International Opera Festival “Alejandro Granda” was conceived by a group of professional who felt the responsibility to bring to Lima a better opera product, a worthy framework to Juan Diego Flórez presentations. This group has individualized the special situation in which Peru finds itself in the world of opera thanks to him, one of the greatest lyric singers nowadays. Plácido Domingo affirmed that “he is the best Tenore di grazia of all ages” and Luciano Pavarotti saw him as the “most prepared to occupy the first place of the tenors today”.
Every time Juan Diego Flórez sings in any of the main theatres and concert halls all over the world, everyone names Peru. It happens everytime. However we know that in here, there is so much left to do about Opera. Until now, opera product is in hands of privative organizations which every year need to find sponsors, sometimes with no further success, to set up every opera season. A fair answer was that we wanted action taken to raise the level of opera productions with an annual international festival. It is an ambitious project, full of many difficulties.
In 2008, this Festival started with the invaluable help of Regional Government and the Callao Municipality. Without that help, this event would not exist and we will always be grateful. In 2011 and 2012 Granda Festival change its headquarters and had the great honor to reopen the Teatro Municipal de Lima sponsored by Municipality of Lima. In 2013, The Festival presented its sixth edition in the Gran Teatro Nacional.
The making of opera in Peru is not an easy task and everything achieved in all these years required great efforts. But the accomplished artistic result has compensated everything. Being able to present important international artists and stunning productions it has not only been a duty but a great satisfaction. We believe that is our commitment to thrust forward and we will do it.