What's On Barcelona: 19th - 21st June

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As for the weekend (it’s gonna be a hot one), here’s What’s On.

- Mark

⛅️ Weather

Fri ☀️ 28°/23° Sat ⛅ 30°/24° ☀️ Sun 31°/24°

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1. Helicopter To Drop 100,000 Poems Over Barcelona Cathedral

What’s On: 100,000 poems will be dropped from a helicopter above Barcelona Cathedral in a unique event marking freedom, memory and peace.

Created by Chilean arts collective Casagrande, the spectacle transforms the sky above Ciutat Vella into a cultural space, with thousands of poetry bookmarks floating down for visitors to collect. The poems have been written by 50 Catalan and 50 Chilean poets.

📅 When: Sat at 8:30pm
📍 Where: Around Barcelona Cathedral, Ciutat Vella

For more info see here →

2. Free Open Air Concert Outside Sagrada Família

What’s On: Barcelona’s 140 year old municipal band will perform a free open-air concert in front of the Sagrada Família on Friday evening.

The special performance has been created as a tribute to Antoni Gaudí, with music chosen specifically for the iconic setting.

📅 When: Friday at 8:30pm
📍 Where: Outside the Sagrada Família

For more info see here → 

Catalonia Beyond Fuet: Catalan Words You Need for Sant Joan [AD]

Sant Jordi isn’t the only saint with the power to get all of Catalonia out onto the streets. For Sant Joan, on June 24th, we do it all over again.

The real celebration is the night before, during the Revetlla de Sant Joan on June 23rd (next Tuesday) the shortest night of the year.

Catalan Vocab Survival Guide: Sant Joan Edition
🎆 Petards – Firecrackers. If it goes bang, it’s probably a petard.

🍰 Coca de Sant Joan – The essential Sant Joan dessert. Try making your own coca de Sant Joan with this recipe 👉 here 

🔥 Fogueres – Bonfires that light up towns and neighbourhoods to welcome summer.

 🎉 Revetlla – The party itself: long dinners, music, coca, petards and celebrations that stretch well into the night.

Sant Joan is Catalonia’s unofficial start of summer. Streets fill up, fogueres are lit, petards explode, and everyone shares a slice of coca. Bona Revetlla i bon Sant Joan!

For more resources on learning Catalan see here →

Content by the Department of Language Policy

3. Grec Festival: Theatre, Music & Dance Across Barcelona

What’s On: The Grec Festival is back for another summer, bringing over seven weeks of theatre, live music, dance and circus performances to venues across Barcelona.

The annual festival showcases both local and international artists, with events taking place throughout the city. Whether you're into contemporary theatre, live music or outdoor performances, there’s something for everyone.

📅 When: Now until Saturday 8th August.
📍 Where: Various venues across Barcelona

For more info see here →

4. Sónar: 100+ Electronic Music Acts Across Three Days

What’s On: Barcelona’s biggest electronic music festival is back this week, with more than 100 performances across three days and nights.

This year’s festival takes place at a single venue, Fira Gran Via, and features major names including The Prodigy, Charlotte de Witte, Amelie Lens, Skepta and Kelis.

📅 When: Thurs until Sat
📍 Where: Fira Barcelona Gran Via

More info here →

5. Free Live Music & Street Party in El Born

What’s On: Diobar is celebrating its 10th anniversary with a free street party in El Born, featuring live rumba, Latin music and DJs.

The event forms part of the Festa Major del Born and includes performances from Rumbakana, Leo & K-Chafaz and Los Encantados, followed by an after party inside Diobar with DJs Dr. Batonga! and Groucho.

📅 When: Sun 21st June, from 8pm
📍 Where: Diobar, El Born

For more info see here →

Also Happening This Weekend

🎉 Neighbourhood Festivals

More neighbourhood festivals this weekend, below are the links to their schedules.

Festa Major del Coll, Fiesta Mayor de la Marina, Festa Major de les Roquetes, Festa Major Can Peguera, Festa Major de la Guineueta, Festa Major de la Vall d'Hebron, and Festes Casc Antic

Here are the weekend highlights
Fri: Parade of giants (Plaça de les Beates to Centre Cívic Convent de Sant Agustí) and open air screening of "Coco" (Carrer Mestres Casals i Martorell) – Festes del Casc Antic

Sat: Culture parade featuring traditional Catalan festival groups – Festa Major del Coll

Sun: Fire show and final fireworks – Festa Major del Coll (Plaça de la Laguna Lanao) and Correfoc (fire run) – Festa Major de la Guineueta (Masia de la Guineueta)

🎶 Music, Parties & Nightlife
Talents Jazz at La Pedrera (Passeig de Gràcia) – Rooftop jazz concerts at Gaudí’s La Pedrera, featuring emerging jazz artists plus cava & attic access (Fri).

