The Guillermo Barreto in Memoriam Drum Festival and International Percussion Competition was founded in 2001 by its current president, Giraldo Piloto Barreto. The director of Klimax is credited with the beautiful and flourishing idea of ​​this international festival, which is acclaimed to become one of the most important events of Cuban culture and percussion in the world.

It is sponsored by the Cuban Institute of Music (15th Street No. 452 corner of F, Vedado.
Revolution Square, Havana) and the Adolfo Guzmán Music Center. The competition’s name comes from the fact that Guillermo Barreto was once considered one of Cuba’s leading drummers. The competition pays tribute to rumberos, musicians who develop Cuban percussion, and folkloric groups.

The competition includes five categories or instruments: drums, pailas, tumbadoras, bongos, and batá drums. The jury is composed of prestigious Cuban percussionists and awards as many prizes as it deems appropriate.

Young people of all ages and nationalities participate; they do not need to have any prior musical training; they can be amateurs, amateurs, art school students, or professionals.

The event will feature concerts, theoretical events, drum beats, percussion master classes, folk dance classes, launches of various audiovisual media, and visits to the Music Museum (Obrapía No. 512, Old Havana, Havana). Its venues have been the most diverse, among others: La Maison (16th Street No. 701, Miramar, Playa. Havana), the America Theater (253 Italy Avenue between Concordia and Neptuno, Centro Habana. Havana), the Houses of Music of Centro Habana (255 Italy Avenue, Centro Habana. Havana) and Playa (3308 20th Street, Miramar, Playa. Havana), the Amadeo Roldán Auditorium Theater (Calzada and D, Vedado, Revolution Square. Havana), the Occidental Miramar Hotel (5th and 72nd Avenue, Miramar, Playa. Havana) and the Plaza Culture House (909 Calzada, Vedado, Revolution Square, Havana).

The 9th edition of the Guillermo Barreto in Memoriam Drum Festival in 2010 was dedicated to Ricardo (Papín) Abreu, Jesús Alfonso Miró, and Roberto García. It also commemorated the 25th anniversary of Yoruba Andabo and the 15th anniversary of Klímax.

Among the foreign guests on this occasion were Canadian Aldo Mazza, American Meno Acevedo, and Dutchman René Ángel. From our country, musicians Enrique Plá, Amadito Valdés, Yaroldys Abreu, Oliver Valdés, Ramses Rodríguez, Changuito, Tomás Ramos (El Panga), Papo Angarica, and Luis Mariano Valiente (Betún) attended.

On this day of the Drum Festival, dance groups such as Manolito Simonet and his Trabuco, Pachito Alonso and the Kini Kini, Azúcar Negra, Pupy and those who are Son, Lázaro Valdés and Bamboleo, among others, performed.

The most recent edition, held in March 2011, was held at the Palacio de la Rumba (860 San Miguel Street between Hospital and Aramburu Street, Centro Habana, Havana). The event honored the tenth anniversary of the first Latin Grammy Award received for a Cuban album, “La Rumba soy yo.”