Old Havana and the Agrupación Folklórica Santo Ángel won the first prizes at the 2023 Habaneras Festival, organized by the Santa Cruz de Tenerife City Council, through the Autonomous Organization for Festivities and Recreational Activities (Oafar), and held this weekend on the occasion of the festivities in honor of the Virgen del Carmen, in the Plaza de la Iglesia de la Concepción in the chicharrera capital.
The Santo Ángel Musical and Folkloric Group obtained the highest award in the category of Groups for the Elderly, as was the case in the 2022 edition. The Association for the Elderly in 2000 obtained second prize. In addition, Rosa Melián, from the latter group, won the Best Soloist Award with the song Cuando salí de Cuba by Luis Aguilé.
In the Habanera Libres category, the highest recognition went to Habana Vieja (AMC Mamel’s), with Dulce Caña de la Habana (AMC Caña Dulce) being in second place. In this modality, the recognition for the best soloist went to Luis Miguel Morales, from Old Havana who performed the song Venecia sin ti by the author Charles Aznavour. The jury decided to declare the single prize for the best unpublished song void.
The jury of the contest that valued the participating groups was made up of the lyrical singer and music teacher, Mercedes Cabrera Amador; the manager of Capella Hésperis de la Masa Coral Tenerife, Daniel Guillermo Hernández Hernández, and the founder and former member of the Polyphonic Choir of the University of La Laguna, Juan Carlos Camacho. Cristina Santacreu, Oafar staff acted as secretary, in both modalities of the contest.
The mayor of the city, Jose Manuel Bermúdez, together with the Councilor for Fiestas, Javier Caraballero, presented the prizes to the different distinguished groups in this edition, held in the framework of the Plaza de la Iglesia de la Concepción, which registered a Full packed all three days of the festival.
The program on Sunday afternoon, prior to the awards ceremony, was completed with the exhibition of Rondallas and lyrical-musical groups in which they performed: Las Valkirias, Rondalla Mamel’s, Masa Coral Tinerfeña, Los Fregolinos, Agrupación Lírica La Zarzuela, Peña Del Lunes 1965, Rondalla Unión Artística El Cabo y Gran Tinerfe.
The acts in honor of the Virgen del Carmen will continue next Sunday, the 16th, with the celebration of the traditional procession and the subsequent shipment of the sacred image at the Santa Cruz de Tenerife pier.
