Gran Canaria is one of Europe’s musical capitals. January and February are going to sound especially tuneful thanks to the XXXIII Annual Canaries International Music Festival, one of the most important cultural events of the year, which will be laying on no less than 16 concerts between the 8th of January and the 4th of February, featuring world class symphonic and chamber music formations. Musical notes will once again hit our shores to get your musical buds flowing at special stages, including 100 year old theatres, auditoriums, castles, gabinete literario and museums.

On 8th January, the Alfredo Kraus Auditorium in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, one of Spain’s musical temples, will be the stage for a group of musical globe trotters, namely the members of the Mahler Chamber Orchestra, who have been performing in nearly forty countries on all five continents. The repertoire of this musical combo, who make their decisions democratically, taking into account the opinions of each and every group member, includes pieces by Dvorak y Prokofiev.

The next date on the calendar will be 12th January at the Auditorium of Agüimes. Showing off their virtuosity will be the members of the String Quartet of La Habana, a formation that boasts a Latin Grammy for best classical music disc. On 16th, at the Pérez Galdós Theatre in Las Palmas de Gran  Canaria, pianist Rosa Torres, tenor Manuel Gómez and soprano María Isabel Rey will be demonstrating just why they are in such great demand around the leading stages in Europe.

The Festival returns once again on 14th January to the Alfredo Kraus Auditorium, which will be holding one of the top events of the whole programme, as it brings together under one roof the talent and historical brillance of the Gran Canaria Philharmonic Orchestra, The Tenerife Symphonic Orchestra, the Slovakian Philharmonic Choir and the Tenerife Operatic Choir. The 17th January at the same venue sees the turn of Katia&Marielle Labèque, whose version of ‘Rhapsody in Blue’ by Gershwin became one of the first classical music recordings ever to be awarded a Golden Disc.

Can you hear that? It’s the sound of Venezuelan guitarist Pedro Barboza, who is descending on Gran Canaria with his Patchwork Ensemble. This concert is to be held on 19th January on a very special stage indeed, at La Mata Castle in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, and includes the projection of images and videos to accompany the musical creations. Just a day later, the Guiniguada Theatre in the capital will be decked out to welcome the Accademia del Piacere, one of the leading groups of ancient music in Europe. On 21st the music moves on to a museum, namely the Néstor Museum in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, which is home for the collection of paintings by the modernist painter. An unrivalled setting (certainly true here), for the musical offerings of the Antwerp Duo, in which the clarinet and marimba are combined in a most bold, yet successful way.

On 24th, the Symphonic Band of Tenerife will be performing at the Alfredo Kraus Auditorium. The following day it is the turn for the musical muses, violinist Irina Peña and pianist Ignacio Clemente, who will be giving a recital up at the greener climes of the heart of Gran Canaria at Teror Auditorium. On 26th, the Pérez Galdós Theatre will be hosting members of the Quantum Ensemble, who will be bringing to life pieces by Liszt, Bartók y Brahms.

The programme for February makes its first stop on 2nd at the Alfredo Kraus Auditorium, where the Tenerife Symphonic Orchestra will be taking part in the tribute to artist Juan Hidalgo. And we reach the end of this musical score with yet another exceptional event. On 4th February, and also at the Alfredo Kraus Auditorium, the Mozarteum Salzburgo and the Vienna Chamber Choir will relive the universe of Mozart in Gran Canaria. Outside, just a few metres away, the waves will come crashing in, although this time they will do so to the rythm of the works by this immortal Austrian composer.