The Festival Terras sem Sombra will target, over the next weekend of April 27th and 28th, the art, history and biodiversity of one of the most interesting municipalities in Alentejo: Elvas. For this, it proposes not only a truly unique concert in the old Cathedral, but also an itinerary of guided tours by local protagonists.
On Saturday 27, at 15 pm, a journey begins through some of the main artistic expressions in the border city, between the sanctuary of Nossa Senhora da Piedade and the Museum of Contemporary Art of Elvas, which houses the António Cachola Collection.
At 21 pm, the old cathedral opens its doors so that you can hear the peculiar sounds of the Organ Grande Oldovino (30), by the head organist of the Basilica of the Sagrada Familia, in Barcelona, Juan de la Rubia, recently awarded the title of best organist in Europe.
The morning of the 28th, starting at 9:30 am, aims to conserve nature, focusing on the struggle being waged by Portugal and Spain, in the heart of the Guadiana basin, against a terribly invasive exotic plant: the water hyacinth. The chosen location is located in the vicinity of the Ajuda bridge, where the river serves as the limit to Elvas and Olivença.
Terras sem Sombra is a project that for 15 years «invites the national and international public to experience, feel and live, very closely, the unique heritage of the Alentejo, revealing what is most interesting in the region – and in neighboring Extremadura. A unique opportunity to discover a legacy that is unique: ours».
Raianas Confluences: Popular Art and Contemporary Art in Elvas
The church of Senhor Jesus da Piedade, one of the most relevant examples of baroque architecture in Alentejo, is the starting point for a journey through the region's traditional art.
Here, one of the most notable sets of ex-votos in the country is kept, consisting of thousands of pictorial panels and photographs that thank “graces” and “miracles” granted, from the first half of the XNUMXth century to the present day.
An unparalleled collection, which allows knowing in detail the contemporary history of Portugal, in the economic, political and social aspects, with special emphasis on the daily life of urban and rural populations, from religion to the way of dressing, traditional professions or the day-to-day difficulties.
The guide is an illustrious Elvense, António Araújo, history professor and consultant to the President's Civil House.
The Elvas Contemporary Art Museum, which houses the António Cachola Collection, is the next point on the itinerary. This collection, one of the most relevant in the country, began to be built in the early 1990s and follows a well-defined thematic line, mirroring the last 25 years of visual creation carried out by national artists.
The visit is guided by the collector himself – a privilege, as it will allow an exchange of impressions about the formation of the collection and the deeper meaning of collecting art in Portugal today.
When the Peninsula marked European music
The opportunity to listen live to one of today's most brilliant organists, Juan de la Rubia, coincides with a luxury musical program which, having as a guiding principle the musical relations between the Iberian Peninsula and Europe in the XNUMXth century, offers the opportunity to enjoy the extraordinary sound textures of the recently restored Grande Oldovino Organ of the Cathedral of Elvas.
Juan de la Rubia, titular organist of the Basilica of the Sagrada Familia, in Barcelona, will perform a repertoire signed by Antonio de Cabezón (Castrillo Matajudíos, 1510 – Madrid, 1566), one of the most famous composers of works for the organ of his time, also famed for being blind.
He was a chamber musician of Philip II of Spain (I of Portugal), accompanying the monarch, who greatly esteemed him, on his journeys through his vast territories. Hence the title of this concert: “Itineraries through Europe at the service of the King”.
Cabezón was a notable avant-garde when it comes to the use of the “theme-variation” musical structure, from which the “form” in musical notation was born. Extraordinary improviser, he left a vast production of a religious and profane nature, from which classical pieces such as The song of the horseman ou Keep the cows.
Resisting an invasive species: the water hyacinth
The fight against water hyacinth or camel, an invasive species that has been proliferating in the Guadiana basin, is the target of joint action between Spain and Portugal.
This plant, if it were to continue its development in accordance with the growth pattern demonstrated in recent years, could compromise the biodiversity of the river and its tributaries and seriously damage Lake Alqueva, the largest artificial water reservoir in Europe.
In 2019, the Spanish army is carrying out its gigantic operation to remove the plant from the waters of the river in the neighboring country, such is the seriousness that its dissemination assumed. On the Portuguese side, EDIA has also been carrying out systematic work to control this epidemic.
According to a legend dating back to 1526, on the occasion of the Spanish incursions led by Diego García into South America, the water hyacinth spread like a plague, almost a divine punishment, born from the crossing of non-indigenous species, in a foreign environment.
One of the great environmental challenges of today is precisely to sensitize the populations and competent entities to the need and urgency of constant surveillance of this great threat to our biodiversity, particularly in the flora and fauna of the Guadiana.
