Women waste pickers from the city of La Paz pose near the musicians of the Paraguayan Cateura Recycled Instruments Orchestra, at the Sak'a Churu landfill in Alpacoma, in La Paz, Bolivia, on Feb 27, 2023. (PHOTO / REUTERS)

LA PAZ, Bolivia - In a creative bid to raise environmental awareness, a group of musicians from Paraguay belted out familiar tunes at a hilltop concert just outside Bolivia's capital city on Monday, overlooking a not-so-scenic and sprawling garbage dump.

But the garbage was the point, as the young musicians who make up Paraguay's Cateura orchestra use recycled materials to make their own instruments, "transforming trash into music," according to Fabio Chavez, one of the performers.

It has the same sound as a cello made out of wood ... There's really not much difference except that this one is made of trash.

Bianca Pintos, musician

The orchestra has performed in over 50 countries.

Playing songs by Coldplay and John Lennon, among others, the musicians entertained local garbage workers, many of whom were impressed by the sound of cellos, violins and horns fashioned out of large cans, pipes and other discarded materials.

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"It's very beautiful and I was really surprised with these recycled instruments," said worker Silveria Vega. "They're better than the originals," she added with a smile.

A musician with Paraguay's Cateura Recycled Instruments Orchestra plays a violin made with recycled materials at the viewpoint of the Sak'a Churu sanitary landfill in Alpacoma, in La Paz, Bolivia, on Feb 27, 2023. (PHOTO / REUTERS)

Musician Bianca Pintos showed off her hand-made cello during a break from the show, stressing the instrument's quality.

"It has the same sound as a cello made out of wood," she said. "There's really not much difference except that this one is made of trash."

The concert played out as local officials in La Paz aim to minimize the environmental impact of garbage dumps, especially the risk they can pose to ground water supplies.

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Bolivia's capital produces some 670 tonnes of trash every day, according to official data.