Caña Dulce secures victory at the Santa Cruz de Tenerife Carnival Musical Groups Competition for the fifth year in a row. Chaxiraxi claims the second spot, and Cantares Luz de Luna finishes third, with Sabor Isleño as the runner-up. Cantares Luz de Luna attains the presentation prize, followed by Chaxiraxi and Siboney, while Los Yuppies clinch the second spot. The best unreleased song award goes to “El Carnaval siempre returns” by Siboney, and the best soloist award is bestowed upon Jennifer Alonso from Chaxiraxi with the song “Put us in agreement.” Sabor Isleño receives recognition for its 25 years of existence.
With an approximately 20-minute delay and an audience of about 1,000 enthusiastic attendees, with around 300 at the beginning, Siboney, Nobleza Canaria, Sabor Isleño, Salsabor, Cantares Luz de Luna, Los Yuppies, Chaxiraxi, Teiderife, and Caña Dulce in that sequence, took the stage at the Fairgrounds with Sara Ramos and Pedro Machín as presenters of the Musical Groups competition.
Siboney staged “Life in colors” fantasy by Cavi Lladó for their performance, reserving “Killing me softly” for the competition, and paying tribute to Celia Cruz. They concluded with “The carnival always comes back,” an original song composed by the group’s director from La Alegría neighborhood, Daniel Hernández.
The 27 members of Canarian Nobility, supported by a large group of followers, led by Aaron Alberto and featuring “Taste of salt, between the sky and the sea” as their fantasy, created by Juan Pedro Hernández as a tribute to those who fought against the Island’s fire, commenced with “Mine” and continued with “If you love me”. “Go out, go to the street” served as a farewell in the form of vindication and recognition to all the groups.
“Chasing dreams” served as the fantasy of Juan Carlos Armas, allowing Nico Delgado to direct Island Flavor with three generations on stage on its 25th anniversary, an event that allowed them to recall the fantasy of the first year (1999), “Waste,” in addition to “Leaving Las Vegas” (2000) and “Atlantis.” After announcing a possible next children’s group, they interpreted “Moon” and competed with “I dreamed it” and “Move it”.
Yurena Delgdo, director and soloist, and the remaining 18 members of Sauce shone on their return with “Reminiscence” fantasy by Moisés Rodríguez and titled their second song in the competition – the first was “Looking at the sea,” another reference to work against fire. For the first time, they performed without a presentation theme.
“Moonlight Songs” presented “Copcabana,” a fantasy by José Julio Pelayo, paying tribute to Juan Gabriel and Rocío Dúrcal, with salsa versions of their songs in their first competition song, and to the Canarian orchestras in the second song. The audience enjoyed standing and dancing to their performance, including “Santa Cruz in Carnival” in Billo’s Caracas Boys version.
The Yuppies, one of the veteran groups, bid farewell after 38 years without missing the Carnival and competed with their “We are yuppies” and “Our fifth,” directed by José Víctor Afonso, with the fantasy “Garden of the Hesperides versus Garden of Wonders” by Damián Rodríguez, starring milkmaids and cowboys accompanied by the sound of the banjo.
Chaxiraxi, with the fantasy “Aura” by designer Gustavo Benítez, presented “To agree” and “Sings,” under the direction of Juan Antonio Mújica, dedicating the performance to Laly Sierra, its president.
Teiderife, who created their presentation theme and fantasy “Belle époque,” presented themselves with “Samba for me”. For their competition, they delivered two mixes by Juan Luis Guerra, one of bachatas and the other of meringues. To conclude, they showcased a composition of their own, of course: “How Carnival is experienced here”.
Caña Dulce closed the Groups Competition, a title they have held since 2020. “Forty years of rhythm and color” adorned them this carnival, designed by Damián Rodríguez. Juan Ramón Rodríguez directed “Rhythm, color and flavor” as well as “Reason for living”. The conclusion encapsulated the moment: “Tenerife is a party,” a hymn.
