electronic

Government to promote electronic voting from abroad within three months

April 5, 2016 06:25 PM | ACN

The Government has announced that within three months it will promote a new plan of action to implement electronic voting. The plan of action includes tests for the novel system to be carried out before the end of the year, and the Government hopes for it to be implemented by the next Parliamentary elections. Catalan Minister for Public Administration Meritxell Borràs explained that the objective is to avoid a repetition of the “shame”of the elections held on the 27th of September, during which a large number of Catalans residing abroad who were registered to vote did not have their ballots counted, although the documents were mailed on time. While Borràs, noted that she has not yet communicated the decision to promote the electronic voting system with Madrid, she has no doubt that the plan of action will be met with “maximum collaboration”. 

New Order, James Blake and synth pioneer Jean-Michelle Jarre’s will to perform at Barcelona’s Sónar festival

January 26, 2016 10:11 AM | ACN

One of Europe’s most well-known electronic music events, Barcelona’s Sónar Festival has announced the line up for its 23rd edition. The legendary Manchester band New Order will again be on the bill, after performing at the festival in 2012. The British musician James Blake will present his latest album ‘Radio Silence’ and the French pioneer of synthesisers, Jean-Michel Jarre, has chosen the Catalan festival to mark his comeback to the stage. Sónar “has become everything a modern festival aims to be” stated Jarre. Last year, nearly 120,000 people attended the festival, which takes place at Fira ed Montjuic during the day and Fira Gran Via by night. 

Sónar kicks off, blends artistry, technology and business in festival's 22nd year

June 18, 2015 09:43 PM | ACN

The 22nd edition of Sónar, the largest electronic music festival in Europe, roared out of the gate Thursday in Barcelona. Considered the "most ambitious" iteration of the festival in Sónar's history, this year's programme has 147 performances scheduled between the festival's two campuses – Sónar by Day at Fira Montjüic and Sónar by Night at Fira GranVia – from Thursday to Saturday. But apart from the musical acts, there is a greater presence of audiovisual and technological shows than ever before. In addition, Sónar+D is an international tech conference at the festival geared toward artists, entrepreneurs and businesses and features over 120 activities and networking opportunities, showcasing big-name companies like Kickstarter, Google and Vimeo.The festival's biggest attractions include The Chemical Brothers, Skrillex, Duran Duran, Die Antwoord, A$AP Rocky, FKA Twigs, Hot Chip, Flying Lotus, Jamie XX and Arca.

Barcelona’s Sónar music festival set to start, with eclectic line-up and ambitious tech event

June 13, 2015 04:28 PM | ACN

The 22nd edition of Barcelona’s Sónar festival – one of Europe's most well-known electronic music events – is about to kick off, taking place between the 18th and 20th of June. This year, Sónar's activities are divided into two main locations: Sónar by Day and Sónar+D (the professional event on digital creative industries) will be held in Fira de Barcelona’s Montjuic venue, with Sónar by Night taking place at the Fira GranVia L'Hospitalet venue. The festival features 147 concerts (morning, afternoon and night sessions) in addition to 120 activities related to Sónar+D, which this year makes an ambitious leap forward in comparison to previous editions. The eclectic 2015 line-up includes several internationally renowned artists. Among the most famous ones appearing on stage will be: The Chemical Brothers, Autechre, Skrillex, Hot Chip, Die Antwoord, Flying Lotus, Jamie XX, Arca and Duran Duran.

Primavera Sound is back with an impressive line-up and more than 190,000 fans expected in Barcelona

May 28, 2015 11:43 PM | ACN

In 15 years, Primavera Sound has established itself as the most international musical festival in Southern Europe and a global point of reference in the realm of urban music events, particularly among indie and pop fans. With more than 190,000 festival-goers expected this year, the core of the show takes place in Barcelona's Fòrum Park - an enormous setup by the sea - from Thursday the 28th to Saturday the 30th of May. During this 3-day-session, a total of 193 concerts will be held, with international artists performing non-stop from the afternoon (around 5 p.m.) until the next morning. The 2015 line-up looks once again to be pretty spectacular: The Black Keys, Interpol, The Replacements, alt-J, Underworld, Damien Rice, Belle & Sebastian, The Strokes, Patti Smith, Tori Amos, Antony and the Johnsons, Ride, Caribou and many (many) others will be playing on the 8 main stages of the festival. 49 concerts can be followed in high definition streaming on both the web and via the festival’s official app.

