Birthplace of Santiago Sabina

Santa Cruz de Tenerife · Category: Memory · Subcategory: Sites of memory · Year: 1893

In an old terraced house, now disappeared, located at number 14 Calle San Martín, on the corner with Calle de La Rosa, in the heart of the El Toscal neighbourhood, was born the distinguished musician and orchestra conductor Santiago Sabina Corona (Santa Cruz de Tenerife, 1893-1966).

His very early musical vocation was discovered by the Valencian teacher Ricardo Sendra, when he came to this small house to give piano lessons to his sisters. Santiago's natural talent was so great that at only 10 years old he was already giving piano concerts at the Sociedad Filarmónica Santa Cecilia. With these abilities he went on to study at the Madrid conservatory, later touring as conductor of lyrical companies in theatres across Spain, France, Italy, the Middle East and all of America, a career he abandoned in the mid-1930s to assume the deputy directorship of the Provincial Conservatory of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, where he also taught Harmony, Counterpoint, Fugue and Composition.

In 1935 he created the Canary Islands Chamber Orchestra, which he directed for 31 years, a group that later became the current Tenerife Symphony Orchestra.

Santiago Sabina was a composer of instrumental music ( Danza exótica ) and vocal music, of operas ( Nelva ) and zarzuelas ( La fuente de los álamos ) and a great orchestrator (he arranged with a magnificent symphonic version the Cantos Canarios by Power, a work originally composed for piano).

Maestro Sabina's work was also highly recognised for bringing to the stages of the Canary Islands, especially in post-war times when economic difficulties were commonplace, works by great names in national and international composition, but above all by musicians born or settled in the Canary Islands.

Santiago Sabina was a regular at the gatherings of the café El Águila on Calle del Norte (today Valentín Sanz) and in recognition of his merits the Santa Cruz City Council awarded him the Silver Medal of the City. Today he has a street in the Cruz del Señor neighbourhood and a bust in the hall of the Guimerá theatre.

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