n 2010, in the city of Riga (Latvia), ORFEUM – the Organization of European Music Festivals – together with its partners from Latvia, Estonia, Bulgaria and Italy, created the European Youth Choir, composed of young singers from the five participating countries as well as from the United Kingdom.

The project was developed within the events of the Latvian Song & Dance Festival, one of the most important choral festivals in the world. Its most spectacular event brings together more than fifteen thousand singers performing as a single choir. This festival has been declared an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO.

The creators of the European Youth Choir were Inete Ielite (Latvia), Toomas Abel (Estonia), Emil Strundjev (Bulgaria), Peppe Barone (Italy) and Guillermo Albelo (Spain). Representing Spain were the young singers from Tenerife: Priscila Estévez, Ely Qurbelo, Xany Recco and Roberto Matos, together with the choral conductor Sabrina Lemus and the Romanian singer living in Spain, Lavinia Steriopol.

Guillermo Albelo coordinated the Spanish participation and, during the final gala concert, the Spanish representatives played a leading role, accompanied by the rest of the choir members and a musical band. The event concluded with the performance of the song “Viva la Música”, composed by Guillermo Albelo himself.

It was a remarkable musical and personal experience for all the young artists involved, as well as for the coordinators and teachers who took part in the project.