Benidorm and music, a perfect combination

Ruth Lorenzo, Marc Calderó, Ana Prada, Inés Hernand, Aitor Albizua and Jordi Cruz They explained to INFORMACIÓN what they think of the tourist capital as the venue for an event where, above all, music plays the leading role. Prominent benefits include the fact that the unique structure of the city is the best ally for this type of event, as well as the fact that the historical Song Festival, passed by artists such as Raphael or Julio Iglesias, laid the foundations of the current festival.

“It’s great that they’re doing something like this in Benidorm. The Song Festival is being saved again,” says Ruth Lorenzo, who will present the premieres of this event and is celebrating the tenth anniversary of her entry into Eurovision. A festival like this is “wonderful.“Anything that means supporting culture and artists, both stable and emerging.”, To add. So what do you think of Benidorm? “It has a wide variety of people, which makes it very multicultural, and that’s great.”

This is not the first time Marc Calderó has seen the skyscrapers of the tourist capital, because he has seen them before: “The city always welcomes you in a wonderful way.” That’s why people living in Benidorm are “lucky beyond belief” and now with the Benidorm Festival this is even more so: “How wonderful it is to be put on the map once a year for music“And do you remember the origins of the Song Festival, which became more modern with its third edition, “already consolidating” it? Long live Benidorm Festival? “Of course, and for music too, because it is a springboard for many artists.” if this were not so wide young and developing people who may not be able to reach an audience.

Ana Prada changes the scene herself. One of the places the journalist, who has been a reporter for 10 years, visited the most was the municipality: “I love it very much. Everything is easy in Benidorm. Everyone is in a good mood, Benidorm is joy for everyone.” So what does the city convey to him? “TAll of us who come here realize that it conveys a lot of energy and joy. And that’s music.” Therefore, “It’s like providing a soundtrack to a corner of the Mediterranean. “This is a place that is very prone to that.”

Ruth Lorenzo, Marc Calderó and Ana Prada will be the visible faces of the two semi-finals and the grand final. Before and after these moments, Jordi Cruz, Inés Hernand and Aitor Albizua, who could feel the city’s aura of mystery and its relationship with music in previous years, will appear on the screens. “This is a beautiful example of Benidorm’s unique character. All the mixes we’re finding in the city also mean there’s a resurgence of these types of festivals and it fully absorbs the colors of the city,” says Aitor Albizua.

According to him, “This year Benidorm Fest is very diverse on a musical level and this can be seen on the streets of Benidorm. It is such a city with young people, old people, tourists, Spaniards, many Basques and I come from there.” Not everything is worth it, but you can see a lot of things and this is reflected in the festival.“. He also thinks that this event is “a very good musical springboard” for the participants. “I have attended three Benidorm Festivals and also one of my closest friends, with whom we come to watch Eurovision, has a house here. ” he explains to this newspaper. Jordi Cruz: “For me Benidorm has had a connection with Eurovision since before the Benidorm Festival.”

Benidorm Fest performance at the Song Festival venue?

The presenter also recalls the importance of the Song Festival for the musical history of the city: “I argue that something should be done where the Song Festival is held. The enclosure is there. I think everything else is great but I’d love to see RTVE use this space, I don’t know if I’d make a connection during premieres. Something that will save the place because this is the history of this country. Ideas I will launch for next year.”

Is Benidorm the perfect place for a festival like the one celebrated these days? “We needed to find a reference point not only for ourselves but also internationally, and Benidorm was known throughout Europe. When they say Benidorm Fest they start buying european fans not only from Spain, but also from other places, because they follow these pre-selection festivals and especially what happens after.” Among the benefits, “it gives you party, gastronomy, beach, sun… I have a bit of Stockholm syndrome on the way back from the Benidorm Festival. Even though I’m working, it’s like a holiday. “It would be an ideal location, it could be done in other major cities but it would lose the essence of having everything concentrated here in Benidorm.”

Inés Hernand is also clear: “Would doing this in Huesca be the same? I can’t answer that, I don’t think so.”. According to him, Benidorm is “a fantastic city that is a pioneer in many respects”; for example “funny story with a cross facing the beach to forgive all the sinful Swedish women who came to live this world” Spain is different. “He came to serve.” The presenter also recalls the Song Festival, where “great people came from this country.”