ClàssicAnd Festival Sees Sold-Out Carmina Burana and Hot Garanča Recital Ahead of Opening

The fourth edition of ClàssicAnd is generating strong early interest, with *Carmina Burana* already sold out and near-full houses expected for Elina Garanča's opening recital and Nacho Duato's dance performance, though overall paid ticket sales stand at 73% across six main events.

Two days before the festival opens on Friday at the renovated Auditori Nacional, Garanča's recital with pianist Matthias Schulz—featuring Brahms, Berlioz, Mendelssohn, Saint-Saëns, Gounod, Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff, Schumann, *Carmen*'s *Habanera*, and songs from Chapí's *El Barquillero* and *Las hijas de Zebedeo*—has sold over 80% of its 373 seats, leaving around 70 tickets. Artistic director Joan Anton Rechi expects last-minute purchases to secure a sell-out, noting a pattern of delayed bookings that filled venues last year.

*Carmina Burana* on 30 May at Parc Central's vela, with nearly 200 performers including Orquestra Nacional del Consell d'Andorra (ONCA) in symphonic mode, soloists soprano Juliette Lozano, baritone Guillem Batllori, tenor Kevin Amiel, and conductor Josep Caballé, has been sold out for days. Fewer than 20 tickets—less than 4% of the 440 capacity—remain for Duato's company on 5 June, prompting Rechi's delight at dance's growing appeal in Andorra despite past challenges.

Other paid events lag behind: Monteverdi's *Combattimento* on 31 May at Parc Central, featuring mezzo Anna Alàs, soprano Rocío Martínez, tenors Francisco Fernández Rueda and Víctor Sordo, plus Orquestra Barroca de Sevilla in a boxing-ring staging with Venetian masks and medieval-inspired costumes by Mercè Palma, has 47% of seats available. Christian Zacharias's farewell with Leipzig Quartet on 6 June at Auditori Nacional holds 41% unsold, while Fanny Ardant's *Cassandre* monologue sits at 52% sold.

Rechi remains optimistic despite larger capacities this year and competition from good weather, citing late surges and strong headliners like the retiring Zacharias. Unsold tickets will go on sale for €5 in the final half-hour before each show, targeting under-30s to boost attendance and attract younger audiences.

The festival runs to 7 June with free events alongside paid ones, including Bach's *St. Matthew Passion* at Casa de la Vall in the restored Passió dels Passos Perduts cycle, and local recital *Jardins de somni* by pianists Míriam Manubens and Isabel Fèlix with ONCA at Sant Corneli in Ordino.

Separately, the 29th Sona 9 competition's Andorran territorial preliminaries on 11 June at Auditori Nacional feature indie-pop band Marta's from Escaldes-Engordany, singer-songwriter Júlia Sart from Ordino, and fusion-pop artist Eugenia Correia from La Massana, competing with 27 others for 12 semifinal spots.