The historical Real Conservatorio de Música María Cristina in Málaga

The Real Conservatorio de Música María Cristiana is a public building categorized as a Bien de Interés Cultural located in Málaga. It sits between Calle Marqués de Valdecañas and Plaza de San Francisco in the La Goleta neighborhood of the District Centro, covering an area of more than 2322 m². After the conservatory moved to the El Ejido area, the building was left abandoned and in ruins until it was acquired in 1975 by Caja de Ahorros de Ronda (now Unicaja) to be restored and opened to the public in 2009 as a music hall.

Two notable rooms in the building include the Salón de los Espejos and the Salón Mudéjar. The Salón Mudéjar features a wooden ceiling and mural paintings by 19th-century artists such as Joaquín Martínez De La Vega, José Denis Belgrano, and José Nogales. The Salón de los Espejos, which occupies the space of the former convent church choir, features pseudorococo mirrors and floral paintings by José Nogales Sevilla following an earthquake in 1884. The ceiling of this room features a large oil painting by Javier Cappa.

The building originally housed a monastery of the Franciscan order of San Luis el Real, founded in 1489. Following its desamortización in 1836, the property underwent secularization and parceling. In 1871, the Liceo, a cultural society with significant influence on the political and cultural life of the society, moved into the building. After the Liceo was discontinued, the Conservatory of Music moved in, taking the name Real Conservatorio de Música «María Cristina».

The Liceo's occupancy added significant decorative elements, including the Mudéjar room, the room of mirrors, and the concert room. The decoration follows an eclectic and academicist style by painters such as José Denis Belgrano, Joaquín Martínez de la Vega, and José Nogales Sevilla. In 1971, a new building was constructed in Plaza El Ejido for the Conservatory of Music, after which the current building was occupied by the religious community of Hermanas Nazarenas until 1975.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons