Barcelona: route 2

Did you know that? The music roundabout was built as part of the World’s Fair in 1888. It is located at the Ciutadella Park.

Can you guess the style? The style is called “modernista”. The bandstand is made of stone, iron, and wood. It has a circular base with a convex trencadís, a type of mosaic. On its base is the platform for the music band. It is surrounded by an iron railing, from which stand eight pillars that support an octagonal roof.

Let me tell you the story of the building. The main element is a bandstand where the municipal music band used to be located. In October 1991, Sonia Rescalvo was murdered in this place, which was a usual meeting point for homosexuals and transexuals. In 2013 the place was renamed “Glorieta de la Transexual Sònia”.

Did you know that? The greenhouse was used during the 1888 World’s Fair as a party and conference hall, although it was originally built to grow and display tropical plants.

Can you guess the style? The style is called “modernista”. The structure of the greenhouse is made of metal and the closures are all in glass to let the light through. It consists of three continuous parts. The biggest part is open and attached to two side-parts with a roof and the lateral ones have four iron and glass walls, and access through the central nave. The decorative elements are floral, such as palmettes.

Let me tell you the story of the building. It was used as a restaurant during some time and since 2006 the building has been disused. On August 30, 2022, the conservation works of the greenhouse began, with the intention of restoring the heritage building and solving the pathologies detected in the last action and finalizing its interior and exterior restoration.

Did you know that? The building was commissioned by the choral society (Orfeó Català).

Can you guess the style? The style is called “modernista”. The main facade has large access arches and a balcony that surrounds the entire facade, with columns covered in ceramics, and topped by a mosaic dome. It is designed around a central metal structure covered in glass, which exploits natural light and makes the interior of the building a magical music box. It brings together all the decorative arts: sculpture, mosaic, stained-glass and ironwork. The floral motifs make the interior of the auditorium the appearance of a greenhouse with flowers and plants.

What about today? The Palau was conceived as a room to expand the knowledge of Catalan folk music and show that its composers were equal to the classical masters of Europe.

Did you know that? The building is placed at the headquarters of the Royal Academy of Sciences and Arts of Barcelona. It opened its doors in 1899 as a cinema, and it has been operating since 1982 as a theater. Between 1937 and 1939 it was named Teatre Català de la Comèdia (Catalan Theater of Comedy).

Can you guess the style? The style is called “eclectic”. The main facade presents a very rich decoration, with sculptural elements such as the angels standing in the columns.

Let me tell you a story about the building. During the Spanish Civil War, the building was home to a plage of shootings. This was described by the writer George Orwell in this book “Homage to Catalonia”.

What about today? The building has been operating as a theater since 1982.

Did you know that? In the forging of the main facade there is a phoenix on a helmet and a shield, all two located between the two arches and surrounded by motifs of hibiscus climbing plants.

Can you guess the style? The style is called “modernista”. The facade is made of limestone and iron. The unique elements of the facade are the large size of the entrance doors, and the double opening of the facade in the form of an arch. This building is part of a period in which Gaudí was inspired by orientalist forms.

Let me tell you a story about the buildingIn the upper part of the arches there are two iron bars, which represent two snakes that with their tails form the letters E and G, which mean Eusebi Güell.

What about today? Nowadays, the building is a museum.

Did you know that? The opera house “Gran Teatre del Liceu” was done through the contributions of private people and companies.

Can you guess the style? The style is called “eclectic”. Its facade presents a three-part division. Inside the building there is a gateway with columns made of marble supporting the balcony of the first floor. The lobby is also in eclectic style. The central staircase is of marble and leads to the first floor, where the “Hall of Mirrors” is found. Crowning it all is the sculpture of the “Muse of Music”, by Venanci Vallmitjana.

Let me tell you the story of the building. The Liceu building suffered a first fire in 1861, destroying the hall and the stage. In 1893 an anarchist threw two bombs from the stalls, causing the death of 20 people. In 1994, a fire completely burned down the stage and the auditorium. Curiously, the structure and the same sections survived as in the 1861 fire, but it caused a great emotional impact on Catalan and Spanish musical society.

What about today?  The Catalan authorities and patron companies managed to rebuild the theater, providing it with a better infrastructure and preserving the design of the original facade and structure. It was inaugurated again in 1999 equipped with unique security measures in the world.

Did you know that? The initial name was Teatre Català, since its objective was to approach the popular classes and bourgeoisie to works in Catalan. Later, it adopted the name “Romea” in homage to Julián Romea Yangüas, an important actor of the 19th century.

Can you guess the style? The style is called “eclectic”. It presents a very rich decoration with architectural elements like columns, and the windows in the entrance are arched.

Let me tell you a story about the building It is believed that the theater has the ghost of Margarita Xirgu. She began her acting career at the Romea in 1906 and became an artist who would renew the Catalan and Spanish theater. Her support for the Republic condemned her to be persecuted by the dictatorship and sent her into exile. She died in Montevideo in 1969. She still walks around the Romea during the night.

What about today? During the Spanish Civil War, the building was closed and opened its doors again in December 1943.

Did you know that? At the end of the 19th century the Raval was becoming a housing neighbourhood for the working classes.

Can you guess the style?

The building is multi-storey and for residential use. The style follows the principles of the modern movement, with no decoration.

Let me tell you the story about the neighbourhood. The Catalan rumba is a Spanish musical genre developed by the gypsy community in the city of Barcelona since the mid-1950s, taking rhythms that derive from the flamenco rumba with influences from Cuban music and rock & roll. This music style was born in the Catalan gypsy communities of the Gracia neighbourhood, the Raval neighbourhood and Hostafrancs neighbourhood. The gypsy community of these neighbourhoods has a historical settlement, such as those found in Vic, Tàrrega, Lleida, Perpignan, the Camargue and dozens of towns in the south of France.

Did you know that? The success led to the construction of a theater which opened in 1903, where pantomimes, melodramas, and concerts of popular song and music were performed. From 1904, cinematographic projections were also made there.

Can you guess the style?

The style is called “eclectic”. It is an isolated building made up of a central part and two side attached parts at a lower level and with a rectangular plan. The main facade is flat; the composition incorporates two rows of rectangular openings in decreasing number in height, six below and four above. The most remarkable thing of the facade is the inscription “Teatre Arnau”.

What about today? The theater closed its doors in 1994 and in 2007 the City Council began the expropriation process, acquiring it in 2011. The mobilization of some neighbourhood entities and groups such as “Arnau Itinerant” fight for the rehabilitation of the old theater as a cultural facility for the citizens.

Did you know that? El Molino means “windmill”. The building opened its doors in 1898, under the name of Pajarera Catalana, which means “catalan birdcage”. It was conceived as a space for shows. In 1910, it changed its name to Petit Moulin Rouge, and with the arrival of the Franco dictatorship in 1939, the regime forced the name to be in Spanish and suppressed the word “red”. Since then, it has remained El Molino.

Can you guess the style? The style is called “eclectic” with columns in the entrance and arched windows, and adorned with its iconic rotating windmill, designed by Catalan architect Josep Alemany i Juvé.

What about today? The COVID-19 pandemic forced El Molino to close its doors. In 2021 the Ajuntament de Barcelona announced that it had purchased the building as part of the city’s Cultural Rights Plan, taking on a new life as a cultural centre.