One More Time with Feeling: The 42nd International Barcelona Jazz Festival

One More Time with Feeling: The 42nd International Barcelona Jazz Festival
Barcelona will once again be the center of the Jazz world! The capital of Catalunya is hosting the 42nd International Barcelona Jazz Festival which will go on to the 2nd of December.

The concerts take place all around Barcelona, but the most impressive place by far is the Palau de la Musica, the fantastic Modernist monsterpiece which provides a far-out backdrop for any concert. Last year we caught Concha Buika, at the Palau and it was quite a show. You can check out "the black soul of Mallorca" again this year at the Palau backed up the Ivan Melon Lewis Quintet on December 1.

Or how about some good old-fashioned Ellington “swing, swing, swing” at the Palau with La Locomotora Negra + Barcelona Jazz Orquestra + San Andreu Jazz Band. Or you can have dinner and blues with the blues winners at the Gran Hotel Havana on December 2, the official grand close to this year’s festivities.
The festival also features lesser known musicians in smaller, more intimate, and less expensive venues. For example, Perico Sambeat-Joan Diaz and JD Allen Saxologies will be at the Luz de Gas and the Louis Scalavis Quintet will play the L’Auditori Sala 2.

This is the ideal time to combine your trip to Barcelona with the very best in contemporary jazz. We will be happy to help you with all arrangements at the Hotel Principal.

For a complete list of the concerts check out here.

Kevin Costner and Woody Allen at the Palau de la Música

The 11th Festival Mil.lenni (MillenniumFestival) will go on through April 20th at the Palau de la Música in Barcelona. The usual wide variety of styles and traditions will and their acknowledged masters will be on continual display. Saxophonist Maceo Parker will do his funk soul-jazz style which he has been evolving since his days as soloist with James Brown; Dulce Pontes will sing Portugues Fado; the mythical Joan Baez, “the conscience of a generation”, American folk; Benjamin Biolay, French cançon.

But the two singers who are creating the most excitement and curiosity are two super celebrities from the American movie world not exactly best known for their music. Superstar Kevin Costner will return to the stage on the 18th and 19th of this month with his Modern West Band. Woody Allen, who introduced many English speakers to Barcelona with his “Vicky, Cristina, Barcelona”, will play the clarinet with his New Orleans Jazz Band on March 28. The eccentric Allen famously played the clarinet with his band during the Oscar ceremonies.

But perhaps the best thing about the festival is the concert hall, the mythical Palau de la Música itself. Any concert given this architectural monster of creativity and imagination is worthwhile. Designed in the Catalan Modernist style by Lluis Domenech i Montaner during the Catalan renaissance, el Palao blends floral and organic curves with stained glass with the occasional statue, but always scrupulously caring for the acoustics and production of music. This place is a trip and all concerts here take on that extra dimension. And this world-famous masterpiece is just a 20 minute walk from the Hotel Principal.

Click here for a complete list of concerts see .

What to do in Barcelona? (1 of 4 parts)

Time Out has published a special report about Barcelona: 20 things to do in the city. We'll share this information with you in five posts, starting today.


1. Ramble down colourful La Rambla

One of the most famous boulevards in the world, La Rambla is worth a stroll down even if you only have one day in Barcelona. A gateway to rural Catalonia, the mile-long road bustles with tourists, artists, human statues, fortune-tellers, dancers and musicians. Vibrant flower stalls, a cultural and exhibition centre, the superb La Boqueria market, a Joan Miró mosaic, newspaper kiosks and cafés line the street. You may pay a fortune to sip a cola at a roadside café, but the people-watching opportunities will be worth the price.

2. Get up close to Gaudí's grand designs:

In Barcelona, you can gaze in wonder at Gaudí's fairytale architecture. The Sagrada Familia is breathtaking and grotesque by turns. At first glance, it seems as though a careless giant has dripped melting wax over a Gothic cathedral, but a closer look reveals that the protuberances create a stone tapestry of Christ's life. Take the lift to the top for a breathtaking view. Park Güell is a magical place that emulates an English garden city. After seeing the gatehouses, based on designs for the opera Hansel and Gretel, you can walk up a splendid staircase, past a mosaic dragon to what once was a marketplace. Outside, climb to the heights of the park to gaze down at the magnificent panorama.

