A stone’s throw from the street where he was born and where his father gave him his first guitar, Joan Manuel Serrat said goodbye to the stage forever this Friday, in a memorable concert. Moved and happy, the singer closed by saying: “Because everything that begins must end, and if it ends well, it’s fantastic.”
With these words and with a memory for Salvador Escamilla, Quico Sabaté and Joan Ollé, the musician left the stage of the Palau Sant Jordi, receiving an ovation, after two hours of songs full of memories and always exciting melodies, and this time more than ever since he will no longer sing them live.
A few minutes before the start of the concert, a spectator named Enric entered the door and confessed: “I haven’t been to a concert for many years, but I had to come to this one because I’m the same age as Serrat, I saw him start , I saw him become famous and I have to say goodbye to him”. Joan Manuel Serrat will be 79 on December 27.
Sold out for the farewell
Spectators of various generations filled the more than 15,000 seats of the theater this Friday where the musician said goodbye to the stage, after a tour in different cities of the world, culminating in his hometown.
Emotion won out over everything at the Palau Sant Jordi and it was lived a party in which joy mixed with nostalgia and melancholy in a few minutes. Serrat offered a special repertoire, with more songs in Catalan than usual in the rest of the farewell tour.
The tour called by Serrat The vice of singing 1965-2022started in New York eight months ago and passed through Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Colombia, Costa Rica, Venezuela, Ecuador, Argentina, Chile, Peru and Uruguay, before closing in Barcelona, on the shores of the Mediterranean, next to the their people.
temps was temps is the song with which he opened a sentimental journey that began with the Spanish post-war images on the big screen and on stage, a memory for those children who, like him, were born in “a large and free place” and entertained themselves with “Metro Goldwyn Meyer” and “take it or leave it”.
a large repertoire
Then the singer recalled his mother with song of bressolto his father with The carousel of furyin via Poble Sec where he watched it grow my careerin his hometown with Barcelona and me and her beloved Miguel Hernández with Onion lullabies.
The audience, completely devoted to the show, applauded before and after each song, and more than once, even halfway through the song.
And there were more songs: for freedom lifted the audience from their seats, the aunt made more than one cry and Mediterráneo could have been the apotheosis, but he had to contest it with Stop, Plany al mare, Cantares, Paraules d’amor Y A guitarthe latter performed by him alone on stage.
Serrat, who in all these years has learned to be at home everywhere, with this concert, he was able to enjoy the pleasure of being a prophet in his land.
“Thank you”, “Gràcies”, both in Spanish and in Catalan, is the most repeated word in hundreds of tweets that in recent hours have filled the social networks of those who shared the emotion of the Serrat concert with which they greeted each other after 57 career years.
Greetings from artists and politicians
In addition to his thousands of fans in the audience, there were also famous politicians and artists who said they were present in the VIP area and in the front rows so as not to miss Serrat’s latest concert.
Among others were the president of the Spanish government, Pedro Sánchez, together with several ministers, the mayor of Barcelona, Ada Colau, and musicians, such as the Muñoz de Estopa brothers and some famous journalists such as Jordi Évole.
But artists and friends also like it Vittorio Manuel and Ana Belenwho has shared so many concerts with him, has posted a couple of photos where you can see the three smiling, with that one word, “Thank you, Serrat.”
the songwriter Ishmael Serrano published: “What an exciting night. Unforgettable. Thank you very much, maestro. Eternal Serrat”, while the composer, musician and producer Pancho Varona he dismissed him with “Goodbye, dear Maestro Joan Manuel Serrat. You will be missed by stages around the world.”
The Catalan actor and director José Corbacho rewrites the verses of one of Serrat’s most famous songs, as a tribute: “Today could have been a great day… and it was. Thank you maestro. Per tot. Per tant. Forever” .
One of the most followed Spanish journalists on social media, Rosa María Artal, recalls a verse by Antonio Machado, made even more popular by the artist to fire him from the stage: “You make your way by walking. Exactly. Serrat, you always see in your music”.
Obviously Joan Manuel Serrat has announced that he will leave the stage, but not the music, so a new album can be expected.
Source: EFE
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Source: Clarin
