La Salle-URL once again participated in Sónar, Barcelona’s leading festival of music, innovation and creativity, further strengthening its collaborative relationship with one of the world's foremost meeting points for digital culture. The talent of students and faculty from the Digital Arts area was featured in Sónar+D, while the campus also hosted several activities that brought together students, researchers, artists and professionals to explore the intersections of art, science, artificial intelligence and technology.
At the Project Area, Sónar+D’s exhibition space dedicated to the creative industries, students from the Master's Degree in Digital Arts and Creative Technologies presented their projects: Pol Olivares showcased "SOFTLY SOUNDS MATTER", while Sara Gallego presented "Apellido recursivo". In addition, Professor Daniel Sabio (The Glad Scientist) and Professors Tatiana Halbach and Søren Christensen (Desilence) delivered workshops as part of the Sónar+D programme. Furthermore, ‘Dins’, an installation created by Desilence, was exhibited at Sónar at Fira Gran Via.
As part of Sónar, the Interactive Arts & Science Laboratory (IASlab), the campus’ pioneering transdisciplinary research laboratory, hosted several activities. Among them was the opening session of AI Performance Playground 2026, an initiative promoted by S+T+ARTS in which participants from diverse backgrounds experiment with artificial intelligence tools applied to music creation. Participants presented performances in the IASlab immersive room and concluded the programme at Llotja de Mar, the venue for Sónar+D.
Finally, on the day before the start of Sónar, the IASlab dome hosted the performance Wabisabi Music #1 – Particles by international artists Julie Hayashi and Yasuke Asada. This proposal combines traditional Japanese painting, improvised music and scientific imagery obtained through synchrotron technology. The session offered an immersive experience that allowed the audience to observe, in real time, the dialogue between sound, matter and artistic creation, fostering an exchange between the academic community and the invited artists.
Through this participation, La Salle-URL reaffirms its commitment to innovation, transdisciplinary experimentation and the promotion of new forms of artistic creation, while strengthening the campus as a meeting point between academia, industry and digital culture.