On October 20, the Amsterdam-based Consulate General of Suriname presented a prestigious honor to Black Harmony, a beloved musical group that has spent two decades championing the preservation and intergenerational transmission of Afro-Surinamese cultural legacy. The award, in the form of an official certificate of appreciation, was handed over by Suriname’s Consul General Roseline Daan to recognize the collective’s decades-long work in keeping traditional Surinamese music, dance and ritual practices alive within the diaspora community.
Founded 20 years ago, Black Harmony has centered its mission on protecting, documenting and passing on cultural traditions deeply rooted in Suriname’s complex social and ethnic history. Through regular public performances, community workshops and cultural outreach initiatives, the group has worked to prevent these time-honored practices from fading into obscurity. Beyond preserving the past, their work creates intentional spaces for younger generations of Surinamese diaspora to engage with their ancestral roots and build personal connections to their cultural heritage.
The recognition for Black Harmony was initiated following a nomination by Gilly Koorndijk, who also goes by the artistic name Karoe Adely. Koorndijk serves as the collective’s sound engineer and is widely recognized as a leading expert on traditional Surinamese kaseko music. Orlando Ceder, the founding leader of Black Harmony, accepted the certificate on behalf of the entire group. In his acceptance remarks, Ceder expressed sincere gratitude to the Suriname Consulate General for the honor, and reaffirmed the collective’s long-term commitment to continuing its cultural stewardship work for years to come.
During the award ceremony, Consul General Daan emphasized the critical value of cultural diversity and intentional intergenerational transmission of traditional practices. She framed the honor not only as a tribute to Black Harmony’s 20 years of consistent dedication, but also as a reminder of the collective responsibility shared by communities and institutions to safeguard endangered cultural heritage. By nurturing living traditions of music, dance, ritual and custom, Daan noted, communities keep their shared history accessible and relevant, rather than reducing it to a static artifact of the past. She closed by noting that the award is a fully deserved recognition not just for Black Harmony’s members, but for every individual who devotes time and effort to keeping Suriname’s rich cultural heritage alive for future generations.