3. Hit a high note in concert:

Barcelona has its fair share of live music venues, such as Razzmatazz and

Bikini. But there are also marvellous concert halls. The Gran Teatre del Liceu is a spl endid p lace, decorated by gold leaf, plush red carpets and ornate carvings. L'Auditori is a sleek 2,400-seater venue that covers not only classical but also jazz and world music. The Palau de la Música Catalana is celebrated for its Modernista architecture, and sheer volume of musical activity. There are a cluster of music events, like the Festival Internacional de Jazz de Barcelona.

4. Picture the city of Picasso's youth:

Picasso remembered Barcelona as beautiful and bright, a city where he spent his early years. Follow in the footsteps of the artistic genius by visiting the landmarks that shaped his youth. Stroll along the Calle Reina Christina and then cross over to 3 Carrer de la Mercè to see where his family lived, though the building was later destroyed. For a break, stop by the Els Quatre Gats, a café frequented by Catalonia's fin-de-siècle avant-garde. Then, head straight to the Museu Picasso , a gallery that records Picasso's formative years.

5. Pick up a platter at a pintxo bar:

Picking on pintxos, platters of bite-sized food served on bread (a Basque version of tapas), is a popular culinary trend in Barcelona. Tradition calls for you to pick at the food with toothpicks, and at the end of the night you will be charged for the number of toothpicks that you have used. The Old Town Basque house Euskal Etxea invites you to savour dainty little croissants filled with jamón serano, chicken tempura with saffron mayonnaise, melted provolone with mango and ham, or a mini-brochette of pork and peppers.

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Have you been in Barcelona? What would be your "top 5" of things to do/see here?

The International Barcelona Jazz Festival

Barcelona will be hosting the 41st International Barcelona Jazz Festival from October through 27th of November. The concerts will take place in and around Barcelona, but try to catch one in the Palau de la Musica, the fantastic Modernist music palace which provides a surreal backdrop for any concert.

This year the festival will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the release of Miles Davis' immortal “Kind of Blue” and many of the biggest international stars will be present.

This year's best-jazz-vocal Grammy winner Cassandra Wilson will play the Palau with her voluptuous, intense voice on 13 Nov; The Wayne Shorter Quartet led by legendary sax player Wayne Shorter are on their way to becoming almost as Miles himself and will perform on 28 Oct; Bassist Marcus Miller, the great trumpeter´s right-hand man for nine years, will provide a direct at the Palau on 11 Nov; Concha Buika, “the black soul of Mallorca”, will introduce songs from her new CD a tribute to the legendary Chavela Vargas on 5 Nov. And the list goes on and on: Brad Mehldau trio, Chick Corea and Gary Burton, and the great American Gospel group The Blind Boys of Alabama.

This is the ideal time to combine your trip to Barcelona with the very best in contemporary jazz. We will be happy to help you with all arrangements at the Hotel Principal.

For a complete list of the concerts check out here.

The sound of jazz

Like jazz? Forget New Orleans, come to Barcelona. This month the city will celebrate the 40 Voll-Damm Barcelona Jazz Festival.

There will be 41 days with the best european jazz groups and soloists like Porgy and Bess, the Herbie Hancock quintet, Marc Copland, the Nicholas Payton quintet, the Ingrid Jensen quartet, the Matthew Herbert big band, Brad Mehldau - the Joshua Redman duet, and many others.

There will be venues for all tastes: beautiful and fun bars like the Harlem Jazz Club or the Zac Jazz Club; large halls like the Paulau de la Musica Catalana or L'Auditori; theatres like Teatre Zorrilla; open spaces like Parc Central del Poblenou.

Night, day, family outings, jazz is for everybody, just like Barcelona.