In the whole history of singing no family has been as important as the García dynasty, whose founder, Manuel del Pópulo Vicente García (1775—1832) led a colourful life on the boards of theatres between Paris, Madrid, New York and Mexico City. One of the leading tenors of his age, he also sang baritone roles such as Mozart’s Count and Don Giovanni and was not only a legendary singer but also a composer and teacher. Without him the works of Mozart and Rossini would arguably not be among the pillars of today’s operatic repertoire. In addition to his daughter Josepha, whose mother was probably his first wife Manuela Morales, Manuel García had three children by his second wife, the actress and soprano María-Joaquina García-Sitchèz: the celebrated singers Maria Malibran (1808—36), Pauline Viardot-Garcia (1821—1910) and Manuel García fils (1805—1906), whose career as a baritone may have been less distinguished but who was one of the most famous singing teachers of all time.
Cecilia Bartoli as Maria Malibran, Varduhi Abrahamyan as Pauline Viardot and Javier Camarena as Manuel García père and others will be appearing at a gala concert featuring vocal and instrumental works, symphonic movements and arias as well as a ballet piece, all designed to recapture the musical physiognomy of the García family.