Since January, L’Auditori de Barcelona’s facilities have included two relaxation areas. The two areas, which are located on the first floor of the Hall 1, Pau Casals foyer and in the Hall 2, Oriol Martorell corridor, are two chill-out zones with sofas and other comfortable seats that enable people with special needs, such as those with ASD, Alzheimer’s disease or anxiety, as well as breastfeeding mothers, among others, to use during concerts.

The creation of these areas, as part of L’Auditori de Barcelona’s strong commitment to accessibility, has been possible thanks to the European programme POCTEFA and has been co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund. The general aim of the POCTEFA ARTIS project is to make it easier for those segments of society that are most at risk of exclusion, whether due to social or health-related reasons, to access cultural venues and facilities and their events.

In addition, one of L’Auditori de Barcelona’s most prominent social projects, A Morning with the Orchestra, has also received this European grant, which has enabled it to bring its events to people with restricted mobility by streaming them. A Morning with the Orchestra is a project organised by L’Auditori in collaboration with Apropa Cultura in which groups of people with Alzheimer’s disease, learning disabilities and mental health problems attend an OBC rehearsal and then have the opportunity to meet musicians from the orchestra or ESMUC students, who play pieces of music just for them.

To ensure that people who are unable to attend these events in person at L’Auditori can continue to take part in them, a series of videos in which various OBC musicians perform pieces and provide a brief explanation under a music therapist’s direction have been made.