Catalonia - Art and Culture 2018

Musical seasons

Caruso, ‘La Callas’, and even Duke Ellington stood on these stages. In Catalonia, music plays all year round.

© Joan Puig. gz

© imagen m.a.s.

The concert is about to begin, but there is still time to see the ‘linterna’ of L’Auditori (Barcelo- na) , an open courtyard with glass walls that are 30 metres tall, decorated with drawings by the artist Pablo Palazuelo. L’Auditori plays music from various genres, from symphonic music to world music , through cycles exploring the rela- tionship between music and technology. The Palau de la Música , the jewel of mod- ernista architecture and the work of the architect Lluís Domènech i Montaner, declared a UNES- CO World Heritage Site, is a temple for sym- phonic and choral music, although it also hosts performances in other genres ranging from jazz to ethnic music. Its stage has seen the likes of

Yehudi Menuhin, Mstislav Rostropovich, Barba- ra Hendricks, Montserrat Caballé, Duke Elling- ton, and Ella Fitzgerald. At 170 years old, the Gran Teatre del Liceu is probably one of the most beautiful and traditional opera houses in the world. Promoters like Promoconcert organise sea- sons of classical music and other genres at the Palau de la Música and the Liceu. Others like Ibercàmera promote classical music from the stages of the Palau de la Música and L’Auditori (Barcelona), as well as the Auditori de Girona . The Auditori de Girona hosts both classical con- certs and pop and musical theatre along with the Auditori Enric Granados in Lleida . MULTIPLE STYLES, MULTIPLE SPACES Musical performances in every genre from sym- phony to jazz are held throughout the country in prestigious multidisciplinary spaces like the Au- ditori de Tarragona , Granollers, Sant Cugat, or the Kursaal de Manresa stage art space, found- ed in 1927, which after being closed for some

time, reopened its doors after a renovation in 2007, or the Teatro Fortuny in Reus , built in 1882 and which captivates visitors with its great Baroque structural elegance. REBORN FROM THE ASHES Opened in 1847, the Gran Teatre del Liceu is Barcelona’s Opera house, which hosts the great voices of world opera (from Caruso to Maria Cal- las). Although it sometimes hosts concerts that

are not very classical, its main programme com- bines a repertoire of operas, little-known works, and contemporary compositions. The main hall was rebuilt after a fire in 1994. Its Mirror Room, however, remained miraculously intact and re- minds us how the epicentre of Barcelona bour- geoisie life appeared a century ago.

The teatre fortuny en reus, costa daurada.

the gran theatre del liceo, in barcelona.

1.100 concerts and operas take place every year in the Liceu, the Palau de la Música and L’Auditori

sculptures that represent muses strumming instruments on the stage of the Palau de la Música.

BARCELONA OVERTURE Congratulations! Lovers of classical music can enjoy a three-for-one offer with a single click. Just connect to the Barcelona Obertura Classic and Lyric website, a site created by the three main musical institutions in Barcelona: the Gran Teatre del Liceu, L’Auditori, and the Palau de la Música. They are deter- mined to promote the hometown of Josep Carreras, Jaume Aragall, Montserrat Caballé, Victòria dels Àngels, and Jordi Savall, among others, as a great centre of musical tourism. They offer a joint calendar that contains a selection of the most outstanding events of the season.

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For more information www.barcelonaobertura.com

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Art and Creativity

© imagen m.a.s.