Casa Seat. 5:55 p.m. Roberto Tierz, co-founder of Barcelona's Sidecar venue, arrives with British punctuality at the auditorium where we had convened him. T. Five minutes later, also punctual for the appointment, Alberto Guijarro, co-director of the Primavera Sound Festival and current director of Sala Apolo in Barcelona, appears through the door. It's a pleasure to be able to receive guests with a certain margin of time to discuss the play before getting into action. They come eager to talk, eager to listen, and eager to share their professional and, I would say, also life experience.
The backbone of the conversation awaiting us stems from a question: how do musical events and live music venues currently held in the Catalan capital boost the Barcelona brand? But after that conversation of just over 45 minutes, I come to the conclusion that perhaps the question needs to be reformulated. It would be more or less like this: How and in what way does the Barcelona brand benefit from the good positioning given to it by renowned festivals and live music venues that promote the talent we have at home? And, ladies and gentlemen, what comes first: the egg or the chicken? It is evident that this is a blatant win-win that must be much more encouraged and promoted by public institutions. Not doing so will not only mean losing a lot of money, but it will also blur what we are and what represents us.
I was very surprised that both Alberto Guijarro and Roberto Tierz stated very emphatically that live music is the younger sibling of the arts in Barcelona. And that, if a music venue asks for help from the administration, the request is, in no case, among its priorities. "It seems that music is less culture, and, therefore, we receive less attention and less public aid," they said.
Alberto Guijarro argued that they are, above all, programmers. Thinkers in terms of music, creators of concepts and artistic proposals that respond to a way of understanding music, art, and life. That live music has an incalculable value, regardless of the age group, social class, and purchasing power of the listener. Music transcends. And that this critical spirit responds to a clear personal vocation that has been shaped over the years by working hard.
Roberto Tierz expressed himself along the same lines. He doesn't feel like a manager. In his 40 years directing Sala Sidecar, he has learned to assume the role of an entrepreneur. But above all, he likes to let himself be guided by artistic intuition when selecting and promoting groups. Although this entails, he said, a risk and an additional economic cost. The key to Sidecar's success has been to be faithful to its origins, maintaining a genuine stamp by offering music for an eminently local audience that is hard to attract, because it is invaded by the "sangria and paella" tourist that now coexists in Plaza Real.
It is undeniable, they acknowledge, that there is a "festival-goer" public. Those who visit us only during the summer season, but who end up leaving a lot of money in the city. And this public must be maintained without forgetting "our own," those from home, those who are here all year round. Because these are the ones who go to the city's venues and create club culture.
Alberto Guijarro dropped us the economic figures for the latest edition of "our" Primavera Sound. I say "our," because despite the fact that it will be replicated for the first time also in Madrid, the festival is still "ours." And it is clear that no one is interested in letting a pearl like this escape. It is a lever that serves as an economic engine, because it is a clearly transversal festival. It is economy, it is culture, it is gastronomy, it is mobility and it is color. How much we need it.
After this talk, I wonder what will become of music and all these iconic spaces that make up the unique and enriching DNA of our city, if they are not pampered or cared for. What will become of them when they cannot fight against fierce competition, rising prices due to inflation, terrible bureaucracy in managing permits, or coexistence problems with neighbors and the Police!
If it is really true that, as it seems, "here we all win," we must all win. And we have to believe it. Let's be proud. Without forgetting those who have paved the way for us. Those who, for decades, have acted as Spartans. Without their judgment or their perseverance, Barcelona would not have this magnetic identity that makes it explosive as a Mediterranean city. The Barcelona brand is also MUSIC, in capital letters. And music must be valued and given the place it deserves.
Here are the links to recover the conversation on Spotify or Youtube.