Sónar+D to host 4,000 experts and 2,000 companies from global creative and digital tech industries

April 9, 2015 10:53 PM | ACN

Sónar+D is an international professional conference for creativity and technological innovation, which coincides with Barcelona's Sónar Festival of electronic and advanced music. The 3rd edition of the professional event will take place in Barcelona on the 18th, 19th and 20th of June 2015, at the same time as the popular and prestigious music festival. Its main aim is to bring together international experts presenting initiatives and tools that will shape future creative experiences in the fields of music, visuals, and interactive content and transmedia platforms. This year, 4,000 professionals and 2,000 companies from all over the world will take part in the event, a remarkable leap forward on last year's figures. "It is not just a fair or a conference", Sonar co-Director Ricard Robles said on Thursday. "It is a 360-degree, all encompassing event, a point of interaction between the creative and technological communities".

Sónar Barcelona presents part of 2015 festival line-up, featuring Duran Duran and Chemical Brothers

February 14, 2015 01:12 AM | ACN / Rochelle Bath

An additional 38 artists have been announced to perform at the 2015 Sónar Festival, held each year in Barcelona in June. This includes the likes of Eighties pop band, Duran Duran, pop diva Róisín Murphy, British quintet Hot Chip and FKA Twigs, considered as one of the most prominent vocalist at the moment. South African duo Die Antwoord, Arca, Flying Lotus and Skrillex, are also confirmed.  With these additions, Sonar’s lineup is shaping up to be its best yet, with the already confirmed performances of Autechre, Kiasmos, Kindness, Sophie, Daniel, Ten Walls, Holly Herndon, Kate Tempest, Jamie XX and The Chemical Brothers, who will present their new album ‘Hanna’.

Electronic music pioneers Pet Shop Boys rock the stage at Costa Brava summer festival Cap Roig

August 4, 2014 09:09 PM | ACN / Neringa Sinkeviciute

On Sunday night Pet Shop Boys presented their 12th studio album, Electric, at the summer music festival of Cap Roig, which takes place every year in Calella de Palafrugell, in the Costa Brava. The band performed an extraordinary show which included lighting effects, such as laser light beams, colourful theatrical smoke, and screen projections. Combining synthpop style, house and techno with more recent dance tracks, they have managed to evolve over the years but at the same time preserve their distinct style and continue to be revolutionary with every release. Cap Roig Festival is taking place from the 4th of July to the 15th of August and is combining worldwide-known artists and local musicians, such as Elton John, Bryan Adams, Placebo, James Blunt, Antonio Orozco and Els Pets, among others.

109,000 attend Barcelona Sónar music festival, featuring Massive Attack, Nile Rodgers & Chic, and Rudimental

June 16, 2014 09:37 PM | ACN

Sónar, Barcelona´s ‘Festival of Advanced Music and Multimedia Art’ came to end on Saturday night with a total attendance of 109,000 people, the second best in the festival’s 21 year history. However, it is a 10% less than 2013 record figures. 53% of those attending the 2014 edition were foreigners. Sónar by Night on Saturday has claimed the ability to make the masses dance with a program marked by disco anthems from Nile Rodgers of Chic to performances by Rudimental and DJ Snake. Massive Attack were among the best performers of the night, in their second concert after the opening day. Multiple simultaneous stages with performances from some of the biggest names in electronic music gave national and international festival-goers a lot to choose from.

Sónar+D unites more than 100 artistic companies in the field of digital innovation

June 13, 2014 06:55 PM | ACN

Sónar+D is an international conference for creativity and technological innovation which coincides with the Sónar by Day Festival. The conference will organize lectures, project exhibitions, stage activities and hold meetings with experts to enhance talent and further opportunities in the digital environment creating a strong parallel to the music festival. This year is the second edition of Sónar+D and the conference is growing now bringing together more than 100 companies, as well as artists, entrepreneurs and technicians from around the world to promote talent and business opportunities in the area of ??culture. The festival's co-director Enric Palau recently revealed details about this year’s program, which is a new initiative divided into four areas. An area dedicated to round table conferences, an exhibition area where more than 40 featured worldwide technology projects are to be on show, a space for art shows and an area where attendees can meet renowned professionals.