Dijous Jazz at Can Deu (Les Corts) – Free open-air jazz concert in the gardens of Can Deu (Thu).

Music at the Miró: Ouineta & Abril Ndjel (Fundació Joan Miró) – Open-air rooftop concert with sunset views over Barcelona from the Miró terraces (Sat)

OFFSónar (Poble Espanyol) – Four-day electronic music festival featuring world-renowned DJs and open-air parties at Poble Espanyol (Thu–Sun).

OFFWEEK Festival (Various Locations) – Electronic music festival with day-to-night parties across venues including Parc del Fòrum, Tibidabo and Esferic BCN (Thu–Sun).

Blaumarí Music Festival (Port Vell) – New boutique music festival with live music on a floating stage in the Mediterranean, plus food stalls & cocktails (Until 28th June).

Terrats en Cultura (Various Locations) – festival with concerts & live performances on secret rooftops, with locations revealed 48 hours before (Ends 24th July).

Nit de Musicals (Sant Andreu) – Free open-air concert featuring a choir, orchestra and young performers celebrating Broadway favourites and musical classics (Sat)

Clotilde Fest (Palau Robert) – Free summer concert series aimed at young people, showcasing emerging Catalan pop artists in the gardens of Palau Robert (Thu)

Juneteenth (Poblenou) – Celebration of Black culture and community featuring live music, DJs, food stalls, an art market and family-friendly activities (Sat)

🛍️ Markets & Shopping
Trivela (Estació del Nord) – Football culture festival with vintage shirts, independent brands, games, live music and food celebrating the beautiful game (Sat).

Los 22 del Market (Poblenou) – Second hand & vintage market with sellers offering clothing, accessories and unique finds, with everything priced at €30 or less (Sun).

🎨 Culture & Experiences
Open Day at the Museum of Music (L'Auditori) – Free entry to Barcelona's Museum of Music, featuring more than 500 instruments alongside exhibitions (Sun).

Joan Miró Foundation 50th Anniversary Open Day (Montjuïc) – Free open day celebrating 50 years of the Joan Miró Foundation (Sun)

Jardí Geològic (Les Corts) – New open-air museum exploring geology and Earth science, with rock displays and interactive exhibits (Free, open daily).

La Model Prison (Esquerra de l’Eixample) – Former prison turned public space, open for free visits where you can explore its cells and learn about its history.

The Last Days of Pompeii (IDEAL Montjuïc) – Immersive exhibition recreating Pompeii with 360° projections, VR and sound, including a dramatic Vesuvius eruption finale.

World’s Largest Balloon Exhibition (Poblenou) – Immersive exhibition made from 600,000 balloons, with sculptures & interactive rooms to explore.

Montjuïc Open Air Cinema (Montjuïc) – Open-air cinema returning this July with films, live music & picnic space at Montjuïc Castle (10th July–5th Aug, tickets now on sale).

DroneArt Show: Harry Potter (Parc del Fòrum) – Open air drone show featuring 1,200 illuminated drones recreating iconic Harry Potter scenes (17th Jul tickets now on sale).

🌞 Outdoors & Active
Volta Ciclista a Catalunya Femenina – International women's cycling race featuring 3 stages in Catalonia, with the final stage finishing on Avinguda Maria Cristina (Fri–Sun).

Outdoor Board Game Space at Glòries – Free open-air board game area with 100+ games you can borrow and play in the park (Sat, 10am–2pm & Sun, 4pm–8pm).

Barcelona Night Skate Routes – Free guided skate routes through Barcelona every Friday night, starting from Vila Olímpica & led by volunteer skaters (Fri, 10pm).

💼 Jobs of the Week

Senior Product Manager at N26
Help shape the future of digital banking by improving customer support systems and automation
See the role →
Social Media Manager at AirDNA
Grow the social channels of the travel-tech company behind Airbnb market data
See the role →

Find more jobs like this on BarcelonaJobs.com

That’s all for this week, have a great weekend!

— Mark

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