The 24th edition of the Cádiz Festival of Spanish Music, scheduled to take place from 13 to 23 November, will pay tribute to composer Marisa Manchado, who passed away in the Urda train accident. Manchado was a founding member and active participant of the festival's Composer Workshop since its inception.
The festival will debut 'Filia Memoriae', a work by Manchado, on 14 November. This premiere is part of twenty absolute debuts featured in this year's programme, nine of which will be presented through the Composer Workshop.
Patricia del Pozo, the regional Minister of Culture, Heritage and Sport, praised Manchado's talent and commitment to promoting female creativity in music. She stated, "Marisa Manchado's talent as a composer matched her commitment to fostering female voices in music. She understood early on that composing as a woman in Spain required creating space for others. Her early involvement with the Composer Workshop was significant, and dedicating this edition to her acknowledges her contributions to a programme that broadens the path for new creators with a legacy that will forever be linked to the Cádiz Festival."
In the early 1980s, when discussions about women in music were scarce, Manchado initiated a programme dedicated to female composers on Radio Clásica. In 1998, she coordinated the publication of 'Música y mujeres, género y poder', the first book in Spanish addressing music and gender. That same year, she founded and presided over the Madrid Association of Composers.
Del Pozo added, "She transformed advocacy into a work of composition, education, and archiving. Manchado leaves behind more than 150 works, ranging from electroacoustic pieces to opera. With 'La Regenta', which won the National Music Prize in 2024, she demonstrated that demanding and modern writing could restore a voice to Ana Ozores, which her era denied her."
The Composer Workshop, developed in collaboration with the National Centre for Musical Dissemination (CNDM), is one of Spain's pioneering and longest-running initiatives dedicated to the promotion, commissioning, and publication of works created by women. Established in 2005 as part of the Cádiz Festival of Spanish Music, it has been driven by key figures in the field, including Manchado and Pilar Jurado.
This year's edition of the workshop holds particular significance with the posthumous premiere of 'Filia Memoriae', which will be performed by the Around the Sound Ensemble. The programme will also feature works by Zuriñe F. Gerenabarrena, Rebeca Santiago, Cruz López de Rego, Sofía Martínez Ramírez, Anna Bofill Levi, Rosa Rodríguez Hernández, Pilar Jurado, and María José Arenas, all set against the backdrop of the 150th anniversary of the birth of Manuel de Falla.
The concert is scheduled for Saturday, 14 November, at 18:00 in the Teatro del Títere La Tía Norica. In addition to the premieres from the Composer Workshop, eight pieces supported by the Manuel de Falla Chair will also be showcased. Under the direction of Professor Achim Bornhöft, the Manuel de Falla Professional Conservatory of Music will present works developed during the second part of the 23rd edition of the Course on Musical Analysis and Composition, taking place from 13 to 16 November in Cádiz, also themed around the 150th anniversary of the Cádiz-born composer.
The final premiere of historical music scheduled for this edition will be 'Concertante' by Jesús Torres, performed by the Trío Arbós, led by Juan Carlos Garvayo, who recently received the Festclásica 2027 Seal. This performance will occur on 21 November at the Teatro del Títere La Tía Norica and will include Falla's 'Concerto for Harpsichord', in collaboration with the CNDM and the Ministry of Culture and Sport.
The Cádiz Festival of Spanish Music is organised by the Ministry of Culture, Heritage and Sport of the Junta de Andalucía, through the Andalusian Agency for Cultural Institutions, with support from the City Council of Cádiz, the Ministry of Culture, the University of Cádiz, the Museum of Cádiz, Fundación Unicaja, the Provincial Council, the Casa de Iberoamérica, the Manuel de Falla Archive Foundation, the Intercentros Melómano Foundation, the Manuel Castillo Superior Conservatory of Music in Seville, the Manuel de Falla Professional Conservatory of Music in Cádiz, the Sevilla Association of Friends of Opera, and Festclásica, the Spanish Association of Classical Music Festivals.
