Barcelona woke up on Tuesday to a funeral notice for one of the most influential festivals in electronic music. “Sónar is dead,” read the message that replaced the festival’s website and Instagram feed on October 27, framed by two dates: 1994 and 2026. A matching obituary ran as a paid advert in La Vanguardia, yet the organisers have not said whether the festival is actually ending, being rebranded, or simply teasing its next chapter.
What “Sónar is dead” actually says
The campaign is deliberately sparse. Sonar.es now carries only the two dates, the word Barcelona and a “book of condolences” where visitors can leave a few words of farewell. A short line closes the page: the Sónar family thanks fans for their support and for being part of its story. There is no press release, no explanation and no mention of what comes next.
On Instagram, every previous post was removed, leaving a single video of a funeral parlour scene: a dark coffin bearing the Sónar name and the two dates, flanked by white floral wreaths. Spanish news agency EFE reported that the festival placed death notices in several newspapers, and DJ Mag noted reports of similar adverts around Barcelona. Hundreds of fans flooded the comments with mock condolences within hours.
The key fact is what remains unconfirmed. According to EFE and La Vanguardia, the organisation has neither confirmed nor denied that the festival is finished, and says it will share news in the coming days. Until that statement arrives, any claim that Sónar has been cancelled is speculation.
Rebrand, relaunch or real ending?
Most observers read the stunt as the opening move of a relaunch rather than a closure. The Groove Cartel reported that the festival’s site still listed dates for a 34th edition on June 17, 18 and 19, 2027 before the takeover, and La Vanguardia pointed out that the timing lines up with the point in the calendar when Sónar usually reveals its first artists, typically in November. The newspaper floated a reorganisation of the festival’s spaces as one possibility.
Writing in his First Floor newsletter, journalist Shawn Reynaldo argued that the most likely outcome is a 2027 campaign, possibly under a new name that sheds the baggage the brand has collected. He also noted that any new version would almost certainly still sit inside the same ownership structure. Neither theory has been confirmed by the festival.
Two difficult years behind the obituary
The mock funeral lands after the most turbulent period in the festival’s history. Sónar has been part of the Superstruct Entertainment portfolio since Superstruct bought a majority stake in 2018. When the investment firm KKR acquired Superstruct in 2024, activists and artists began targeting Sónar over KKR’s reported investments in Israel. An open letter signed by more than 80 artists urged the festival to distance itself from the firm, and a wave of acts withdrew from the 2025 lineup. Counts of those withdrawals vary between outlets, from more than 30 to more than 50.
In October 2025, founders Enric Palau, Ricard Robles and Sergio Caballero, together with partner Ventura Barba, announced they were stepping away. François Jozic, cofounder of Brunch Electronik, took over as chief executive and steered the 2026 edition.
Sónar 2026: the last edition, for now
That edition, held from June 18 to 20, broke with tradition. With construction affecting the usual daytime site in Montjuïc, the entire music programme moved to Fira Gran Via in L’Hospitalet de Llobregat, while the Sónar+D creativity and technology congress relocated to the Llotja de Mar. Charlotte de Witte, Sammy Virji, Skepta, Joy Orbison and Nia Archives were among the bookings, and The Prodigy marked 30 years of “Firestarter” with a Saturday headline show at SonarClub. We covered the first wave of that programme in our Sónar 2026 lineup report.
The festival reported 150,000 attendees across all its strands, down from the 161,000 it claimed in 2025. Catalan daily Ara noted that the figure bundled in Sónar+D, Sónar Kids and the OffSónar parties, and that the opening Thursday at Fira Gran Via reached only around half of its capacity.
The changes did not stop after June. Earlier this month, Sónar+D director Andrea Faroppa and Antònia Folguera, who had worked with the festival since its earliest days, both left. Folguera’s parting description to La Vanguardia was blunt, calling Sónar a corporate operation where only people with corporate visions remain.
Why it matters for festival culture
Sónar began in 1994 with roughly 6,000 people and grew into the template for the modern urban electronic festival: daytime programming built around experimentation, night shows built around the biggest names in club music, and a technology conference running alongside both. Few events have done as much to blur the line between art institution and rave.
That is exactly why this matters beyond Barcelona. Sónar is a test case for what happens when a festival defined by cultural credibility ends up inside a private equity portfolio, and for how much of that credibility can survive a boycott, a founder exodus and a change of venue. If the obituary leads to a new name, it would be one of the most high profile attempts yet by a major festival to reset its identity rather than repair it. If the brand simply returns in 2027, fans will judge whether the funeral was clever marketing or a misstep.
What happens next
The organisers have promised updates in the coming days. Watch for three things: whether the 2027 dates hold, whether the Sónar name survives, and whether the first artist announcement arrives on its usual November schedule. DJ Mag has the original report on the announcement, and we will update this story as soon as the festival explains itself.
Sónar is dead: FAQ
Has Sónar been cancelled?
Not officially. Sónar posted “Sónar is dead” with the dates 1994 and 2026, but the organisation has neither confirmed nor denied that the festival is ending and says more information is coming in the coming days.
Where did the “Sónar is dead” message appear?
On the festival’s website, which now hosts a book of condolences, on its Instagram, where all other posts were deleted, and in a paid obituary in La Vanguardia, with similar adverts reported in other newspapers.
Is there a Sónar 2027?
Before the takeover, the festival’s site reportedly listed June 17 to 19, 2027 in Barcelona. Those dates have not been confirmed or withdrawn since the announcement.
Who owns Sónar?
Sónar is part of Superstruct Entertainment, which bought a majority stake in 2018. Superstruct has been owned by investment firm KKR since 2024, which led to artist boycotts in 2025.
Why might Sónar rebrand?
Commentators point to the KKR controversy, the 2025 boycott, the departure of the founders and key Sónar+D staff, and lower reported attendance in 2026. The festival itself has not given a reason.
For now, Sónar has staged its own wake and left everyone guessing. The next statement out of Barcelona will decide whether this was a eulogy or an introduction.
