The surroundings of the Raymat Castle and the Raimat quarries are this week the incredible setting in which the first edition of the Raimat Arts Festival is celebrated, a “one hundred per one hundred solidarity” initiative whose benefits are allocated by the Raimat Foundation to social projects with a positive impact on the territory
The competition, which is twinned with the Napa Valley Festival in California and seeks to be an enriching event for Lleida, aligning itself with the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN, proposes this Saturday a chamber music concert -Falla, Albéniz, Granados, Cassadó, Tàrrega, Montsalvatge, Valent…– with performers who are notable figures in the national and international classical scene.
The Barcelona soprano Serena Sáenz, winner of the Montserrat Caballé award and current Norina del Don Pasquale del Liceu; guitarist Pablo Sáinz Villegas, the first soloist of his instrument to be invited by the Berlin Philharmonic in decades; the young and celebrated Mallorcan violinist Francisco Fullana –Bach’s Long Shadow was record of the month for BBC Music Magazine–, and the Chinese-Cuban cellist Sophia Bacelar, known for her multidisciplinary interests.
The 12th century fortress in Raimat, declared a Property of National Cultural Interest, will witness the weekend of popular activities, family workshops and links with the local wine and culinary tradition. In fact, until October 16, the first gastronomic days of the Raimat Arts Festival will be celebrated, with the Irish chefs Joel Castanyé, from La Boscana Restaurant (Bellvís), Xixo Castaño, from Restaurant Malena (Gimenells), Gonzalo Ferreruela, from Restaurant Ferreruela (Lleida), and Jesús Gimena, from L’Espurna Restaurant (Lleida).