ELVES
27 April
Heritage: 15:00 pm – Raianas Confluences: Popular Art and Contemporary Art in Elvas
Sanctuary of Senhor Jesus da Piedade, Avenida da Piedade, Elvas
Concert: 21:30 pm – Church of Our Lady of the Assumption (Old Cathedral)
Antonio de Cabezón: Itineraries across Europe in the Service of the King
Juan de la Rubia organ
28 April
Biodiversity: 09:30 am – Resisting the Invader: The Water Hyacinth and the Guadiana Basin
Meeting point: Hotel de Santa Luzia, Avenida de Badajoz
What's left of the schedule:
CUBA
May 4
15h00 - In the Country of Fialho de Almeida: Places and Memories of the Author of Os Gatos
21:30 pm – Igreja Matriz de São Vicente
Traveling Heart: Love and Lullabies in East and West
Soprano Manila Adapt
Piano Alberto Urroz
May 5
09h30 - Earth Treasures: Geology and Traditional Castes in Cuba
Meeting point: Igreja Matriz de São Vicente, Largo 5 de Outubro, Cuba
FERREIRA DO ALENTEJO
May 11
15h00 - Heritage of Time: Villa do Monte da Chaminé and Romanization in Baixo Alentejo
Meeting point: Municipal Garden, R. Zeca Afonso, Ferreira do Alentejo
21:30 pm – Roman Villa at Monte da Chaminé
Music as a Passport: A Magical Script
Guitar and musical direction Ferenc Snétberger
Soprano Orsoly Janszo
Violin László Horvath
Clarinet Elemér Fehér, Béla Lakatos
Bass Clarinet, Tarogató Norbert Sandor
Benjamin Urban Piano
May 12
09h30 - Discreet Neighbors: Insects and Sustainability in Campos de Ferreira
Meeting point: Church of Nossa Senhora da Conceição, Rua Mariano Feio, Ferreira do Alentejo
Odemira
May 25
15h00 - The Magic Mountain: History and Stories of São Martinho das Amoreiras
Meeting point: Parish Church of São Martinho das Amoreiras, Largo da Igreja, São Martinho das Amoreiras
21:30 pm – SÃO MARTINHO DAS AMOREIRAS – Parish Church of São Martinho
Elsewhere: American and European Works for Flute
Quartet
Flute Emilse Barlatay, Trinidad Jiménez, Leticia Malvares, Carmen Vela
Epi Pacheco Percussion
May 26
09h30 - Mãe-d'Água: Expedition to Serra da Vigia
Meeting point: Parish Church of São Martinho das Amoreiras, Largo da Igreja, São Martinho das Amoreiras
CANYONS
June 8
18:30 pm – Municipal Cineteatro
Invitation to Travel: Geographies, Memories and Times of Lyric Song
Alto Ellen Rabiner
Piano Nuno Margarido Lopes
21h30 - Reading Heaven and its Traditions: From Astrology to Astrophysics
Meeting point: Cineteatro, Baldio, Barrancos
June 9
09h30 - All for One: Fire Prevention and Fighting in the Streak
Meeting point: Jardim do Miradouro, Rua 1.º de Dezembro, Barrancos
SANTIAGO DO CACÉM
June 22
15h00 - Court in the Village: The Palace of Career
Meeting point: Palácio da Carreira, Largo do Capitão-Mor JJ Salema de Andrade, Santiago do Cacém
21:30 pm – Main Church of Santiago Maior
Where is My Home? Tradition and Vanguards in Czech Music (XNUMXth-XNUMXth Centuries)
Československé Komorní Duo
Pavel Burdych Violin
Piano Zuzana Beresova
June 23
09h30 - Current Mansa: The Middle Course of the Sado River
Meeting point: Parish Council of Ermidas-Sado, Rua 25 Abril, nº 2, Ermidas do Sado, Santiago do Cacém
SINES
July 6
15h00 - Inside the Eye of the Cyclops: The FaroXNUMX of Cape Sines
Meeting point: Farol of Sines, Cape of Sines
21:30 pm – Sines Castle
Far, yet Close: Contemporary Music Identities in the USA
Kronos Quartet
Violin David Harrington, John Sherba
Viola da Gamba Hank Dutt
Sunny Yang Cello
July 7
09h30 - Nereus and Proteus: Watch and Cultivate the Sea
Meeting point: Paços do Concelho, Rua Ramos da Costa, Sines
October 19 [18:30]
Campo Maior Cultural Center
Awarding of the Lands without Shadow International Award
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