Once again we have just started the distribution of our special issue dedicated to the festivals of this year 2026. A very complete and essential guide to plan your musical activity during the coming months.
Sit back, have a cold drink and don’t let anyone bother you, because with this new special we invite you to immerse yourself in a new festival season. A new universe in which all musical styles, all venues and all locations you can imagine fit. So, welcome to the party.
Macrofestivals, minifestivals, microfestivals, cycle festivals, boutique festivals, night festivals, daytime festivals, family festivals, thematic festivals, festivals with a surprise lineup, festivals with gastronomy, festivals and cultural heritage, festivals in the middle of nature, urban festivals, festivals in gigantic venues, festivals in auditoriums, festivals in small halls, festivals of this genre and festivals of that other genre, festivals in which this, that and that genre are mixed, festivals with pro programming, festivals coinciding with parties older, festivals of whatever you want. Because if we are not missing something right now in this country, it is festivals. There are those who complained when there were none and those who complain now that there are, those who prefer to travel to attend an appointment that they will remember forever and those who do not want to travel outside their usual radius of action to attend one. The important thing is that we can decide, that we do not have to settle for what is offered close to home, but rather we can search among the hundreds of events that populate the Iberian geography to decide which one we are going to go to. Or rather, which one do we want to go to or which one best fits our criteria, our pocket or our preferences.
Surely, reading this introduction, there will be those who are still convinced that we live in a festival bubble that will one day burst. Others will shake their heads at how all this movement affects the rooms. Meanwhile, others will be thinking about which one they will go to. There it will depend on our perspective. But what seems evident is that we have festivals for a long time. And we have them because a good part of those that exist have already been consolidated after many years of work, growing step by step and maintaining themselves. Now, that does not mean that there are others who cannot cope with changes, competition, fluctuations in public intentions, generational or stylistic changes. It is what the market has, and we must not forget that, although we are talking about music and culture, the market rules with its supply and demand. It will be the public that will decide if the festival scene is saturated, if the formula is exhausted or if they are not willing to pay this or that amount of euros to see this or that number of groups.
If you are a faithful follower of our medium, it is very likely that you belong to the group of those who are thinking about which festival they are going to go to this summer or in the coming weeks. Perhaps, unexpectedly, you have found in these pages an event that you had not heard about and that has become the exact moment to discover it in your future favorite festival. Who knows. The important thing is that there will be hundreds of groups and soloists who, during the coming months, will be traveling around the peninsula to play – in most cases – outdoors, taking advantage of the excellent climate that our country has from spring to practically until the end of autumn. They will be able to share their music here and there, in many cases facing new audiences and making them their own. Although, and write this in capital letters somewhere in your head, remember that venues also exist and that thanks to them the groups you see at festivals will be able to continue living and showing their proposal to people for the rest of the year. Don’t forget about them, because you need bands and, although it may sound cliché, the concerts that are most remembered tend to be those that live at shorter distances.
Completely changing the subject, let us also keep in mind the important economic muscle that this whole live music movement represents for our country. Never before had it enjoyed such value and weight in the Spanish cultural industries as a whole. In fact, in the recent yearbook of the Association of Music Promoters (APM). Last year, turnover exceeded eight hundred million euros for the first time. That figure represents around twelve percent compared to the previous year. Which is said quickly and almost without blinking, but it represents an important advance for a universe that, for many years, was considered almost the poor brother of culture, with a good part of the actors involved accepting it. Luckily, professionalization is also growing and, finally, we have believed that things are serious and that the future still holds many surprises for us.
