La Nova celebrates its 14th anniversary with a sold-out show at the Cultural Center

Societat Musical La Nova celebrated its 14th anniversary this afternoon with a concert held in Rafael Domenech Auditorium at the Cultural Centre. The program, featuring classic musicals from film and theatre, was a resounding success, filling the venue.

Mayor Toni Pérez attended, along with the Councillor for Culture, Jaime Jesús Pérez, and other members of the city council. They were joined by the president of the Societat, José Vicente Moreno; its vice president, Ángel Olmo; and other directors and former presidents of the organisation.

The program performed by the band, under the direction of Francisco José Rovira Peretó, included the following pieces: ‘Les Misérables’ (1980) by Boublil and Schonberol (arranged by Marcel Peeters), ‘My Fair Lady’ (1956) by Frederick Loewe (arranged by Alfred Reed), ‘Mamma Mia!’ (1999) by Ulvaeus (arranged by Peter Kleine Schaars), ‘The Phantom of the Opera’ (1986) by Andrew Lloyd Webber (arranged by Johan de Meij), ‘Don’t Cry for Me Argentina. Evita’ (1978) by Andrew Lloyd Webber (arranged by Ron Sebregts) with vocals by Nancy Creo, and ‘The Lion King’ (1997) by Elton John and Zimmer (arranged by John Higgins).

During the intermission, awards were presented to the musicians celebrating ten years with the organization. The president and vice president of the music society presented these awards. The same was done for the board members, also celebrating ten years of service, in this case, Francisco Marín. After the awards were presented, José Vicente Moreno, the president, remarked that "the stage is full, and some people have been left outside." He wanted to "thank every one of the musicians, and the presidents and board members who are and have been part of the organisation over the years," and recalled that "we started with 30 musicians, and today there are 77 on stage, with a school of about 350 students."

For his part, the mayor also highlighted the fact that the stage "has become too small for us" and advocated for "getting a larger one." Toni Pérez asked for applause for the 30 professionals of the Societat's training school and demanded that the entity increase its membership "to offer concerts like this and for the passion for music to continue growing."