Canceled, delayed, no info: Catalonia’s summer music festivals

As the weather begins to warm, this is the time of year that many people’s minds turn to summer plans, and music festivals always play a big part in Catalonia. 

Some of Europe’s premier music festivals take place on Catalan shores, including Primavera Sound, Sónar, and Cruïlla, while the country boasts many other more humble gatherings that hold their unique place in the cultural calendar. 

Naturally, the coronavirus crisis which has gripped the continent is going to have a huge impact on these plans, with many festivals either canceled or postponed. 

The Spanish minister for culture, José Manuel Rodriguez Uribes, has said that it will be necessary to "wait" to decide whether summer music festivals can be held and that "health criteria" and the "principle of prudence" will be followed in making any decision. 

Elsewhere, the president of the Music Festivals Association, Patricia Gabeiras, told the Catalan News Agency that she believes very few festivals will go ahead this summer. 

"What's for sure is that there will be some things, we don’t know which, that cannot be done," she explained.

"Between May and June, very few, maybe none will go be able to go ahead, but we don't know. If these festivals need to be changed into something else, cancelled or suspended, then these decisions should be taken within a solid framework."

Here’s the latest updates on the state of play for the Catalan festivals as of June 4, 2020. 

Primavera Sound

In March, Primavera Sound joined a spate of European festivals in signing a pledge to carry on in the face of the pandemic. Four days later, Primavera Sound, which attracted over 220,000 fans in 2019, announced that they would be postponing their dates to late August. And on May 11, organizers finally confirmed that the 2020 edition would be canceled altogether. 

This year's edition was meant to be the biggest in the history of the festival, as the group celebrated 20 years, as well as an expansion to Los Angeles, California.

Sónar 

Sónar is arguably the second biggest festival in Catalonia, behind Primavera Sound, and serves a more techno, electronic, and dance offering. 

On May 8, organizers announced that this year's edition would not be taking place in June, but a special edition of the Sónar+D congress would take place in September. 

Cruïlla

On May 15, Cruïlla officially announced that their full programme was impossible to hold, effectively cancelling the festival.

However, in the same announcement, they revealed plans to hold hundreds of smaller events with limited capacity in some of the most "iconic" places of Barcelona, including the Recinte Modernista de Sant Pau, Catalonia's National Theatre gardens, and Poble Espanyol. 

No lineup has been announced, but they promise a program of "concerts of all styles," including street performances, monologues, circus acts, and more. 

Any tickets for the 2020 festival will be valid for the 2021 edition, they also add.

Vida Festival 

Vida Festival, held in Vilanova i la Geltrú each summer, announced on June 4 that its 2020 edition is canceled. 

Its organizers said that "80%" of its lineup for this year will take part in the 2021 edition, set for July 1-3, next year. 

All the tickets bought for the 2020 edition will be valid for next year's. 

During the lockdown, the festival donated €24,000 to health services working in the fight against Covid-19, and released videos of past performances so fans could enjoy the festival during confinement at home. 

Festival Cap Roig 

Set in the picturesque botanical gardens of Cap Roig on the Costa Brava, the Festival Cap Roig isn’t a concentration of concerts squeezed into a particular day or number of days, but rather one concert per night on most evenings between July and August. This year's edition, however, has become yet another of the many cultural events affected by the public health crisis. 

Some of the concerts have been postponed until next year, especially those of Catalan and Spanish acts like Manel, Estopa, or David Bisbal. Other performers like The Lumineers, Yann Tiersen, or Gilberto Gil have been canceled altogether.

Festival Jardins de Pedralbes

The Festival Jardins de Pedralbes has a similar structure to Cap Roig, in that it is a selection of single concerts across different nights. 

Organizers announced on May 6 that the 2020 festival in Barcelona would not be going ahead, with some of the concerts to be rearranged for next year.

Festival Castell de Peralada

The Peralada Castle festival has been canceled for 2020, with organizers hoping to return in 2021. Peralada was expected to welcome massive names such as Jonas Kaufmann, Sondra Radvanovsky, Carlos Alvarez, among many others.

Festival Porta Ferrada

Also located on the Costa Brava, Porta Ferrada in Sant Feliu de Guíxols is another music festival in the open air, spread over several nights, and as of yet seems to still be going ahead this summer.

This year's edition will be held in honor of the recently deceased and much-loved musician Pau Donés. Donés, who was the lead singer of rock band Jarabe de Palo, had played at the festival in the past and had ties to the town.