Presentation of the 61st edition at the Pollença Festival

The City Council of Pollença has presented the 61st edition of the Pollença Festival to be held from August 6 to 27 at the Cloister of the Convent de Sant Domingo and which will be supported by the Department of European Funds, University and Culture of the Government of the Balearic Islands, the Department of Culture, Heritage and Language Policy of the Consell de Mallorca and INEM of the Ministry of Culture and Sports of the Government of Spain, among other collaborators.

The presentation ceremony was attended by the Mayor of Pollença, Bartomeu Cifre; the artistic and management advisor of the Pollença Festival, Pere Bonet, the director of the Institut d’Estudis Baleàrics, Pere Malondra, the deputy director of the Teatre Principal de Palma, Marta Ferré, as well as Biel Bauzà and Miquel Suau, representatives of Colonya Caixa Pollença and Hotel Son Brull respectively, collaborators of the Festival. Mr. Félix Palomero, technical director of the Orquesta y Coro Nacionales de España, also intervened by videoconference.

The inaugural concert of this 61st edition will be held in the Cloister of the Convent of Sant Domingo on August 6 at 22.00 hours with the performance of the Balearic Islands Symphony Orchestra, with Sergio Alapont as guest conductor and Kristian Bezuidenhout at the piano. While the closing concert will be on August 27, also at 10 p.m., by the Orquesta Nacional de España, with David Afkham as chief conductor and Christian Tetzlaff on violin.

A 61st edition that bets on a varied program focused on both residents and visitors, and that combines different musical styles opening the Festival de Pollença to new audiences. Not forgetting the family concert on August 17, focused as an intergenerational meeting around movie soundtracks, from Star Wars, through 007, among others.

In addition, as a novelty, we must highlight the initiative ‘The Festival for everyone’ which will consist of a series of commented auditions and talks about classical music and this year’s program.

The artistic and management advisor of the Festival de Pollença, Pere Bonet, stressed that “this 61st edition of the Festival is inspired by the two instruments that have been the pillars on which this musical institution has been built, the violin and the piano, which have been the protagonists of all the editions of the Festival de Pollença. Thus, in this 61st edition we want to pay tribute to them in the program with which we want to offer the best music with the best performers and with the highest quality that has always characterized the Festival”.

The mayor of Pollença, Bartomeu Cifre, commented that “the Festival de Pollença also has a social aspect, so one more year we continue with the family concert to bring music to the youngest, and also the proceeds will be in solidarity; also highlight the agreement we have with the entity Apropa with the aim of betting on the cultural integration of people who are at risk of social exclusion”.

For his part, the director of the Institut d’Estudis Baleàrics, Pere Malondra, added that “the Festival de Pollença is the most important music festival in the Balearic Islands for its indisputable quality, but also for the number of years that it has been held without interruption, and congratulations to the organization and the City Council for the great work they do with the Festival.”

While the deputy director of the Teatre Principal de Palma, Marta Ferré, said that “the Festival de Pollença is the perfect example of collaboration between the Teatre Principal and other institutions, and therefore we offer our logistical support to this festival so that it can continue to grow”.

In his intervention by videoconference, Mr. Félix Palomero, technical director of the Orquesta y Coro Nacionales de España, expressed his “congratulations to the Festival management and thank you for counting on us in this edition, the return of the Orquesta Nacional de España has a special meaning, since we have previously only been present in 1974”. “We have prepared a special program for the occasion and we wanted to include the presence of a composer from Manacor, Antoni Parera Fons, who has prepared a special piece to be premiered on August 27,” added Palomero.

Finally, on behalf of Colonya Caixa Pollença, Biel Bauzà said that “we want to congratulate all the people who make possible the celebration of the Festival and extend it to all the people who have made it possible throughout its history, since carrying out a festival of these characteristics is very complex and even more so to maintain the quality throughout all these years”.

And on behalf of the Hotel Son Brull, Miquel Suau, said that “it is a pleasure for us to collaborate with the Festival de Pollença, since it is a cultural heritage of Pollença and an event that fits perfectly within what we understand as quality tourism”.

Advance purchase of tickets can be made online at www.festivalpollenca.com or in person at the Pollença Festival office from Tuesday to Saturday from 10.00am to 1.30pm and on Thursdays from 4.30pm to 7.00pm. In addition, the same day of the concert, tickets can also be purchased at the door from 8.30pm to 10.00pm.