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From 22 to 25 October, the Renaixement Festival returns to the Monastery of Sant Miquel dels Reis for its tenth edition. Marking the 750th anniversary of the death of James I of Aragon, Capella de Ministrers revives the world of the troubadours, while the Acadèmia CdM revisits Banchieri.
From 22 to 25 October, the Renaixement Cultural Festival returns for its tenth edition to the spectacular Monastery of Sant Miquel dels Reis in Valencia, Spain, with the aim of bringing Renaissance musical and literary culture back to life in a setting that itself bears witness to that history. This year’s edition pays particular tribute to James I of Aragon (Jaume I, 1208–1276), whose death 750 years ago is commemorated in 2026. Two study days, on 22 and 23 October, will explore the monarch’s legacy ‘from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance’.
On 23 October, Capella de Ministrers, directed by Carles Magraner, presents Amors e cansò, a journey into the ruler’s musical and courtly world through troubadours associated with his circle, including Berenguer de Palou and Ponç d’Ortafà. The following day, the Acadèmia CdM takes over with El Convit, an adaptation of Adriano Banchieri’s madrigal comedy Il Festino, published in Venice in 1608. The festival will also welcome L’Homme Armé, Beatriz Lafont and the Orquesta Andalusí, alongside guided visits to the monastery and the traditional Sopar dels Borja, a themed literary dinner inspired by Valencia’s celebrated Borgia family.
The Acadèmia CdM is Capella de Ministrers’ educational project, designed to give young performers the tools needed to approach early-music repertories. Its work combines source study, historically informed performance, improvisation, ornamentation and staging, across repertoire ranging from the Middle Ages to the Baroque.
Festival website: https://renaixement.es
Capella de Ministrers website: https://capelladeministrers.com
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