The nativity scenes and markets are part of the Christmas plans in Barcelona but they are not the only classics of these dates. Concerts are also another must for this December, so while the city prepares for the Barcelona Festival de Nadal and Sons de Ciutat, other Christmas programs have already been confirmed, such as those of the Palau de la Música Catalana or L’Auditori.
So that you do not skip any, here are 11 Christmas concerts in Barcelona, some free and some of these concerts by candlelight, for those who want to add live music to these special dates.
Christmas concerts at the Paraninfo de la Universitat de Barcelona.
The Paraninfo of the UB is once again filled with music with two concerts that bring together the Orquestra Universitat de Barcelona, the Nou Cor de la UB and the Schola Cantorum. The program mixes very different pieces: Rimsky-Korsakov’s Christmas Eve Polish, a festival of American Christmas carols, the suite from The Polar Express and Saint-Saëns’Oratorio de Noël, among others.
Admission is free, but requires an invitation. Invitations will be available online at 8:00 a.m. on the previous Monday (maximum two per person), and it is also possible to pick up any of the free ones one hour before the concert at the Information Point of the Faculty of Mathematics.
📍Location: Auditorium of the Historic Building of the University of Barcelona (Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes, 585).
🗓️ Dates: December 10 and 11
🎟️ Tickets: Free
Christmas Concert at L’Auditori
The Christmas Concert at L’Auditori is one of those December classics: every year it fills the Pau Casals Hall and marks the ‘official’ beginning of the holidays for many music lovers. In this edition, the Banda Municipal de Barcelona joins soprano María Hinojosa and several choral groups, such as the Coro Madrigal.
The repertoire revolves around two works created by Catalan composers of reference: the Gloria by Albert Guinovart and the Nadales catalanes, op. 76 by Salvador Brotons, a contemporary look at those melodies we have all heard at one time or another.
📍Location: L’Auditori (Carrer de Lepant, 150).
🗓️ Dates: December 14th
🎟️ Tickets: From 12 to 16 €.
Handel’s ‘Messiah’ at Palau de la Música Catalana
Among the Christmas concerts in Barcelona, few have as much pull as the performance of Messiah at the Palau. Vespres d’Arnadí, the Cor de Cambra de Granollers and a specialized vocal quartet recover the work with period instruments and a reading faithful to the Baroque style. Although it is offered in a selected version, there is no lack of the most awaited moments —with the unmistakable Hallelujah at the head— in an event that the public has turned into a Christmas tradition year after year.
📍Location: Palau de la Música Catalana (Carrer Palau de la Música, 4-6)
🗓️ Dates: December 14
🎟️ Tickets: From 39 to 62 €.
Christmas carols and Christmas classics concert by candlelight
Candlelight’s Christmas concerts, the series of classical music performed by candlelight, return with three different programs for these dates.
The repertoire combines such recognizable soundtracks as The Grinch or Home Alone with classics such as The Fish in the River, Jingle Bells or We Wish You a Merry Christmas, performed by a string quartet or quintet. A proposal designed for those who prefer to enjoy music in a close format, with an atmosphere that enhances even more the Christmas spirit.
📍Location: Basilica of Santa Maria del Pi (Plaça del Pi, 7), Sacred Heart Church (Carrer de Casp, 27) and Seminari Conciliar de Barcelona (Carrer de la Diputació, 231).
🗓️ Dates: December 19 and 20
🎟️ Tickets: From 19,50 €.
Concert of Christmas classics at the Basilica de la Mercè
The Basilica de la Mercè is once again one of the venues to enjoy classical music in Barcelona during the holidays. The Barcelona Gala Orchestra offers a program that combines movements from Vivaldi’sThe Four Seasons with carols such as Adestes Fideles and pieces as recognizable as Oh Holy Night, performed with the support of a guest soprano.
📍Location: Basílica de la Mercè (Carrer de la Mercè, 1)
🗓️ Dates: December 21st and 28th
🎟️ Tickets: 41 €
La Nit de Nadal’ at the Palau de la Música Catalana
The Palau recovers one of the most beloved works of the Catalan repertoire: La Nit de Nadal, by Joan Lamote de Grignon. The performance brings together the Orquestra Simfònica del Vallès, choirs such as the Cor Infantil del Orfeó Català and the Orfeó Gracienc, and a duo of soloists that completes the symphonic-choral ensemble. An opportunity to meet again with a title closely linked to these dates.
📍Location: Palau de la Música Catalana (Carrer Palau de la Música, 4-6)
🗓️ Dates: December 21
🎟️ Tickets: From 25 to 58 €.
Canta Gran! at L’Auditori
Among the proposals of what to do at Christmas in Barcelona, Canta Gran! offers a choral concert at L’Auditori starring elderly people of the city. In this new edition, more than two hundred participants give life to the program, built from eleven pieces that function as an ode to urban life. Scenes of markets, encounters, misunderstandings or reconstructions that portray Barcelona in a Christmas key.
📍Location: L’Auditori (Carrer de Lepant, 150).
🗓️ Dates: December 22
🎟️ Tickets: Free (advance ticket option for 5 €)
Tchaikovsky’s ‘The Nutcracker’ at Palau de la Música Catalana
Among the concerts in Barcelona that are most associated with Christmas, The Nutcracker occupies a fixed place, and the Palau dedicates a special version to it by the Orquestra Simfònica del Vallès. The program brings together some of the most famous numbers of the suite – TheMarch, the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy or the Waltz of the Flowers –accompanied by the narration in Catalan by Luis Posada and illustrations in sand projected live.
📍Location: Palau de la Música Catalana (Carrer Palau de la Música, 4-6)
🗓️ Dates: December 25
🎟️ Tickets: From €28 to €55
St. Stephen’s Day Concert at the Palau de la Música Catalana
Started in 1913, the St. Stephen’s Concert is one of the longest-running Christmas traditions in Europe. Every December 26, the Palau brings together the entire choral family of the Orfeó Català – from children’s choirs to adults – together with the Palau Chamber Choir to perform the traditional program of Christmas carols and other works by Catalan composers. This year’s program has not yet been fully detailed, but it does include the premiere of a work by Anna Campmany and pieces by Josep Ollé.
📍Location: Palau de la Música Catalana (Carrer Palau de la Música, 4-6)
🗓️ Dates: December 26
🎟️ Tickets: From 28 to 78 €
Orfeó Català Christmas Concert in front of Barcelona Cathedral
The traditional Christmas concert of the Orfeó Català is held again in the Pla de la Seu, at the foot of the Cathedral of Barcelona, after premiering this location last year after many years in the Plaça del Rei. The choir will offer a repertoire of Catalan and international Christmas carols in a free event with limited capacity.
📍Location: Pla de la Seu
🗓️ Dates: December 29th
🎟️ Tickets: Free
New Year’s Concert at the Gran Teatre del Liceu
The Liceu inaugurates its own New Year’s Concert with a first edition that aims high. The occasion has a special weight: for the first time, the Liceu Orchestra will share the stage with the Orchestra of the Teatro La Fenice in Venice, under the baton of Riccardo Frizza. The program brings together fragments of opera and pieces typical of these dates in a format that wants to make its place in the Barcelona musical calendar.
📍Location: Gran Teatro del Liceu (La Rambla, 59)
🗓️ Dates: January 4
🎟️ Tickets: From 16 €