El Festival Internacional de Música de Aguere en La Laguna celebra su tercera edición
La Laguna will host the third edition of the International Music Festival of Aguere from July 3 to 20, a project that aims to offer a high-level musical program and make the city a meeting point for professionals and music students in spaces of great heritage value.
During the presentation of the event, the Councilor of Culture and President of the Autonomous Body of Musical Activities (OAAM), Adrián del Castillo, stated that the festival «strengthens the artistic future of the municipality, giving wings to the creativity of young musicians, but without forgetting the general public.» He also highlighted that events like this allow «opening spaces such as the hermitage of San Miguel, the convent of Santo Domingo, the church of San Bartolomé de Tejina, or the Museum of History and Anthropology to top-level artists.»
On the other hand, the festival director, Daniel Molina, explained that the project arises from the need to «provide La Laguna, as a World Heritage City, with its own chamber music festival. We have been ambitious, we have created a reference training space that offers a real opportunity for learning and growth to young Canarian musicians,» he detailed.
The festival reinforces its presence in the historic center of La Laguna with a program that includes concerts such as those of the Fortecello duo, Butterfly Lovers, and the saxophonist Daniel Valerón, winner of the International Soloists Competition of the International Music Festival of Aguere. The audience will also be able to enjoy once again the Aguere Chamber Orchestra, which will be conducted by the students of the orchestral conducting course, under the baton of maestro Borja Quintas.
«Against insularity, the Festival proposes itself as a meeting point in the month of July that complements and expands the existing training offer in the islands, providing access to a level of excellence that is usually concentrated in major capitals and prestigious European centers,» explained the event director.
One of the most significant examples of this pedagogical approach in the festival’s programming is the Orchestral Conducting course that will take place between July 15 and 20, establishing itself from the first edition as a pioneering project in the Canary Islands, which includes its own chamber orchestra —the Aguere Chamber Orchestra— as a practical learning tool for students in training as conductors. This orchestra is made up of both young people who are finishing or have completed their higher studies at the Superior Conservatory of Music of the Canary Islands, as well as professional musicians, which promotes a demanding, enriching, and cooperative working environment.
In the same line of promoting young talent, the second edition of the International Soloists Competition is also held, an initiative that was launched last year and has been very well received. This competition has a very clear objective: to select the soloist who will play in the closing concert with the festival orchestra. On this occasion, the call was aimed at pianists, to select the soloist who will perform Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No. 2 with orchestra in the two closing concerts of the program.
The festival features high-level soloists, who participate as guest teachers in the instrumental improvement course, such as Antonio Lasheras, principal horn of the Tenerife Symphony Orchestra, and Javier Linares, saxophone professor at the Superior Conservatory of Granada. In addition to this, other training initiatives are added, such as the instrument making and repair workshop, taught by Dulce Salazar from the Al Vent workshop (Alicante), as well as master classes, meetings, and activities open to the public.
The program kicks off on July 3 at the Casino de La Laguna, with a concert featuring the Fortecello duo, composed of Polish cellist Anna Mikulska and French pianist Philippe Argenty, who bring a musical proposal with a nod to classical flamenco, including works by Spanish composers Gaspar Cassadó, Manuel de Falla, and Enrique Granados.
The event is sponsored by Fundación Disa and Cajasiete. All information about the III International Music Festival of Aguere is available on its official website:
