1985 Alejo Durán was awarded the "Special Congo" (Spanish: Congo Especial). In 1989 Alfredo de la Fe won a Golden Congo for "Best Solo Artist". In 1994 Cristian del Real received an honourable mention as the "boy genius of the timbal."

Related awards

Golden Congos are also given for floats and dancers that take part in the Battle of the Flowers parade of the Barranquilla Carnival.

Night of Orchestras

At the Barranquilla Carnival Night of Orchestras (Spanish: Noche de Orquestas) a jury awards Golden Congos in the same genre categories as the Orchestra Festival, and in addition awards the "Antonio María Peñaloza" prize for an unpublished song. The competition at the Night of Orchestras is open to musicians and groups from Barranquilla and the surrounding region.

The awards at the Night of Orchestras were first given in 2018, and the winners received automatic entry to the competition at the Orchestra Festival that year. In 2019 no competition was held at the Orchestra Festival, and since then winners at the Night of Orchestras have been granted entry to the Orchestra Festival the following year, as opposed to the same year.

Notes

1. i.e. vallenato, merengue, tropical, salsa, urbano, folk

References

1. "Carnival of Barranquilla", UNESCO Intagible Cultural Heritage, retrieved 2024-10-17
2. ^ Flor Díaz Ospino (2024-02-12), "Carnaval de Barranquilla: Todos Fueron Ganadores en el Festival de Orquestas 2024" [All Were Winners at the Orchestra Festival 2024], El Tiempo (in Spanish), retrieved 2024-10-17
3. "Este año, la organización del Carnaval definió que no habría concurso y entregó Congo de Oro a todas las orquestas participantes con ocasión de la celebración de la declaratoria del Carnaval de Barranquilla como Patrimonio de la Humanidad." "Orquesta Ibaguereña ganadora del Congo de Oro 2024 en el Carnaval de Barranquilla" [Orquesta Ibaguereña wins the Golden Congo 2024 at the Carnival of Barranquilla], El Cronista (in Spanish), retrieved 2024-02-12
4. ^ Carlos Restrepo (2019-03-05), "Festival de Orquestas de Barranquilla homenajeó a Adolfo Echeverría" [Barranquilla Orchestra Festival paid homage to Adolfo Echeverría], El Tiempo (in Spanish), retrieved 2024-10-16
5. "Especial del Festival de Orquestas un recorrido por su historia musical" [Festival of Orchestras Special: a journey through its musical history], Carnaval de Barranquilla (in Spanish), 2021-02-11, retrieved 2024-10-17
6. ^ Leonardo Herrera Delgans (2023-02-20), "Ganadores del Congo de Oro del Festival de Orquestas y Noche de Orquestas 2023", El Tiempo (in Spanish), retrieved 2024-10-13
7. ^ Leonardo Herrera Delgans (2022-03-28), "Estos son los ganadores del Congo de Oro del Festival de Orquestas", El Tiempo (in Spanish), retrieved 2024-10-13
8. "¡Festival de Orquestas una maratónica jornada musical que bailó la gente!", Carnaval de Barranquilla (in Spanish), 2020-02-25, retrieved 2024-10-13
9. 2018 winners:
   • "Ganadores del Festival de Orquestas 2018" [Winners of the Festival of Orchestras 2018], Carnaval de Barranquilla (in Spanish), 2018-02-13, retrieved 2024-10-13
   • Andrés Artuz (2018-02-13), "Conozca los ganadores del Festival de Orquestas 2018" [Meet the winners of the Orchestra Festival 2018], El Tiempo (in Spanish), retrieved 2024-10-13
10. ^ "Ganadores del Festival de Orquestas 2017" [Winners of the Orchestra Festival 2017], Carnaval de Barranquilla (in Spanish), 2017-03-03, retrieved 2024-10-13
11. "Los Mejores del Carnaval 2016" [The Best of Carnival 2016], Carnaval de Barranquilla (in Spanish), retrieved 2024-10-13
12. "Los ganadores del Festival de Orquestas", El Universal (in Spanish), 2015-02-17, retrieved 2024-10-13
