City Council reinforces the Municipal Band for the 2025 program

A specialized company will supply instruments and musicians for performances that require it, with the aim of expanding the repertoire and events throughout the year.

The Estepona City Council will strengthen the Municipal Band of Music, deeply rooted in the municipality and one of the cultural symbols of the city, facing the programming of next year 2025. In this way, and to special needs of the repertoire, a specialized company will supply the instruments and musicians that are required. This is a measure that is adopted in a new commitment to the quality and variety of performances and the strengthening of the programming of events held throughout the year.

The Estepona Band is one of the oldest formations of our country. It was founded in 1940 and since then it has been performing uninterruptedly in the city. The concerts they offer during the summer season have become one of the most awaited cultural events. In addition, the Municipal Band, which on the occasion of its 75th anniversary received the Gold Medal of the City, is responsible for musically accompanying the most important official and institutional events.

Over the years it has been expanding its symphonic repertoire, so it needs more and better means that now the City Council will make available to the musical formation, in a new commitment to provide continuity to the entire program. Likewise, the Consistory is already working on the new edition of the International Composition Competition for Symphonic Band ‘Estepona, Garden of the Costa del Sol’. The City Council convened the first edition of this competition to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Municipal Band (1940-2020). After the success achieved in terms of number of participants and quality of the compositions, it has been decided to maintain this contest to continue expanding the cultural offerings of the city.

The winning works of the four contests are: ‘Estepona, Jardín del Mediterráneo (Astabuna)’, by the composer Álvaro López Cámara from Jaén; ‘Estepona, el Jardín del Mundo’, by the Valencian composer Fernando Ferrer Martínez, artistically known as Ferrer Ferran; the Suite Continua for Symphonic Band ‘Impresiones de Estepona’, by the Dutch conductor and composer Christiaan Janssen; and ‘Estepona, Ciudad de las Flores’, by the composer and conductor Hugo Chinesta. All of them are already part of the archive of the department of the Municipal Band of Estepona.

Also, the City Council of Estepona annually announces scholarships for young people for the development of a program of theoretical and practical musical training in the Municipal Band of Music. Musicians of Spanish nationality or nationals of a member state of the European Union, between 16 and 24 years of age, may apply, provided that they have completed the elementary grade in the music workshop of the Municipal Band of Estepona or any other music school or workshop. It is also required to have been, at least, one year in practice in a music band and not have enjoyed the same scholarship in previous calls. This training project, which was launched in 2020, offers scholarship holders both theoretical and practical classes as well as the opportunity to perform in concerts with the Municipal Band.