• The musical and theatrical show will take over Plaza de Santa Ana on 29 May, after bringing together more than 500 artists and researchers
• Hundreds of students will take part in the project La Isla de Mi Vida Escolar y Familiar on Friday 22 May in Vecindario

The Festival La Isla de Mi Vida will express the island’s cultural diversity through a blend of roots and contemporary creation. In addition, the 21 compositions that pay tribute to the identity of each municipality of Gran Canaria as part of the choral show of music, spoken word and theatre Attindamana will leave a new sound and emotional map of the island, said the president of the Cabildo de Gran Canaria, Antonio Morales, today.

The island president made these remarks during the press presentation, held in the Patio del Cabildo, of one of the pieces that will form part of Attindamana: Canto a la aparcería, performed live by Belén Álvarez, Ner Suárez, Javier Cerpa and Víctor Batista. The official Festival video was also screened during the event.

“We are looking at a major musical expression of what is currently being created in Gran Canaria, one that will leave a lasting artistic legacy and a portrait of the territory through art,” said Antonio Morales, accompanied by the Councillor for Economic Development, Minerva Alonso, and producer Mario Vega.

The president of the Cabildo thanked the teams from the Department of Economic Development, Infecar as organising body, Fedac, the Presidency Department and the production company Una Hora Menos, as well as the more than 500 artists and researchers involved in the initiative.

The Festival’s main event will take place on 29 May in Plaza de Santa Ana, in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, with free admission. Following the parade, which will begin at 7:30 p.m. in Parque de San Telmo with the Banda de Firgas and the Papahuevos, the main highlight of the programme will begin at 8:30 p.m.: the musical and theatrical show Attindamana — The sound of a people, the heartbeat of an island.

Attindamana is a large-scale production involving more than 500 artists and conceived as a profound and contemporary tribute to the identity of the island’s 21 municipalities. The project is directed by a collective creative team working to build connections between different artists. This core team includes Mario Vega, Belén Álvarez LAJALADA, Víctor Batista, Ner Suárez, Manuel Abrante, Ruth Sánchez and Javier Cerpa.

Attindamana stands as an ambitious and determined commitment to a fundamental goal: to create a new and lasting repertoire for Canarian popular music. Beyond a one-off event, it is an investment in future heritage, creating a legacy of 21 songs that will become part of Gran Canaria’s songbook, adding to the foundations of its popular music so that they can endure over time.

Ultimately, Attindamana is one of the largest gatherings of local artistic talent linked to an island-wide cultural event. It will involve, among others, the Gran Canaria Philharmonic Orchestra, Parranda Araguaney, Umiaya, Mujeres ᗡ, Raíces Atlántikas, Los Serenquenquenes, folk groups, municipal collectives and more than forty vocal and instrumental performers.

The night of 29 May will close with the exclusive premiere of the new edition of After Hours: The Mixtape. This project is led by DJ Saot ST, a renowned producer and filmmaker who has devoted his career to promoting young talent from the islands within urban culture.

La Isla de Mi Vida Escolar y Familiar

Before that, on Friday 22 May, Plaza de San Rafael in Vecindario will host, also with free admission, a major celebration of children’s and young people’s folklore, with schools taking part in the morning and music schools in the afternoon.

The project La Isla de Mi Vida Escolar y Familiar was created as a natural extension of the celebration of our identity, with the firm aim of placing traditional music at the heart of everyday learning. The School Festival will bring together more than 650 students from primary, secondary and special education schools, representing the diversity of 15 municipalities across the island.

This initiative forms part of the programme of Festival La Isla de Mi Vida 2026, not only to highlight the Canarian content taught in classrooms, but also to transform that knowledge into a shared experience. “By taking music out of schools and bringing it into the public square, we turn folklore into a tool for social cohesion and generational pride,” Antonio Morales said.