For the first time in the history of the National System of Music Education (SINEM), Costa Rica will have a symphony orchestra made up exclusively of women, a project promoted by the Ministry of Culture and Youth (MCJ) to mark International Women’s Day.
A historic project for SINEM
The new SINEM Women’s Symphony Orchestra is made up of 70 musicians, including students, teachers and guest artists, and becomes the first all-female symphony ensemble with an international character within this public institution.
According to the MCJ, this initiative marks a milestone in SINEM’s history and seeks to build an artistic space where women can develop their talent, leadership and professional projection in the symphonic field.
The Minister of Culture and Youth, Jorge Rodríguez Vives, has pointed out that the creation of this orchestra strengthens the institutional commitment to gender equality and genuine inclusion in training and artistic projection spaces.
Presenting the project around 8 March is not only symbolic, but also transformative, moving from discourse to action through concrete opportunities for girls, young women and teachers.
Free concerts at INCAE and the National Theatre
The orchestra will make its debut with two free concerts open to the public: on Friday 6 March at the INCAE Business School campus in La Garita, Alajuela, and on Saturday 7 March at the National Theatre of Costa Rica, both at 7 p.m.
These performances are part of the cultural agenda for International Women’s Day and aim to bring symphonic music closer to the general public, reinforcing the public and inclusive nature of the project.
The repertoire will be conducted by women with recognized experience in orchestral conducting and teaching, and will include works by historical and contemporary women composers such as Fanny Mendelssohn, Louise Farrenc, Valeria Valle, Nubia Jaime Donjuan, Katherine Bachmann, Rocío Sanz, Roxana Borges and the young Costa Rican composer and double bassist Mariana Cruz.
The piece “Verás la luz” (“You Will See the Light”), by Mariana Cruz, a former student of SINEM Alajuela, will be part of the program, highlighting the link between public music education and new generations of Costa Rican women creators.
A space for training, leadership and international cooperation
In addition to the concerts, the members of the orchestra will take part in an artistic–musical camp from 4 to 7 March on the INCAE campus, with rehearsals, masterclasses and specialized workshops.
This training space seeks to strengthen participants’ technical and artistic skills and, at the same time, to promote female leadership in symphonic music.
The ensemble brings together musicians from different regions of Costa Rica as well as guest instrumentalists from El Salvador, Brazil, Panama and Chile, giving it a regional and international scope.
The project is supported by Iberorquestas Juveniles, a cooperation program that promotes training and artistic projection opportunities for students and teachers in the symphonic field across the Ibero-American cultural space.
Gender equality and women in symphonic music
The creation of SINEM’s first all-female symphony orchestra is part of a broader effort to make women’s contributions to classical music more visible, both in performance and in composition and conducting.
The MCJ and SINEM emphasize that this type of initiative helps break down gender stereotypes on stage and creates positive role models for girls and young women interested in music.
International organizations and cooperation programs such as Iberorquestas Juveniles have underlined the importance of promoting women’s participation in orchestras, bands and ensembles, not only as performers but also in leadership and creative roles.
In Costa Rica, the consolidation of a symphony orchestra made up exclusively of women adds to recent public-sector initiatives, such as special concerts and women’s ensembles, that seek to highlight the talent of the country’s women musicians.
Invitation to the public
The Ministry of Culture and Youth and SINEM invite the public to attend the free concerts at INCAE and the National Theatre and to be part of this historic moment for Costa Rica’s public music scene.
Beyond its commemorative nature, the SINEM Women’s Symphony Orchestra is envisioned as a long-term space for training, regional exchange and the creation of new opportunities for women in symphonic music.
Official and reference sources
- Ministry of Culture and Youth of Costa Rica (MCJ) – Press room: “La música hace historia: SINEM presenta la primera Orquesta Sinfónica integrada por mujeres”.
- Ministry of Culture and Youth of Costa Rica – Social media posts about the SINEM Women’s Symphony Orchestra.
- National System of Music Education (SINEM) – Institutional information disseminated through the MCJ.
- Iberorquestas Juveniles – International cooperation program in the symphonic field.
- Teletica.com – “Hito en la música pública: Costa Rica estrena su primera orquesta sinfónica femenina”.
- Delfino.cr – “SINEM conformará orquesta sinfónica integrada exclusivamente por mujeres”.
- Prensa Latina – “Costa Rica presenta su primera orquesta sinfónica solo de mujeres”.