Electronic music festival Sónar brings a top quality line-up for 2014 to Barcelona

June 11, 2014 09:16 PM | Anders Ballegaard / Christopher Tulloch

The 21st edition of the International Festival of Advanced Music and New Media Art Sónar 2014 is set and ready to take over the Catalan capital from the 12th -14th June. As in recent years, the festival will alternate between two different locations depending on whether it is a day or a night event. Fira Montjuïc is the location for Sónar by Day whereas Sónar by Night takes place in Fira Gran Via L’Hospitalet. In this way, the festival offers two different venues for the crowd, one for those who prefer a relaxing chill out in the Mediterranean sunshine and another for a greater party atmosphere as the night draws in. The two locations are ready to play host to the performances of a packed line-up made up of more than 130 artists, bands and deejays. With several stages and a program replete with star names, the Sónar crowd is in for a treat as top notch electronic musicians from all over the world will perform before a local and international crowd.

More stages for a top music line-up at Barcelona’s 2014 Primavera Sound Festival

May 29, 2014 03:12 PM | ACN / Aleix Mercader

The 2014 Primavera Sound Festival, taking place from the 28th to the 31st May in the Catalan capital, is offering more concerts in its largest-ever space with a capacity for 60,000 people per day. Most of the 348 concerts will be on stages distributed throughout the Forum Park, next to the sea and Sant Adrià del Besos' marina. Other artists are programmed in concert halls such as the Sala Apolo or Barts. Headliners this year include Arcade Fire, Queens of the Stone Age, Mogway and Caetano Veloso, among many other international artists. Furthermore, top Catalan bands such as Mishima will also be playing.

Catalan music on show in Liverpool's Sound City Festival

May 2, 2014 09:07 PM | ACN

Joan Colomo, Alberto Montero and the band Anímic are playing on the same day, Saturday 3rd May, at one of the main musical events of the UK, combining international artists with cinema and digital arts. The festival gathers more than 40,000 punters and 3,000 professionals, taking place from the 1st to the 3rd of May in different Liverpool venues. The Sound City Festival is a must-go event to discover new pop and rock talents, among which are the 3 Catalan representatives. The first is the singer and song-writer Joan Colomo, who will be presenting his latest album 'La fília i la fòbia'. The second is Valencia-born composer Alberto Montero, who will play parts of his 'Puerto Príncipe' album. Finally, the last Catalan band is Anímic, who will show their latest work 'Hannibal'.

Electronic music Sónar Reykjavik and Stockholm welcome over 12,000 visitors

February 17, 2014 07:45 PM | ACN

The international expansion of Barcelona-based festival of electronic music, Sónar, continues. The first edition of Sónar Stockholm and the second edition of Sónar Reykjavik have attracted more than 12,000 attendees between them this past weekend. Both festivals have welcomed Nordic and international artists who performed in over 100 concerts on eight different stages. In the Icelandic capital, the festival was held in the Harpa Auditorium, at the very centre of the city. A total number of 8,900 visitors attended at least one of the 70 concerts spread over five stages. On the other hand, 40 concerts were scheduled on three different stages during Sónar Stockholm, which attracted 3,600 people, with several concerts sold out weeks ahead.

Strong international line-up at Barcelona’s 2014 Primavera Sound Festival

January 29, 2014 07:44 PM | ACN / Pau Cortina

The National, Queens of the Stone Age, Mogway, Television, Nine Inch Nails, Kendrick Lamar, Caetano Veloso, Saint Vincent, and Laurent Garnier are amongst the most outstanding artists to have joined the line-up of the 2014 Primavera Sound Festival. Until now, the Pixies, Arcade Fire, and Neutral Milk Hotel had been the only major announcements for the festival’s next edition, which will be held from the 29th to the 31st of May in Barcelona’s Forum. A few Catalan musicians will join these famous international bands, for instance Mishima, Standstill, Joana Serrat, Sílvia Pérez Cruz and Raúl Fernández.