Ara Balears in English - the balanguera

Mallorca will sing 'La Balanguera' on May 29: massive call to towns and schools

ARA Balears — Thu, 12 Mar 2026 10:50:18 +0000

The Balearic Cultural Work (OCB) has called for a massive singing of La Balanguera, the anthem of Mallorca, on May 29th, at 8:00 PM, in all towns and cities on the island. The initiative aims to commemorate the centenary of the musical premiere of Joan Alcover's poem, which composer Amadeu Vives first presented on May 29, 1926, at the Palau de la Música Catalana in Barcelona.

2026, Joan Alcover and Blai Bonet Year

Sebastià Alzamora — Mon, 09 Mar 2026 06:30:27 +0000

It's already March 2026, which means we're fully immersed in the simultaneous celebrations of the Joan Alcover Year and the Blai Bonet Year. From the author of The Balanguera We commemorate the centenary of his death, while we celebrate the centenary of the birth of the poet from Santanyí. Obviously, centenaries and other more or less round numbers are mere pretexts, as is the reason itself—whether they were born, died, or made their First Communion. What matters is the will and the act of celebrating the memory and work of two of our greatest poets. It is always good to remember what T.S. Eliot said: that peoples who do not honor their poets are barbarian peoples. We Mallorcans (like the Menorcans, the Ibizans, and the Formenterans) are not barbarians, and that is why we do not forget to pay homage to our poets, those who wield the language of the tribe the farthest and highest. Which in our case, as everyone knows except for some stubborn fool, is the Catalan language.

123 years since the first public reading of 'La Balanguera' are commemorated

ARA Balears — Sun, 15 Feb 2026 12:16:58 +0000

Mallorca commemorated this Sunday the 123rd anniversary of the first public reading of The BalangueraThe poem by Joan Alcover, which would eventually become the official anthem of the island, was commemorated. The event took place at CaixaForum Palma, the former Gran Hotel, the same venue where Alcover first recited the poem on February 15, 1902. The commemoration, promoted by the Obra Cultural Balear and the Consell de Mallorca, aimed to recall that first public gesture, which would eventually fade away. On that day, the poet read The Balanguera before an audience gathered to celebrate Costa i Llobera's proclamation as Master of Gay Saber at the Floral Games of 1902.