Live Music
Barcelona hosts a wide range of live music events throughout the year, and, though many venues either close or drastically reduce their programmes during the summer, this is the time that the city's festivals come into their own. The Generalitat 's summer Grec season features various musical and theatrical events. At the end of September things liven up further with the Festa de la Merce , an excuse for four days of world, jazz, classical and rock music concerts all over the city. There is a whole series of annual festivals dedicated specifically to music, the most important of which are April's Tradicionarius , a festival of folk music, the Festival de Jazz Ciutat Vella, European jazz festival and SONAR , a cutting-edge electronic music festival, all held in June. There's also the annual jazz festival in October/November, which highlights visiting bands in the clubs and hosts street concerts and events. All year round, the permanent experimental music festival, LEM ( ), sponsors free or cheap concerts featuring the Gracia collective and international guests. To keep up with concerts and events and to buy tickets , there are a number of options. You might check the venues we've listed and keep an eye out for posters advertising concerts, but it's better to actively research, as the best events sell out early. There are concert listings in El Pais newspaper, and in a free monthly guide published by Amics de la Musica, which is available at the tourist information office, as well as in Metropolitan, the monthly free English-language listings magazine. The weekly Guia del Ocio is the best source for what's on day by day - look in its "Agenda musical" section. You can pick up a schedule of Ajuntament -sponsored productions, performances and exhibitions, including the Grec season events from the Centre d'Informacio (Palau de la Virreina, Rambla Sant Josep 99) which also sells tickets for these events The booth on the corner of c/Aribau and the Gran Via, close to Placa Universitat (Mon-Sat 10.30am-1.30pm & 4-7.30pm) sells tickets for major rock and pop concerts and for most theatre productions; record shops also carry concert tickets; or go straight to the relevant venue's box office. For more popular rock and contemporary music, check the listings outside record shops in c/Tallers (such as Revolver), which also act as ticket agents (cash only) - the better shows will sell out weeks in advance. Otherwise tickets can be bought at the door (with a small surcharge) or from scalpers (with a big surcharge). The bank, La Caixa, has ticket-dispensing Servicaixa machines next to many of their ATMs (check for listings), which dispense theatrical, concert and even cinema tickets, though foreign credit cards don't always work - annoying when the Servicaixa is the sole ticket outlet for the event.
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