The opening concert of the Insular Band paid tribute to the recently deceased former president of the Federation
On 16 March, the Auditorio de Tenerife held the first performance of 2025 of its Music in Spring concerts ‘Primavera Musical’ cycle (Musical Spring Cycle), organised by the wind bands federation ‘Federación Tinerfeña de Bandas de Música’ with the collaboration of Tenerife Island Council. The evening was dedicated to the memory of Alejandro Poleo, who recently passed away after serving as president of the Tenerife Band Federation from 2007 to 2022.
The concert was preceded by a minute of silence. Attending the event were Mr Poleo’s children, Antonio y Anabel, accompanied by the President of the Island Council, Rosa Dávila, the Councillor for Cultural Affairs, José Carlos Acha, and the federation’s board members, including its sitting president Juan Antonio Rancel.
Under the leadership of Miguel Ángel Arrocha, the Insular Band of the Tenerife Federation took part in the tribute, kicking off its performance with the pasodoble Alejandro Poleo, a composition of Esteban Fariña, who was also in the audience at the Chamber Hall. Conductor Vivian Gutiérrez led the ensemble to deliver an outstanding performance.
Rosa Dávila qualified the homage as ‘a resounding success’ and said she was convinced that ‘Alejandro Poleo would be proud of our affectionate tribute and of his legacy’. She spoke highly of the skill and youth of the band members, adding that it was possible ‘thanks to all the people who’ve dedicated their lives to wind bands’.
Juan Antonio Rancel said, ‘Our federation and all wind bands have suffered a great loss with the passing of Alejandro Poleo. He was an extraordinary proponent of this genre, and we could think of no better way to honour his memory than with music’. The president of the Tenerife Band Federation went on to thank the Tenerife Island Council and the Auditorio because the Music in Spring concerts ‘are an excellent way of acknowledging our work’.
Maravillas del mundo antiguo (Wonders of the Ancient World) was the title of this concert, which included Alex Poelman’s Symphony No. 1, known as ‘The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World’, La Alhambra iluminada op.22 by Valencian composer José Faus and Machu Picchu – City in the Sky by Japanese composer Satoshi Yagisawa. As an encore, the Insular Band performed an excerpt from Igor Stravinsky’s suite The Firebird.
After this year’s first concert of the Primavera Musical cycle 2025, 12 more events have been scheduled to take place with the federation’s bands. The first to appear on the stage of the Chamber Hall will be the wind bands of Arona, San Miguel and San Pedro (El Sauzal) on 23 March at 11.30 a.m.