Andrea Motis Opens Raimat Arts Festival

Andrea Motis opened the fifth Raimat Arts Festival in Lleida on 8 October, and the room was close to full.

The Barcelona singer and trumpeter presented her latest record, Intimate, with guitarists Josep Traver and Guido di Blasi. It is a stripped-down format with no horn section and no rhythm section, so the songs rest on voice and strings. Segre reports that the audience gave the evening a warm reception.

The concert also had a small place in the festival's own story. It was the first time Raimat Arts Festival used the Auditori Enric Granados. Artistic director Joan Plana said a nearly full hall encourages the festival to widen its programme further.

Motis first came to attention as a teenager in Catalonia's jazz school scene. A quiet guitar-led set suits her phrasing, which has always been more conversational than showy.

The festival continues on Saturday at the Raimat wineries, with countertenor Xavier Sabata performing Schubert's Winterreise.