Classical concert · Barcelona
A string orchestra, solo violin and soprano fill the Baroque basilica of Barcelona's patron saint.
Baroque stone, a solo violin and a soprano's voice rising towards the dome.
The basilica
The Order of Mercy was founded in Barcelona in 1218 to ransom captives, and its first church on this site was built in 1249. The present basilica, designed by Josep Mas i Dordal, dates from 1765 to 1775. It became a minor basilica in 1918, the second in the city after the cathedral.
Our Lady of Mercy has been the patron saint of Barcelona since 1687, and the church keeps the carved image that Barcelonans honour. Her feast on 24 September gives the city its biggest annual festival, La Mercè, so a concert here sits inside the city's own story.
Vivaldi wrote most of his major works for the Ospedale della Pietà in Venice, a house of music in its own right. Strings and a solo voice carry well in a stone nave under a dome, and The Four Seasons paints birds, storms and heat in sound that suits the setting.
The programme
A concert in a church is shaped by its repertoire. These are the composers and works named for the evening, with a line on each.
Vivaldi
Two of the four violin concertos published in Amsterdam in 1725 as part of Op. 8. Each has three movements and a sonnet that the music follows: birdsong and a storm in Spring, heat, a cuckoo and hail in Summer. The solo violin leads.
Pachelbel
Written for three violins and continuo and first paired with a gigue. Its date is unknown, anywhere between 1680 and 1706, and a 1968 recording made it famous.
Bach
The second movement of the suite. It gained the name Air on the G String when August Wilhelmj arranged it for solo violin in 1871.
Handel
The aria from the opera Serse, 1738, in which Xerxes admires the shade of a plane tree. It was written for a soprano castrato and is often called Handel's Largo.
Schubert
Written in 1825 as a song, Ellens dritter Gesang, setting a German translation of lines from Scott's Lady of the Lake. The Latin prayer words were set to the tune afterwards.
Mozart
Mozart left the Requiem unfinished when he died on 5 December 1791, and his own writing stops after the first eight bars of this movement.
Beethoven
The opening movement of the symphony first performed in Vienna on 22 December 1808, built on a four-note motif.
Ravel
A 1928 ballet score commissioned by the dancer Ida Rubinstein: one rhythm, two melodies and a steady crescendo.
Programmes change from night to night. Read this as the repertoire the concert draws on, not a promised running order; the calendar entry for your date lists what is planned.
Four dates
The church on Plaça de la Mercè has a long history. These four dates are the ones that explain why it is where it is.
The Order of Mercy is founded in Barcelona by Peter Nolasco, to free Christian captives. It is formally constituted at the main altar of the cathedral on 10 August.
After a plague of locusts, the city places itself in the hands of the Virgin of La Mercè, and its council names her patron saint. The Pope ratifies the choice in 1868.
The present Baroque church replaces the medieval one, to a design by the Catalan architect Josep Mas i Dordal.
Pope Benedict XV grants the church the title of minor basilica, marking 700 years since the Virgin's apparition to Peter Nolasco.
The basilica in pictures
The nave, the high altar, the dome, the organ loft, a stained-glass skylight, a carved doorway and the square outside.
Three music evenings
| Evening | What it offers | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Vivaldi concert in the Basílica de la Mercè | About one hour of classical music in a Baroque church: a string orchestra, a solo violin and a soprano, plus a printed programme to take away. Seat options and fares depend on the date. | Listeners who want a quiet, seated hour of classical music with Vivaldi at its centre. |
| Casa Batlló night visit with a rooftop concert | A self-guided visit to Casa Batlló with an audio guide, then a one-hour open-air concert on the roof terrace with a table and a glass of cava, in jazz, soul or flamenco. This ticket is non-refundable. | Visitors who want Gaudí and live music in one evening and accept a ticket that cannot be refunded. |
| Montserrat monastery ticket with the Escolania boys' choir | A one-day ticket to the monastery with the boys' choir, the basilica, the Throne of the Virgin, an audio guide and the museum. It meets at the Montserrat Tourist Information Office, outside Barcelona, so plan your own way there. Choir times can change with religious celebrations and the school calendar. | Travellers who want choral music in a monastery and can give a day to it. |
Music evenings in Barcelona
The first card opens the Vivaldi concert in the Basílica de la Mercè. The other two are separate bookings: a rooftop concert after a visit to a Gaudí house, and a monastery ticket with a boys' choir outside the city. More Barcelona bookings sit in the strip underneath.
About one hour of classical music in a Baroque church: a string orchestra, a solo violin and a soprano, plus a printed programme to take away. Seat options and fares depend on the date.
Check dates ↗A self-guided visit to Casa Batlló with an audio guide, then a one-hour open-air concert on the roof terrace with a table and a glass of cava, in jazz, soul or flamenco. This ticket is non-refundable.
Check dates ↗A one-day ticket to the monastery with the boys' choir, the basilica, the Throne of the Virgin, an audio guide and the museum. It meets at the Montserrat Tourist Information Office, outside Barcelona, so plan your own way there. Choir times can change with religious celebrations and the school calendar.
Check dates ↗More to book in Barcelona
Plan the evening
The basilica stands at Plaça de la Mercè, 1, in the Gothic Quarter, and you show your ticket at its entrance. Ordinary road traffic stays out of most of the quarter, so you finish the trip on foot.
Doors open 15 minutes before the concert. Latecomers are let in only between pieces, so the music is not interrupted. The start time is on your date's calendar entry.
The booking page offers a range of seating options. Guests suggest arriving early and queuing for the better seats within a section. Book one seat option in one booking if you want to sit together.
Churches are seldom air-conditioned, and guests mention warm air and fans in the nave. Dress lightly in summer and carry a thin layer in the cooler months.
Pets, food, unaccompanied minors and making noise are not allowed. Eat before or after the concert, and put your phone on silent first.
Every child needs an adult with them. Wheelchair access is listed for this concert; ask the booking site about the route into the church before you buy.
The basilica, the Four Seasons and the evening: guides
Which seat, and how to book How to book the Vivaldi Four Seasons concert in Barcelona's Basílica de la Mercè: what the ticket is, how to choose a seat and who the evening suits.
Read the guide → Getting there and getting in The Basílica de la Mercè in practice: where it is, how to arrive, what the Baroque church looks like inside, what to bring and what is not allowed.
Read the guide →FAQ
Roughly an hour. Look up the start time on each date's calendar entry.
In the Basílica de la Mercè, Plaça de la Mercè, 1, in the Gothic Quarter. Show your ticket at the entrance of the basilica.
The programme names Spring and Summer from the set. A full performance of all four concertos takes about 40 to 43 minutes.
Programmes can differ from night to night. The calendar entry and the confirmation email name the programme for your date.
Latecomers are admitted only between pieces. Doors open 15 minutes early, so arrive in good time.
No. Pets and food are not allowed, and neither is making noise. Unaccompanied minors are not admitted.
Wheelchair access is listed for the concert. Put specific questions about the route in to the booking site before you buy.
Yes. Until 24 hours before the start, a booking made through GetYourGuide can be dropped without charge. A seat can be reserved today with the fare settled afterwards.
Prices here are US dollars per adult. Checkout shows the amount in whichever currency you pick.