Onde Sonore Festival

Onde Sonore Festival: music kicks off the summer in Ardea

Onde Sonore Festival is the event series that launches the Ardea Summer, a program of events promoted by the Municipality of Ardea to bring the summer months to life through concerts, performances, culture, and gastronomy. The first edition, scheduled for July 1st and 2nd, 2026, in Piazza del Popolo, in the heart of the city center, was born from the initiative of the Onda Quadra association with the aim of promoting musical culture through different languages, repertoires, and sensibilities.

A journey between opera and jazz

The festival is built around two evenings that are deeply different yet united by the same underlying idea: telling stories, evoking emotions, and exploring eras through music. The first evening is a tribute to the Italian operatic tradition, with a program designed to showcase the great classical repertoire; the second is entirely dedicated to the sounds of contemporary jazz, in an itinerary of improvisation, cross-pollination, and new forms of expression. A journey that spans over three centuries of history, from grand opera to the most current compositions.

The program of the first edition

• Wednesday, July 1st, 9:00 PM — Lyrical Gala: a lecture-concert that guides the audience through the most famous pages of Italian opera. The evening is hosted by Andrea Marcellino, a professor of history and philosophy and an expert in operatic music, who accompanies the performances with insights into the composers, historical contexts, and works that have made the Italian lyrical tradition famous worldwide.
• Thursday, July 2nd, 9:00 PM — Pash & The Jazz Mess: the quintet, formed in 2020, presents an original project of jazz and swing songwriting. The tracks, all original, address themes related to daily life, human relationships, and contemporary society, blending musical research, cross-genre influences, and reflection into a modern and engaging language.

Piazza del Popolo, the heart of the city

The choice of Piazza del Popolo as a stage is no coincidence: the festival aims to transform the historic center of Ardea into a space for meeting and sharing, returning a symbolic and accessible place to the community. Admission to both evenings is free, in line with the spirit of the Ardea Summer, designed as a program open to audiences of all ages.

Ardea Summer, a widespread program

Onde Sonore Festival is the first appointment of a rich season: the 2026 Ardea Summer runs from July to September with concerts, film screenings, food festivals, and cultural initiatives, involving the historic center, archaeological sites, museums, and public spaces of the city. The program is the result of collaboration between the municipal administration and local associations, with the goal of offering high-quality, free events for the entire community.

Ardea, between Rome and the sea

Located in the Lazio region, in the province of Rome, overlooking the coast just a short distance from the Tyrrhenian Sea, Ardea is a city with ancient roots, rich in archaeological evidence and a cultural heritage that the summer program helps to highlight. In this context, Onde Sonore Festival adds a touch of live music, inviting residents and visitors to experience summer evenings dedicated to beauty and togetherness.