ESTA Italia – 50 years of music, training, sharing

In 2026 ESTA Italy celebrates its 50th anniversary, an important milestone that we wish to share with the entire music community.

For this occasion we have organised a special day, which will be held Sunday 17 May 2026, 10:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., within EUFONICA - Salon of music and its professions, at Bologna Fiere.

It will be a time to meet and celebrate, but also to reflect on the path the association has taken and the future prospects of string instrument teaching. The day will be marked by concerts, workshops and speeches, with the participation of students, teachers and international guests.

Alongside musical moments - with youth orchestras and local educational projects - training activities dedicated to the relationship between movement and music, expressiveness, and the role of music education as a space for inclusion and growth will alternate.

The day will open at 10:30 with a concert by the orchestra STRINGSforever, composed of students from the music routes of the metropolitan city of Bologna and Castelfranco Emilia.

To follow, at 11:15, a workshop devoted to the expressive relationship between movement, harmony and phrasing through Dalcroze eurythmy will be held, led by Prof. Diane Daly, Head of Strings at the Royal Irish Academy of Music.

At 12:45 will be the turn of the workshop “Your sound, your voice”, focused on the Feldenkrais method applied to stringed instruments, with Prof. Raquel Castro (ESMUC, Barcelona).

After the lunch break of the 13:45, the afternoon will resume at 14:45 with a concert by the Youth Orchestra of Piacenza and the Mauro Catalano Orchestra of Bergamo.

At 15:15 This will be followed by a moment of reflection dedicated to musical practices and educational synergies in the Milan area, with the contribution of the Liceo Statale Tenca.

At 16:15 We will listen to the testimony of the cellist Valentina Irlando (Quartetto Sirmen), while at 16:30 the last workshop of the day will be held, led by prof. Markku Kaikkonen, dedicated to the theme of music education as a right, between participation, equality and inclusiveness.

The day will end at 17:30 with a symbolic toast to celebrate the next 50 years of ESTA Italy together.

We invite you to attend this special event, to share together an important moment in our history and to continue building the future of string instrument pedagogy.

ESTA Italy