It is not easy to launch a new festival on the crowded musical billboard of the Catalan summer, especially concentrated on the Girona coast. Even less so if it is located south of Barcelona and, when it has only had three editions, a pandemic arrives. After the obligatory stop in 2020 and a reduced edition in 2021, the Jardins Terramar Festival is managing to overcome setbacks. The organizers were clear that last year they had to put something together, even if it was smaller and with restrictions, and prevent the public from forgetting about them. With a capacity limited to 50% and perimeter confinements, they managed to sell 80% of the tickets.
This year, if all goes as planned, they will exceed 80% capacity, reaching figures similar to those of 2019, the last edition before the arrival of covid. With capacity for 2,100 people each night, the fifth edition has programmed 14 concerts, putting some 30,000 tickets on sale.
Jardins Terramar's commitment is to a "very eclectic" program, emphasizes its director, Joan Ramon Rodríguez. From the children's group El Pot Petit, through the pop of Joan Dausà, the singer-songwriter music of Rozalén and the catchy tunes of Álvaro Soler, to the anthems of the Dúo Dinámico. The festival, sponsored by Estrella Damm and with the collaboration of Banco Sabadell, began on Thursday, July 28, and will run until Saturday, August 13.
Without a doubt, the great star of the fifth edition of the festival has been Joan Manuel Serrat, immersed in his farewell tour, with a concert last Friday, July 29, in which he managed to sell out. Rodríguez does not expect him to be the only one and points out that Rosario (Thursday, August 4), Vanesa Martín (Friday, August 5), the tribute band God Save The Queen (Thursday, August 11) and Hombres G (Friday, August 12) are close to running out of tickets. Álvaro Soler's concert last Sunday, July 31, came very close to achieving it. Stay Homas (Saturday, August 6), the cover band bROTHERS iN bAND with the best of Dire Straits (Sunday, August 7) and Nil Moliner (Monday, August 8) complete the program.
This season also brings a surprise: the monologue by Carles Sans, Per fi sol!, in which he recounts anecdotes from the theater company he has been a part of for over 40 years, Tricicle. The play was seen at the end of last year in Barcelona, but only for a month, and Jardins Terramar wanted to bring it back, considering the "special relationship" of the comedians with Sitges. It didn't matter that Sans is on vacation in Ibiza and has to return next Saturday, August 13, to perform and close the festival. "It's a turning point for us," adds Rodríguez, who plans to continue betting on theater in the coming years.
All Jardins Terramar concerts are preceded by performances by emerging groups from Sitges, with the aim that one day they will be the headliners. "So far, none have repeated," emphasizes the festival director, highlighting the large number and variety of artists in the municipality. In this fifth edition, Núria Garcia, Roka Curtiada, Atomik Funk, Trudi Morillas, Anna Vila & Iñigo Zubiri, and Sol Queral will perform at the festival. Their performances are complemented by the gastronomic offerings of Cal Blay.
With sea views
The festival has also served to revitalize a somewhat forgotten area of Sitges, the Terramar gardens. They are located at the end of the promenade, heading towards Vilanova i la Geltrú, just on the opposite side of the Church of Sant Bartomeu i Santa Tecla, which ends up being the epicenter of the seafront routes. The Sitges City Council decided to give a new opportunity to these noucentista gardens, recovering them and filling them with activity, with the arrival of the Me Sitges Terramar hotel and the Jardins Terramar concerts. Rodríguez's project came after many years in the music world, having previously been director of the Cap Roig festival and promoter of the Operación Triunfo concerts.
"We are in Sitges, in an open-air auditorium in the middle of centenary gardens and 100 meters from the sea. We have all the ingredients to be able to say that we propose a different festival and a real experience," he defends. Once the machine is up and running, Rodríguez sets himself the goal of highlighting all the musical proposals that take place in "the southern area of Barcelona," knowing that the focus is on those in the north, being very aware of this after his years in Cap Roig.