Summer Program

The Barcelona Festival of Song® is a unique Summer Program for classical singers and accompanists created in 2005 for the purpose of promoting the Latin American & Spanish Vocal Repertoire, a rich and wonderful repertory gaining interest and prominence after decades of dormancy and generating demand for live performances and recordings.

With this program we are filling a hole in the training of the classical singer, that until today continues being focused mainly in the Centro European music tradition.

The centerpiece of the Barcelona Festival of Song® is a Course focused on the history and interpretation of the Latin American and Spanish Vocal Repertoire, we focus in the study of the vocal repertoire in Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese and Catalan; however, the Festival also presents public concerts with well-known singers, pianist and guitarist and the participants in the course. All performances are open to the public and take place in venues located in beautiful Barcelona, Spain.

Among the faculty are some of the most important and internationally renowned scholars, researchers, teachers, and performers of the Latin American and Spanish Art Song genre. The Festival provides participants with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to gather with performers from around the world to learn about and practice interpreting this important repertoire.

Besides receiving several hours of classes, all participants have the opportunity to perform at the two final concerts in Barcelona.  Pianists and guitarists have the opportunity to work with singers and to get to know this beautiful repertory.

In the interest of expanding the repertoire, every year the Festival commissions a renowned Ibero-American composer to compose a new cycle of songs that is premiered during the festival.

One of our unique offerings is that each of the participants at the Festival has his/her own personalized development program, designed around his/her unique abilities, level of development and goals. The goal is to reinforce their strengths and to identify and overcome their weaknesses. For this reason there is no age limit.

Since its successful debut in 2005, the festival has received students and faculty members from important U.S. and European Universities. Participants of this program receive a total immersion course where they attend master classes, lectures, diction classes, body awareness sessions as well as perform in public concerts. Our program is designed for voice students, voice teachers, accompanist and musicologists. Every year, among our participants we receive university teachers who are interested in learning vocal literature, history and interpretation of this repertoire. We provide them with all the necesary information to be able in the future to guide their students about available resources, repertory, diction, etc.

Festival participants are exposed to important aspects of Ibero-American culture; learn Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, and Catalan diction; receive lectures about the development of the repertoire in each country, receive live coaching at master classes and private lessons; they also have the opportunity to explore the tourist-friendly city of Barcelona, learn about its history, and enjoy its beaches.

The Festival honors Colombian composer Jaime León (1921). It takes place at the Residencia d´Investigadors, Palau Moia, Auditori de Barcelona and Instituto de Estudios Norteamericanos and Universidad de Barcelona.  All places located at the gothic neighborhood of Barcelona and located at walking distance of the accommodation place.