Jorge de León, internationally renowned and award-winning tenor, born in La Laguna but, as he himself has acknowledged more than once, an "adejero at heart" will be one of the two invited guests to ‘announce’ Holy Week in Adeje this year. The event, which is an annual part of the proceedings, will also see a contribution from Fr. José Domingo González Pérez, a theologian, who worked as a priest in the parish of Los Olivos and is currently secretary of the Canary Islands ‘Instituto Superior de Teología’ and parish priest of San Matías in Santa Cruz.
Since 2018 Adeje has always invited two people to perform this special task, usually representing both the religious and social spheres. This in itself reflects how Holy Week in Adeje has occupied, over the years, religious, cultural, social and also economic relevance.
"Without losing sight of what Holy Week means from a religious point of view, we are also looking ahead, working for the integration and participation of all our people, with an event that offers a complete vision, religious and social, of what these days mean," said the mayor of Adeje, José Miguel Rodríguez Fraga, regarding the event which is open to the public and is taking place on March 16th in the Convent of San Francisco de Adeje, next to the Town Hall, from 7pm. There will also be a performance by the Trio Angelicus, (Sally Li, soprano, Vitalie Rotaru, piano and Ewa Moszczynska, violin), as part of the Festival de Música Sacra de Canarias.
"Every year people who have been part of the evolution of Holy Week in Adeje return and this year it is a pleasure to have Jorge de Leon and Jose Domingo Gonzalez with us," said the mayor. He added, "Jorge, although not born here, lived here for many years and was an integral part of our Holy Week, even playing the role of Jesus Christ in ‘La Pasión’, so we know he loves Adeje and feels like one of us". Similarly in the case of José Domingo, "who was born in La Orotava, but worked for many years as a priest in Adeje, and was a very positive influence in our community," said Rodriguez Fraga,
A few months ago De León received the Talía award for Best Male Lyric Performer, for his interpretation of Radames in the opera Aida produced by the Teatro Real in Madrid. Born in La Laguna, he studied singing at the Conservatorio Superior de Música de Canarias under Isabel García Soto, completing his studies with Giuseppe Valdengo in Italy and Alfonso García Leoz in Spain. He rose to world fame when, in 2004 and 2005, he won, the prize for the best tenor at the Festival Julián Gayarre.
