The Atlantic Choral Festival fills Los Dolores on its return and faces its final weekend
Topics Festival Coral del Atlántico
The 39th edition of the Atlantic Choral Festival opened this Friday at the Parish Church of Nuestra Señora de los Dolores with the Coral Polifónica Isla Cristina and the Coro de Câmara da Madeira. Performances continue on Saturday, October 17 and Sunday, October 18 at 21:00.
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The Atlantic Choral Festival is already under way in Isla Cristina. The Parish Church of Nuestra Señora de los Dolores hosted the opening of its 39th edition this Friday, with the Coral Polifónica «Isla Cristina», conducted by Virginia Peña, and the Coro de Câmara da Madeira, from Portugal, under the direction of Zélia Gomes. The audience filled the church on the first night of the event.
Two more nights of concerts
The programme continues this Saturday, October 17, at 21:00 with the Coral Municipal de Miajadas, from Cáceres, and the Coral Al-Bojaira de Cájar, from Granada. On Sunday, October 18, also at 21:00, the closing concert arrives with the Coro de Voces Blancas «Isaac Cueto Burgos», the Coral Polifónica «Padre José Mirabent» and the Coro Voces del Mar, from Huelva.
All the concerts are held at the Parish Church of Nuestra Señora de los Dolores. The Ayuntamiento invites the public and those visiting Isla Cristina these days to attend the performances.
A festival that recovers its stage
The event thus returns to its usual venue after a year's absence. The mayor, Jenaro Orta, was in charge of officially opening the festival, accompanied by the deputy mayor and councillor for Culture, Jerónimo Sosa, the deputy mayor Isabel López and other members of the Corporación Municipal. The presentation of the evening was given by María José Martín Contreras.
Orta thanked the Obispado de Huelva and the parish priest, don Gregorio Kozar, for their collaboration in making the return to the church possible. He also recalled the festival's forty years of history, which reaches its 39th edition after the interruption caused by the pandemic, and acknowledged the role of maestro Vicente Sanchis in its beginnings and the contribution of Aurelio Jara to its continuity.
Exchange with Madeira
The mayor highlighted the value of the cultural exchanges that choral singing fosters and thanked the Coral Polifónica «Isla Cristina» for having encouraged the participation of the Madeira ensemble, after the visit that the Isla Cristina group made this year to the Portuguese island.
During the concert, the Coro de Câmara da Madeira performed pieces such as Mozart's «Lacrimosa» and Caccini's «Ave María», while the Coral Polifónica «Isla Cristina» offered works such as Mozart's «Ave Verum» and Vivaldi's «Gloria».
The president of the Isla Cristina choir, Ana María Vélez, presented one of the commemorative pins to the mayor in gratitude for his commitment to the festival. The participating ensembles received the Caballito de Mar statuettes, the emblem of the event, presented by the mayor and the councillor for Culture. To close, both choirs performed the anthem of Portugal together and the guest ensemble offered a traditional song from Madeira.
To attend
The performances on Saturday, October 17 and Sunday, October 18 begin at 21:00 at the Parish Church of Nuestra Señora de los Dolores.