Sonora 2026 Celebrates 19 Years with Record Prizes, Womex Partnership

The Sonora 2026 competition, which supports new artists from the Canary Islands, is celebrating its 19th anniversary. This year, it's offering bigger cash prizes for album production or promotional activities. It also provides "Sonora Passports," which let artists perform at festivals across the islands. A new feature for this edition is an international collaboration with Womex 2026.

Sonora 2026 is currently accepting music project submissions from any band or artist living in the Canary Islands. The deadline to apply is February 28. The final competition will again be held on April 17 and 18 at the Alfredo Kraus Auditorium in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. Later in the year, the Sonora Festival will take place from October 16 to 18 in Santa Ana square, featuring acts like M-Clan, and new additions such as Sonora en Familia and Laboratorio Sonora.

One of the main new features is the increase in prize money. The Sonora Gold award is worth €6,000 for album production or promotion, plus a performance at the festival. The Sonora Silver award provides a €3,000 grant to help artists and bands develop their work and gain recognition. The third prize, Sonora Bronze, offers €1,500 to fund an album or a promotional project.

These and other details were announced at a meeting attended by Josué Iñíguez, the Culture Councillor for Las Palmas de Gran Canaria; Guacimara Medina, the Culture Councillor for the Gran Canaria Island Council; José Luis Pérez Pont, the artistic director for Las Palmas de Gran Canaria's bid for European Capital of Culture; Juan Salán, director of Sonora; Santi Gutiérrez, executive producer of Sonora; and directors from several major Canary Islands festivals.

To register, visit www.sonora2026.com.