Ourense honors traditional music teacher Ana Belén Rodríguez

The Deputación de Ourense is honoring Ana Belén Rodríguez André as part of its August institutional campaign, "Mulleres que fan soar a nosa tradición" (Women who make our tradition sound). The initiative, led by the Equality Area, recognizes the role of women in preserving and transmitting Galician traditional music and cultural heritage.

Rodríguez, born in Ourense in 1979, has served as a teacher of the pandeireta and traditional singing at the Escola Provincial de Gaitas since 2000. Her musical career includes performing at the Vatican before Pope John Paul II in 1996. She also works with various local neighborhood associations to teach younger generations.

Rodríguez noted a growing interest among young women in traditional music, describing it as an "authentic boom" in recent years. She expressed optimism for the future of the genre, stating, "There is a singer, and fortunately it is larger and larger."