Table of contents:
Video: What amazes the palace of Catalan music, which has become the hallmark of Barcelona
2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55
This building is perhaps one of the most stunning cultural institutions in terms of beauty. And although now, during the period of self-isolation, tourists cannot come and see him with their own eyes, you can enjoy his photographs. The Palace of Catalan Music is a visiting card not only of Barcelona, but of the whole of Catalonia. It is impossible to take your eyes off this building, and many interesting facts are also associated with it.
The Palace of Catalan Music was designed over a hundred years ago by the famous architect Luis Domenech y Montaner. The construction was carried out mainly through donations. Construction was completed in 1908, and the opening took place in 1909.
It is not known whether the talented architect foresaw such a success, but the descendants appreciated the building at its true worth. The Palace of Catalan Music is recognized as a National Monument of Spain and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
An architectural masterpiece
The masterpiece building, built in the historic quarter of Sant Pere, is the most striking example of Catalan Art Nouveau. The Musical Palace is replete with curved lines and delightful, very rich ornamentation, giving the impression that every part of the building is in motion. The feeling of lightness and spaciousness is also created thanks to the spacious interiors.
The hall of the palace is designed for 2,200 spectators and, by the way, it is the only concert hall in Europe with natural light. The translucent domed ceiling, consisting of fragments of multi-colored mosaics, as if transports the visitor into the magical world of a fairy tale. In the center of the dome, the glasses are golden, which personifies the sun, then blue ones, which are associated with the heavens, and the walls of the hall consist of stained-glass windows. When, at the same time, great music begins to sound, something fantastic turns out.
On the stage of the concert hall, you can see 18 female sculptures, personifying 18 Greek muses.
Ornate facade
The facade of the building has absorbed several styles at once, and all of them are combined very harmoniously and tastefully. Here you can, for example, see elements of Spanish and Arab architecture. The columns of the building are amazing: they are covered with glazed tiles, and candelabra crowning them.
Approaching the main facade, you can see busts - lovers of classical music can easily recognize them as Bach, Beethoven, Wagner, Palestrina (the author of the famous Italian masses). On the upper part of the façade you can see a magnificent mosaic (by Lewis Bru y Saleles) depicting the vocalists of the Orfeo Catalá choir, for which this building was originally created.
Interestingly, earlier visitors to the Palais des Catalan Music had to enter the building through two arches. A ticket office was opened in a column between them, decorated with a magnificent mosaic by Lewis Brew.
The city council of Barcelona honored the architect with an award, after construction the project was recognized as the best building of the year.
In the 1980s, the building underwent restoration and expansion of the premises. Architects Oscar Tusquets and Carles Diaz supervised the work. Another small renovation (restoration of the theater itself) was here in 2006-2008.
Not only masses
It is curious that initially the Palais des Music was conceived exclusively as the headquarters of the Orfeó Català choral society and a concert venue for the performances of its choir. In other words, only Catholic music was supposed to sound here. But later its purpose expanded: concerts of classical music began to be held here, there were even performances by jazz musicians and pop stars.
At various times, on the stage of the palace in Barcelona, one could hear the singing of Montserrat Caballe, the play of Svyatoslav Richter and Rostislav Rostropovich.
Recommended:
What secrets does Point Nemo keep - the most mysterious place on Earth, which has become a cemetery of spaceships
Point Nemo is the most remote place on Earth from land. As you might guess, it was named after the well-known captain from the novel by Jules Verne. The perfect place to hide a spaceship. It was here, under the waters of the Pacific Ocean, that the ships found their last resting place, plowing the vast expanses of our Universe. Surprising facts about the lifeless pole of inaccessibility, where the cemetery of the dead ships was arranged, further in the review
Who has become and what has achieved the granddaughter of the protagonist from the movie "Voroshilovsky shooter": Anna Sinyakina
She was only 18 years old when the film "Voroshilovsky shooter" was released. The image of Katya Afonina, the granddaughter of the protagonist, played by Mikhail Ulyanov, turned out to be surprisingly harmonious for Anna Sinyakina. The girl who survived the tragedy in the film wanted to feel sorry for, support, say some important words. Shooting in the film by Stanislav Govorukhin left a mark on the soul and heart of young Anna Sinyakina, and she always remembers working with Mikhail Ulyanov with special warmth
What is famous for the "alien" city of El Alto, which has become the hallmark of the Bolivian Aymara tribe
In the harsh Andes, where representatives of the Bolivian Aymara tribe live, there is an "alien" city. The houses here are colorful, and their architecture looks like from the future. These are not classic colored houses of Europe, but something illusory and mysterious, like everything connected with the ancient indigenous peoples of America. However, there is no antiquity here: to build such incredible buildings in the capital's suburb of El Alto was invented by the young and very popular in Bolivia architect Freddie Mamani Silvestre
What Bruegel encrypted in the painting "The Tower of Babel", which has become a symbol of the disunity of a single people
Pieter Bruegel the Elder is a genius of his era, to whose work you want to return again and again as a source of visual reflection of biblical, historical and political events. His unique paintings are full of secrets and mysteries, symbolism and allegories. They were highly valued by the artist's contemporaries, and today his work is an invaluable asset. Today in our publication is another masterpiece, striking with its grandiose scope, as well as an interesting storyline, artistic idea
Samson's kitchen ladle has become an Instagram star and has won fans all over the world
It seems surprising, but even an ordinary ladle, which can be found in the kitchen of any housewife, can become a world celebrity. But, of course, provided that this hostess is a creative nature and is able to see touching and funny in the ordinary. And the American Margaret turned out to be just that. She photographs her soup ladle in different life situations and regularly posts his “adventures” on Instagram. Now the popularity of Samson (this is the name of her plastic "pet")