The New Generation of Jazz Takes to the Rooftop
La Pedrera hosts a new edition of the Talents Jazz Festival, filling the building’s iconic rooftop with great music and architectural beauty.
For someone who has never been to Barcelona, La Pedrera is visually striking. It was the same for residents of old Barcelona, who used to joke about this peculiar building: Casa Milà, which, from basement to rooftop, was unlike anything else. One of the most unique and well-known parts of the building, the rooftop, becomes a stage for music in the summer, hosting a jazz celebration that brings together some of the best emerging talents in the genre.
Come in the evening between May 30 and August 1 and enjoy a nighttime experience under the stars. Your visit begins with a self-guided tour of La Pedrera’s attic—an equally fascinating space. Known as “the whale attic,” it features 270 catenary arches made of flat brick, evoking the skeleton of a giant sea creature. Inside, you’ll find an exhibition dedicated to Gaudí and his work, located in the former laundry rooms and storage areas.
From here, you’ll head up to the rooftop, a unique space where Gaudí turned chimneys into sculptural forms that resemble fantastical creatures and shapes. Surrounded by this Gaudí-inspired atmosphere and the stars of the Barcelona night sky above you, you’ll enjoy jazz concerts performed by up-and-coming musicians from the Conservatori del Liceu, Taller de Músics, and the Escola Superior de Música de Catalunya. This year, in addition to the programmed artists, the saxophonist and composer Lucas Martínez (July 18) joins the lineup—winner of the 2025 Young Talent Award from the Association of Jazz and Modern Music Musicians of Catalonia.
The festival opens on May 29 (sold out) with the Liceu Big Band and continues on May 30 with the Barcelona Flamenco Reunion—a tribute to the NY Flamenco Reunion project, featuring flamenco-inspired versions of standards like Evidence, You Stepped Out of a Dream, and Bésame Mucho.
From then on, there will be performances every Friday, with groups like the Taller de Músics Mingus Soul (June 6), Blanca Funes Quartet with Jaume Llombart (June 13), Layers Sextet (June 20), and Eugenia Serra Quartet (June 27), among many others, culminating with Au Rora on August 1.
If you want to experience the magic of a one-of-a-kind building while listening to the finest emerging jazz in the city, don’t miss the Talents Jazz Festival. But first, check the La Pedrera website for concert details.