Paraguay's Recycled Orchestra to Appear in Key Biscayne, Florida

Subject of the documentary "Landfill Harmonic," the group is raising money for repairs to the Cateura Music School — which recently suffered serious flood damage

The Cateura Recycled Orchestra, which gives some of Paraguay's most deprived children the opportunity to learn music together, will be making two concert appearances in Key Biscayne, Florida on the weekend of October 7/8, 2023.

The town of Cateura consists mainly of a large landfill-adjacent slum, with many locals subsisting off what they can scavenge from the 3 million pounds of solid waste that is dumped there each day. Local environmental engineer Fabio Chavez decided to start an orchestra for children, so that they would have the opportunity to learn music.

However, donated instruments were in short supply, so Chavez asked carpenter Nicolas Gomez to build instruments out of resources available in the landfill.

The orchestra became known to audiences outside Paraguay when filmmaker Alejandra Amarilla created a documentary about the group. Titled Landfill Harmonic, the film received $175,000 in Kickstarter donations and garnered the attention of audiences around the world.

Alongside the Florida concerts this weekend, there will also be a screening of the documentary.

The concerts will take place on Saturday, October 7, and Sunday, the 8th at Paradise Park, 530 Crandon Boulevard, at 5pm. Admission is free, and all voluntary donations will go towards the rebuilding of the Cateura Music School, which has recently suffered serious flood damage.