Por María Izquierdo 
From July 6 to 25, the Orquesta Sinfónica de Castilla y León and the OSCyL Joven will offer ten concerts in all provinces of the Community. The participation of the youth section is part of the ‘III Summer Meeting’.
June 25, 2025
Castilla y León | Consejería de Cultura, Turismo y Deporte
The Deputy Minister of Cultural Action, Mar Sancho, has presented the ‘Plazas Sinfónicas’ program, which, for the first time, will be jointly carried out by the Orquesta Sinfónica de Castilla y León and the OSCyL Joven, with ten concerts throughout the Community, between July 6 and 25. ‘Plazas Sinfónicas’ is in its eighth edition, with concerts in public spaces and a varied repertoire.
Sancho has emphasized how it has become «one of the most anticipated cultural events of the summer in the Community,» highlighting that «for the first time, it will be jointly developed by the Orquesta Sinfónica de Castilla y León and the OSCyL Joven, who join forces to offer ten concerts in all provinces of the Community, in a new artistic challenge, which is part of the commitment to culture and the people of Castilla y León.»
The Orquesta Sinfónica de Castilla y León will participate in five concerts within the ‘Plazas Sinfónicas’ program. Under the direction of Néstor Bayona, resident conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra of Radio Poland since 2023, the OSCyL will perform a repertoire composed of Jean Sibelius’ Finlandia, op. 26; Félix Mendelssohn’s Scherzo, from A Midsummer Night’s Dream, op. 61; Ralph Vaughan-Williams’ The Wasps (overture); Manuel de Falla’s Ritual Fire Dance; Camille Saint-Saëns’ Danse Macabre, op. 40; Enrique Granados’ Goyescas Intermezzo; Bedrich Smetana’s Dance of the Comedians (from the opera The Bartered Bride); and Leonard Bernstein’s Candide (Overture).
The concerts will take place on Friday, July 11, at 9:30 p.m., in Plaza de San Juan in Burgos; Saturday, July 12, at 9:30 p.m., in Plaza Mayor de Salamanca; Monday, July 14, at 9:30 p.m., in Plaza Mayor de Valladolid; and Tuesday, July 15, at 9:30 p.m., in Plaza Mayor de Soria.
In Zamora, the OSCyL will offer a concert in the Plaza de la Catedral, as part of the X International Chamber Opera Festival LittleOpera Zamora, on Friday, July 25 at 9:30 p.m., which will be part of the inaugural ‘Lyrical Gala.’ It is designed to bring the beauty of lyrical singing to all audiences and will feature acclaimed Natalia Labourdette (soprano) and Airam Hernández (tenor). The OSCyL will be conducted by Guillermo García Calvo and will perform well-known opera arias to commemorate the 10th anniversary of LittleOpera.
III Summer Meeting of the OSCyL Joven
Members of the OSCyL Joven will participate in the ‘III Summer Meeting’ to be held at the Centro Cultural Miguel Delibes from July 2 to 18, with training activities that will culminate in their participation in five concerts of the ‘Plazas Sinfónicas’ program and a final ‘Symphonic Concert’ at the Centro Cultural Miguel Delibes.
As part of ‘Plazas Sinfónicas’ and under the direction of Javier Huerta Gimeno, principal conductor of the Gödngen Musikfreunde Orchestra and second place winner in the II Conducting Competition of Juventudes Musicales de España 2025, recently held in Valladolid, the OSCyL Joven will perform a repertoire composed of E. Granados’ Goyescas Intermezzo, L.V. Beethoven’s Coriolan Overture Op.62; E. Grieg’s Morning Mood; the First Movement of W.A. Mozart’s Symphony number 29 K 201 in A major (Allegro moderatto); J. Strauss’ Polka Trisch-Trasch Op. 214; F. Mendelssohn’s The Hebrides Overture Op. 26; G. Bizet’s Habanera Suite; and E. Granados’ Andalusian Dance.
The concerts will take place on Sunday, July 6, at 9:30 p.m., in the church of San Nicolás de Villafranca del Bierzo (León); Monday, July 7, at 9:30 p.m., in Plaza de Regla in León; Tuesday, July 8, at 9:30 p.m., in Plaza del Mercado Chico in Ávila; and Wednesday, July 9, at 9:30 p.m., in Plaza Mayor de Palencia.
The ‘III Summer Meeting’ will culminate with the participation of the OSCyL Joven in the 50th Musical Festival of Segovia-MUSEG, offering a symphonic concert in the Jardines de Zuloaga on Thursday, July 17 at 10:00 p.m. For this concert, featuring Silvestre Revueltas’ Sensemayá, Gabriela Ortiz’s Bronze Altar, and Leonard Bernstein’s West Side Story Symphonic Dances, the OSCyL Joven will be conducted by the Portuguese orchestra director Joana Carneiro and will feature the Venezuelan trumpeter Pacho Flores as a soloist. This same concert will be offered on Friday, July 18, at 8:00 p.m., at the Centro Cultural Miguel Delibes, as the closing of the ‘III Summer Meeting of the OSCyL Joven’.