(l-r) Luis Szaran, founder, Sonidos de la Tierra; Peter Harper, SVP of the Americas, Guinness World Records; Andrea Burt, Director of PR, Sonidos de la Tierra

Guinness World Records, the global authority on record breaking achievement, in conjunction with C Squared’s Festival of Media LatAm is announcing Sonidos de la Tierra (Sounds of the Earth) from Paraguay as the winner of the "Record-breaking Brand" award. The unique award category recognizes brands who have best utilized the power of record-breaking within innovative media campaigns, with specific focus on creative execution and campaign results.

More than 40,000 votes were cast online between Aug. 20 and Sept. 12, with a shortlist that included major brands such as Red Bull Colombia and Hellman’s Chile. All shortlisted brands were celebrated for incorporating record-breaking into innovative campaigns that included live events, experiential activation and digital content creation. A full list of nominees is available here.

Luis Szarán, founder of Sonidos de la Tierra, commented, "Thank you to all the people that were inspired by this magical world record of harps and voted for this event/program. The dream of breaking a Guinness World Records title managed to unite a nation in a musical solidarity and bring so much joy. The impact of this initiative had, and will continue to have, impact in the lives of those who live in Paraguay."

Sonidos de la Tierra won the public’s praises, garnering 63% of the vote with their record for the largest harp ensemble. The campaign utilized the Paraguayan Harp, the symbolic instrument of the country’s musical culture, to help promote national pride and instill the love of music within their communities.

The campaign, titled #SUENAPARAGUAY, joined together harpists of all ages and organizations from public, private and social sectors in a closing event of the 7th World Harp Festival. It featured 420 harpists from 37 communities within Paraguay as well as artists from Japan, Brazil, Peru and England, who performed in front of approximately 2,500 people.

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#SUENAPARAGUAY was declared of cultural and touristic interest at national and municipal levels, as it doubled the previous record of 201 harpists set in Edinburgh in 2006.

The event produced a national fervor and also made headlines internationally. Coverage was broadcast live on national public television, making front-page news in Paraguay’s three main newspapers on the same day, as well as features on key media outlets such as CNN, NTN24, Oxford Mail and The Daily Telegraph. As a result of this challenge, the demand for Paraguayan harp concerts rose by 150% and the number of Paraguayan harp students in the Sonidos de la Tierra communities doubled.

Revealing the winner at the festival's awards ceremony, Guinness World Records SVP of the Americas Peter Harper noted, "Guinness World Records is thrilled to recognize Sonidos de la Tierra as winner of the 2014 'Record-Breaking Brand' Award across the Latin American region. With international media coverage, widespread sharing on social media, and a measurable increase in ROI, their inspired campaign engaged a nation and demonstrated the emotional connection record-breaking brings to communities."

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The 'Record-breaking Brand' award is designed to recognize record-holding brands that use Guinness World Records achievements at the heart of innovative media campaigns across the globe. The award category was this year introduced into the three flagship events of the Festival of Media Conference and Awards series - Festival of Media Asia Pacific, Festival of Media Global, and Festival of Media Latin America.

Charlie Crowe, Chairman & Editor-in-Chief of C Squared Networks Ltd, said: "We are delighted for Guinness World Records to be part of the Festival of Media LatAm Awards, the grand finale to the Festival of Media LatAm conference, where more than 1,000 of the best media minds meet in Miami. The 'Record-breaking Brand' category shows just how exceptional work in media can be, and is a perfect fit with our mission to champion the best media campaigns across the region."

Think your organization has what it takes to pull off an award-winning record campaign? Make sure to contact the Guinness World Records events management team with your group's details.