Gladiator in Concert in Tenerife

My return to a story that moved me eleven years ago.

Eleven Years Later…

It’s been eleven years since I first watched “Gladiator” with a live orchestra and choir. However I still remember the chills. That unforgettable experience took place during the 7th Kraków Film Music Festival, and I even wrote about it back then.
Now, in 2025, I finally made one of my long-held dreams come true. I attended the Film Music Festival Fimucité in Tenerife. I had been invited to it many times before, but always found a thousand excuses not to go. Not this time.

A Venue Like No Other

On July 12th, I arrived at a truly extraordinary venue. I’ve seen many concert halls in my life, but none quite as breathtaking as the Auditorio de Tenerife in Santa Cruz. This was the setting for two unforgettable performances of Gladiator. It was with a live orchestra and choir during the festival’s 19th edition.

Emotions, Unfiltered

This time, my “review” will be a little different. I’d like to start with a raw note. I jotted it down right after the concert – while the emotions were still fresh and overflowing. Then I move on to a “more grounded” reflection.

“So many emotions! I honestly can’t find the words to describe what I felt – my soul was bursting with excitement. Lisa Gerrard was phenomenal! Her deep tones, the highs, the ornamentation, and those distinctly Eastern inflections in her vocal style… and how she modulated everything with micro-movements of her facial muscles. I was lucky enough to sit close – what a gift! The emotion in her voice went straight through my body and heart, even deeper – I felt it in my soul.
The choir (Tenerife Film Choir) – especially the male voices – gave me goosebumps all over. But the highlight (no surprise here) was Diego Navarro. For the first time, I saw him more from the side – and it was pure magic. His expression, his face, the way each piece was conducted differently. Those micro-movements again, amplifying the orchestra’s energy even further. Sorry, not sorry – I missed most of the fight scenes in the movie because I couldn’t take my eyes off Diego and what he was doing on the podium. There’s just no one like him!”

More Than Just Music

Even now, the memory gives me goosebumps and fills my heart with warmth. For someone as sensitive to sound as I am, events like this are a true feast for the senses – and for the soul.

From a more practical perspective, I’m always in awe of the musicians who perform at such concerts. How is it possible to Sit and play for nearly three hours with almost no breaks? Even if they had a moment to breathe, they had to stay constantly alert for their next piece. And the conductor? Keeping track of every entrance, perfectly on time, with no room for error or second takes. That’s a true art form!
And let’s not forget the musical madness crafted by Hans Zimmer and Lisa Gerrard. The constant shifting of tempos and meters, sometimes several changes within a single piece. Of course it couldn’t be conventional – that’s exactly what makes Zimmer’s compositions so unique. Honestly, I don’t know how the conductor, orchestra, choir, and soloists manage to pull it all off. I’m full of admiration.

When Sound Becomes Feeling

But let’s come back to the emotions. That’s what resonates with me most deeply, and that’s what I want to focus on. The emotions were so strong, they brought me to tears during the concert. So powerful, I felt them spreading through my whole body, my heart, and deep into my soul.

Of course, some pieces already carry tremendous emotional weight – “Now We Are Free” being a prime example. But there are also artists who can reach your most delicate inner strings. They touch something so profound in you that you’re left speechless and stunned.
And it’s not just about talent or skill, although that obviously plays a part. It’s about feeling the music. It’s about the emotion the artist puts into their performance.

In those moments, words aren’t necessary. They can be completely incomprehensible – and yet, magic happens.

A Deep Energetic Transmission

I believe it takes an immense level of sensitivity to bring an audience into a kind of trance. To truly transmit music’s emotional charge, you have to feel it. You have to understand the energy it carries – in order to give it to others in a way they can feel physically.

For me – someone attuned not only to subtle energies around us but also within us – this concert was exactly about that. The artists shared their beautiful, deeply harmonized energy with us. Whether it was singing, playing, or “just” conducting. It was far more than just music. It was a profound emotional and energetic transmission.
Because if the artist doesn’t feel it, there’s no way the audience can.

Two Artists, One Soul-Stirring Experience

That’s why this concert was so extraordinary. Of course, it’s a collective success, every single musician on stage deserves praise. However I must return to the two figures whose energy filled the entire Auditorio de Tenerife.

Lisa Gerrard’s voice – not sung in any existing language – still touched something deep within us all. Her power came not just from technique, but from her raw emotion and authenticity. Watching her, I saw someone living every note, shaping each sound with feeling and depth. Her sensitivity and devotion to the music were palpable. It’s incredible how one person can move the hearts of hundreds.

And Diego Navarro’s expressiveness – something I’ve written about many times before – is simply unmatched. I literally stopped watching the movie just to watch him conduct. On that stage, Diego becomes a transmitter for the music and its emotions. Watching him, you feel every note even more intensely. His face, his gestures, even the tiniest movements, speak louder than the music itself.
I believe even someone who’s deaf could look at him and understand the full spectrum of emotion in a piece. If I didn’t know what it was like to feel music from the heart, I wouldn’t understand how he does it.
But it’s not just about feeling. It’s about having the courage to be seen in your vulnerability, to share your most sensitive self. That’s where true power lies.
You have to dare to look into your own soul if you want to truly move others.

Strength and honor!

Maravilloso!