ARRIAGAREN ATERKIA

Arriagaren Aterkia is a poetic and dreamlike musical production jointly promoted by Teatro Arriaga and the Bilbao Choral Society. The work begins with the imaginary discovery of some forgotten scores and an umbrella belonging to Juan Crisóstomo de Arriaga, the emblematic figure of Basque music known as the “Basque Mozart”. From this magical object, the musical unfolds as a journey through memory, the passing of time, and the different stages of life, always beneath the rain of Bilbao. The story follows a character who moves through childhood, youth, adulthood and old age, while music and memory allow them to travel across time and emotion. The umbrella thus becomes a symbol of transmission, imagination and continuity between generations.

The work pays tribute both to Arriaga’s musical legacy and to the city of Bilbao itself, incorporating many iconic elements of the city: its rain-soaked streets, the river, the paving stones, the floods, the shipyards and the *sirgueras*. All of this is wrapped in the sonic universe created by composers Nerea Alberdi and Aitor Etxebarria, who also weave in some of Arriaga’s most recognisable melodies. More than one hundred young people from different ensembles within the Bilbao Choral Society take part in this collective production, with stage direction by Ane Pikaza. The result is a celebration of music, of Bilbao’s memory, and of the ability to keep singing even under the rain.