13. "Los Mejores del Carnaval 2014" [The Best of Carnival 2014], Carnaval de Barranquilla (in Spanish), retrieved 2024-10-13
14. ^ "Los Mejores del Carnaval 2013" [The Best of Carnival 2013], Carnaval de Barranquilla (in Spanish), retrieved 2024-10-13
15. ^ "Ganadores Festival de Orquesta 2000 - 2013", Carnaval de Barranquilla (in Spanish), archived from the original on 2013-10-31, retrieved 2024-10-15
16. Andrés Artuz Fernández (2012-02-21), "Festival de Orquestas 2012 homenajeó a Joe Arroyo, el Rey del Carnaval" [2012 Orchestra Festival paid homage to Joe Arroyo, King of the Carnival], El Tiempo (in Spanish), retrieved 2024-10-16
17. ^ Nistar Romero Acosta (1999-02-13), "Festival de Orquestas, Música para el Carnaval", El Tiempo (in Spanish), retrieved 2024-10-13
18. Nistar Romero Acostar (1999-02-19), "La Clave Sumando Éxitos", El Tiempo (in Spanish), retrieved 2024-10-16
19. ^ "Ganó Checo Acosta", El Tiempo (in Spanish), 1999-02-18, retrieved 2024-10-16
20. "Fue tanto el prestigio que alcanzó en cierto momento de su carrera el cartagenero, que el Carnaval de Barranquilla tuvo que inventarse un galardón nuevo para él: el llamado Supercongo de Oro." "Joe Arroyo, 10 años después de su partida" [Joe Arroyo, 10 years after his departure], Radio Nacional de Colombia (in Spanish), 2021-07-26, retrieved 2024-10-16
21. "Shakira Cierra con Super Congo El Carnaval" [Shakira Closes the Carnival with a Super Congo], El Tiempo (in Spanish), 1998-02-24, retrieved 2024-10-16
22. "Ganadores del Festival de Orquestas" [Winners of the Orchestra Festival], El Tiempo (in Spanish), 2013-02-12, retrieved 2024-10-16
23. ^ "Alto nivel musical en el Festival de Orquestas" [High level of music at the Orchestra Festival], El Heraldo (in Spanish), 2014-03-05, retrieved 2024-10-16
24. Jhonatan Diaz (2019-02-28), "Los Reyes del Pueblo en el Festiorquestas", El Heraldo (in Spanish), retrieved 2024-10-16
25. Caracol Radio Barranquilla (2018-07-18), "Cuco Valoy recibe Congo de Oro 'Rey del Pueblo' 2015", Caracol Televisión (in Spanish), retrieved 2024-10-16
26. "Ganadores Congo de Oro del Carnaval 2017" [Golden Congo Winners of Carnival 2017], Carnaval de Barranquilla (in Spanish), 2017-03-10, retrieved 2024-10-16
27. Samy Cantillo G. (2019-04-08), "Carnaval revela ganadores de Congo de Oro 2019" [Carnival reveals winners of Golden Congo 2019], El Heraldo (in Spanish), retrieved 2024-10-16
28. ^ Libardo Berdugo Palma (2017-11-03), Reglamento: Noche de Orquestas [Regulations: Night of Orchestras] (PDF) (in Spanish), Carnaval de Barranquilla, retrieved 2024-10-17
29. Lina Hernández Serrano (2024-02-09), "Carnaval de Barranquilla 2024: fecha y hora para disfrutar del Festival de Orquestas", El Tiempo (in Spanish), retrieved 2024-10-16
30. ^ "Ganadores Noche de Orquestas 2024" [Winners Night of Orchestras 2024], Carnaval de Barranquilla (in Spanish), 2020-02-11, retrieved 2024-10-17
31. Entertainment Editorial Staff (2024-02-12), "Estos son los ganadores del Congo de Oro en el Carnaval de Barranquilla 2024", El Espectador (in Spanish), retrieved 2024-10-17
32. ^ "Ganadores Noche de Orquestas 2020" [Winners Night of Orchestras 2020], Carnaval de Barranquilla (in Spanish), 2020-02-23, retrieved 2024-10-17
33. ^ "Ganadores Noche de Orquestas 2019" [Winners Night of Orchestras 2019], Carnaval de Barranquilla (in Spanish), 2020-03-05, retrieved 2024-10-17
34. ^ "Estos son los ganadores de la Noche de Orquestas 2018" [These are the winners of the Night of Orchestras 2018], Zona Cero (in Spanish), 2018-02-11, retrieved 2024-10-17

• Colombian music awards
• Carnival in Colombia
• Awards established in 1969
• 1969 establishments in Colombia