Auditori Nacional d'Andorra Reopens After €1.3M Renovation

The Auditori Nacional d'Andorra in Ordino reopened yesterday after 12 months of renovations costing €1.308 million, funded by the Territory and Urbanism Ministry. The venue now serves as the permanent home for the Orquestra Nacional Clàssica d'Andorra (ONCA) and Escena Nacional d'Andorra, marking a shift away from the Culture Ministry's own concert season.

Culture Minister Mònica Bonell called the works essential after 30 years of intensive use, describing them as an investment to ensure long-term viability. The project, announced in October 2023 and starting in February 2024, unfolded in two phases targeting sustainability, safety, accessibility, and technical systems. Upgrades include a new aerothermal heating and cooling system, full LED lighting, modernized electrical infrastructure, stage machinery, remote domotics controls, and restored ventilation. Safety features added an external evacuation staircase from the second floor to Jardí dels Boixos, enhanced smoke extraction, fire curtains, and anti-fire systems. Structural fixes addressed dampness, wood decay, and leaks, while interiors gained fresh paint, upgraded dressing rooms with new furniture, improved signage, and front-row wheelchair spaces created by removing a seat row. Exterior changes feature renewed paving, bollards to restrict vehicles, and a re-waterproofed roof to meet accessibility standards.

The reopening featured free inaugural concerts: Kic Barroc presented its album *Entor*—with jazz takes on Andorran landscapes—on 27 February, followed by ClassicAND's launch on 28 February, where Carmen Linares joined ONCA under conductor Josep Caballé Domenech for *El amor brujo*, honouring Manuel de Falla's 150th birth anniversary.

ONCA's new artistic director Joan Anton Rechi, a stage director and ClassicAND founder, called his appointment a surprise but an honour for one of Andorra's most emblematic cultural institutions. He aims to blend its foundational international projection with recent local rooting, launching a September-to-June season of monthly concerts. Rechi described the initial mini-season through June—skipping May for ClassicAND—as immersive "experiences" reflecting digital-age audience demands, prompting reflection on modern issues. Themed events include "Convivència i projecte compartit" on 13 March led by Chanmin Chun; "Tecnologia i humanitat" on 18 April with Jhoanna Sierralta; and "Planeta fràgil" on 20 June in the gardens under Diego Martín Etxebarria.

Bonell noted the 12-month closure allowed time to rethink programming amid a crowded calendar—237 cultural events nationwide in 2025, about 30 overlapping potential slots despite the venue's absence. The ministry's decade-old season, started to fill gaps, will end, with resources redirected to artist support, subsidies, FESTAC and Xarranca partnerships, Institució de les Lletres Catalanes agreements, Literland, and cycles at museums and monuments like Canya and Nits d'estiu. "The season disappears, but not the music," she said.

Cultural Action Director Joan Marc Joval stressed the deep interventions went beyond cosmetics to the building's core, ensuring generational durability while sustaining backing for Jambo Street Music, Festival de Música Antiga dels Pirineus, and ClassicAND. Fundació Creand's Francesca Ros praised outgoing director Albert Gumí's six-year revival, national ties, and youth outreach; he will return as guest conductor. Escena Nacional will use the space for rehearsals, creation, and performances.