This Friday, a grand piano transformed Valencia City Hall Square into a cultural stage for all audiences. Another seven are occupying other “iconic” locations around the city, which will be available to anyone who wants to touch them until 8 p.m. … A few hours this afternoon.
These eight instruments are the protagonists of the “Your city is filled with pianos” initiative, organized by the Occident Foundation in cooperation with the City Council and within the framework of the City Council. Valencia Music City. The aim is to “strengthen music as a driver of the city’s cultural, social and economic development,” the city council explained in a statement.
The Mayor of Valencia, María José Catala, also took part in this initiative, joining professionals, music students, amateurs and spontaneous people who gathered in the Plaza de la Town Hall to play and listen to the piano.
Among those who were encouraged to play the piano in front of the entrance of the Valencia City Council was the first Vice Mayor and Minister of Finance, María José Ferrer San Segundo, who has played fragments of various musical works. The mayor, who studied music and piano, delighted those who gathered to listen to the songs performed.
The remaining pianos can be found in the Patriarca Church, Plaza Redona, Plaza Mercat, Plaza Mare de Deu, Plaza La Reina, Plaza dels Faas, and on the promenade of the Estacion Nord. The “best” moments of the day will be shared on social networks with the hashtag #PianosValencia.
“Music as an engine of human development”
The City of Catalula stressed that the proposal “responses to an urban strategy that focuses on music as the driving force of urban development,” after announcing that with this activity the city council would launch a program of activities to celebrate the festival of Santa Cecilia, the patron saint of music, as it deserves.
Catala stressed that this initiative will involve “celebrations that have not taken place before, even though Valencia and the Valencian community as a whole have an impressive musical material”.
Tree lighting reminiscent of music
The mayor has announced that next Friday’s Christmas lights switching-on will have a “very interesting” musical content.
“The trees in Town Hall Square also hint at music, and next weekend’s Santa Cecilia festival will feature many musical acts in the city,” he added.
Live music and public participation
Regarding the initiative “Your city is full of pianos”, organized by the Occident Foundation and the Maria Canals International Piano Competition in collaboration with the Valencia City Council, María José Catalá praised two of the aims of the Valencia City of Music: promoting live music and promoting public participation.
Laura López, representing the Occident Foundation, and Jordi Vivancos, president of the Maria Canals International Piano Competition, recalled this activity, which was already held in Valencia in 2018.
Ignacio Gallardo-Bravo, Director of the Western Foundation, emphasized that Valencia has already celebrated this initiative in 2018. “Valencia’s people, its energy and its deep cultural and musical traditions made us feel that we should return.” That is why we are reintroducing “Your city is filled with pianos”, an initiative that invites everyone, Valencians and tourists alike, to rediscover the emotion of music in urban spaces,” he said.
Jordi Vivancos, Director of the Maria Canals Competition, said: “We are returning to Valencia with eight pianos that will be available to everyone who wants to see them, play them or just immerse themselves in music.” “We want this initiative to be a meeting place for professionals, fans and music lovers to share their passion.”
The activities are also held in Barcelona, Madrid, Bilbao, Seville, Cadiz, Malaga, Salamanca, Toledo, Santiago de Compostela, Valencia, León, Granada, San Sebastian, Zaragoza, Cáceres, Santander, Córdoba, Palma de Mallorca, Valladolid, Girona and Oviedo. Since 2012, it has been held in 22 cities over 45 days, with 350 pianos lining the streets and approximately 35,000 professional and amateur musicians participating.
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