Brief History of CIDEM

The Inter-American Music Council (CIDEM) was founded in 1956 by the General Secretariat of the Organization of American States, Washington, D.C. in compliance with Resolution IX of the First Meeting of the Inter-American Cultural Council which refers to the “creation of an inter-American musical organization that will function with a permanent character, centralize inter-American musical activities and work closely with the International Music Council of UNESCO.”

In the fourth Meeting of the Inter-American Cultural Council (today the Inter-American Council for Education, Science and Culture), CIDEM was adopted as the “special advisory entity” of that institution.

In 1968, the Council of the Organization of American States adopted with CIDEM an agreement of mutual cooperation for the centralization of inter-American musical activities and the execution of the proposals of the OAS in the field of music.

The General Secretariat of CIDEM functions with headquarters at the OAS in Washington, and its resources are composed of contributions, legacies and donations coming from private sources. As a cultural entity with unlimited potential, CIDEM directs all contributions toward compliance with its specific objectives:

• To promote the interchange and diffusion of works, performers, composers, and general information concerning all the fields of music.
• To convoke periodic meetings to consider problems concerning music education.
• To encourage activity in the field of musicology, folkloric research, music composition, inter-American music festivals, publication, distribution and diffusion of American music.

The members of CIDEM are the National Committees and Councils of Music of the member states of the OAS, which constitute the General Assembly of CIDEM.

The Inter-American Music Friends (IAMF) is a non-profit, tax-exempt, private organization created in 1984 by a mandate of CIDEM for the purpose of collaborating in the financing of the artistic programs and activities of the OAS and CIDEM for the development and promotion of the arts of the Americas.