The Palau and l'Auditori present more than 700 events for the new season

We already know what the city will sound like next season! The Palau de la Música and l'Auditori de Barcelona have brought out the heavy artillery for the 2026-27 season. On one hand, the Palau recovers the legacy of Pau Casals to remind us that music can be a refuge of peace. On the other, l'Auditori begins a new stage with Victor Medem, the new director who has an almost revolutionary goal: that we remember what "listening" means in a world that never stops making noise.

Between the two venues, they add up to more than 700 musical events on the calendar. An imposing figure that mixes great international conductors with a strong commitment to local heritage and talent. A high-intensity season in which the sound of the Barcelona of the future is defined through this coexistence between the temple and the laboratory.

L'Auditori begins a new era with Victor Medem

L'Auditori and the Museu de la Música have begun a new stage. Victor Medem debuts as director and has presented a season with the aim of projecting L'Auditori as a total platform. And, to achieve this, the OBC, the Municipal Band, and contemporary creation will be the DNA of the same institution.

"Coming to a concert is a declaration of principles," Medem stated. For this reason, L'Auditori invites the public to inhabit music, to share the physical space, and to recover the capacity for concentration through nearly 500 concerts, 4 festivals, and 10 cycles.

The OBC of Ludovic Morlot

The Orquestra Simfònica de Barcelona i Nacional de Catalunya (OBC) faces its fifth season under the direction of Ludovic Morlot. This tandem will offer a program that will cover the great stories of history, with a special focus on the colossi of symphonism: Beethoven's Seventh to inaugurate the season, followed by Mahler (with the Second and Ninth) and Shostakovich.

But the OBC also maintains a firm commitment to the present. Therefore, it will offer 13 premieres with voices such as Sofia Gubaidúlina or the Catalans Arnau Brichs and Blai Soler. On the podium, conductors of the stature of David Afkham or Vasily Petrenko will accompany world-renowned soloists such as Jan Lisiecki or Frank Peter Zimmermann.

In parallel, the Orquestra Simfònica de Barcelona will continue with its ambitious project of recording Ravel's complete works, which will culminate in March 2027.

The global stars we will see at L'Auditori

The visit of the New York Philharmonic with Gustavo Dudamel, on its first tour outside the United States, is undoubtedly the great event of the year. This milestone is completed with the Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam conducted by the young prodigy Klaus Mäkelä and the Vienna Symphony with Petr Popelka.

In the field of early music, Jordi Savall continues to lead the project "The original sound," which brings the essence of Brahms and Beethoven to the main hall. At the same time, the Llums d'Antiga festival consolidates itself as a space entirely featuring local performers, to champion local talent.

Chamber music, at the center of the season

One of the great novelties of this season is the prominence gained by chamber music. It will feature more than thirty concerts and will have its peak moment with the Biennial of Quartets, which will coincide with the 30th anniversary of the Casals Quartet. The piano will also have a stellar role with the debuts in Barcelona of phenomena such as Yunchan Lim or Bruce Liu, who will share the stage with living legends such as Elisabeth Leonskaja.

Jazz and pop at L'Auditori

L'Auditori demonstrates that it is an institution also attentive to today's sounds. In this sense, we will be able to enjoy the Sessions (Jazz) and Sit Back (Contemporary Pop) cycles, which will bring names such as Marco Mezquida, Irene Reig, Marina Herlop, or The Notwist.

In addition, the new resident artists program is born to promote emerging talent with names such as soprano Elionor Martínez or composer Ariadna Alsina.

The new season of the Palau de la Música bets on peace through beauty

The Palau de la Música Catalana has presented its own humanist manifesto through music. It has announced the new shows for the 2026/27 season, whose common thread is peace. But it does not approach peace passively, but invites us to build the future through listening and respect among peoples.

In the hall we will be able to hear compositions by Pau Casals, Beethoven, and Bach that will remind us that culture is the only universal language capable of rebuilding bridges. In this way, the Palau reaffirms its seal of excellence without losing sight of its support for local talent.

The triptych of freedom: Casals, Beethoven, and the memory of Bach

The season pays a great tribute to Pau Casals on the 150th anniversary of his birth. The maestro from El Vendrell turned the cello into a tool against totalitarianism and, this year, he will once again be present in eight essential events. The inaugural concert on September 28 will feature Pablo Ferrández, the Casals Quartet and the Orfeó Català, who will join to perform the fourth movement of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony and Casals' O vos omnes.

It will also be the year in which we celebrate the bicentennial of Ludwig van Beethoven's death, so the Palau joins the great European celebration with a Complete Symphonies series promoted together with BCN Clàssics: the Staatskapelle Dresden and Daniele Gatti will offer the complete symphonic cycle.

And to close this triangle of classical music totems, Johann Sebastian Bach will star in the 300th anniversary of the St. Matthew Passion, with three readings signed by Simon Rattle, Václav Luks and Teodor Currentzis.

Major long-term projects

This season, the Palau shies away from immediacy and opts for four long-term projects. The goal? To delve as deeply as possible into the work.

The projects are as follows:

• The Cor Jove de l'Orfeó Català and Vespres d'Arnadí set out on Henry Purcell's trilogy, with the tragic love of Dido and Aeneas.
• The Gerhard Quartet begins the complete string quartets of Shostakovich, a Russian composer. A musical portrait of oppression and resilience.
• Christian Blackshaw will offer the complete piano sonatas of Mozart in a journey that avoids chronology to seek pure emotion.
• Juan de la Rubia will transfer the soul of Bach to the organ of Sant Felip Neri in a monumental project of 21 concerts.

The voice as a pillar

The Palau choirs continue to be the heartbeat of the institution. This year, guest composer Eric Whitacre will conduct the house ensembles to present works such as Eternity in an Hour. But if there is one event that projects the Palau to the world, it is the international tour of the Orfeó Català and the Cor de Noies with maestro Gustavo Dudamel. The choirs will accompany the New York Philharmonic to prestigious venues such as the Philharmonie de Paris or the Musikverein in Vienna.

At the Palau de la Música, the Cor Jove will blow out 40 candles with a new version of Carmina Burana that will bring together former singers with the voice of Serena Sáenz.

"Music, that wonderful language understood by all, must contribute to communion and agreement among men," (Pau Casals).