Festival Gascon Lo Gran Truc

From a departmental initiative to a Soustons festival

"Lo Gran Truc," which translates to "The Big Hit" in Gascon, was originally the name of a language promotion campaign launched in 2001 by GASCON Lanas, the Landes federation of Occitan associations. At that time, concerts, exhibitions, and lectures were spread across the region from Biscarrosse to Soustons and Mont-de-Marsan to Sabres, scheduled over two weeks around Saint-Luc, the peak season for wood pigeon migration in the Landes.

In Soustons, the name now refers to a two-evening festival hosted by the Nidau school, which opened in 2018 as a bilingual French-Occitan institution. Together with Pit Produccion and the Regional Council, the school organizes free performances and gatherings centered on the language that the children study in class. All donations and proceeds from the bar and meals directly support the school. The first edition took place on October 4th and 5th, 2024, with the second scheduled for October 17th and 18th, 2025.

The 2025 Program

On Friday, October 17th, 2025, at 8:30 PM, the Soustons church will host the Daunas de Còr, a female polyphonic quartet from Bigorre, with admission by voluntary donation. On Saturday, October 18th, all events will take place at the A Nòste hall: at 5:00 PM, storyteller Pierre Vidal from the Ossau Valley will lead an Occitan oral expression contest open to children from bilingual schools in the department and festival artists, complete with a jury and prizes; at 7:00 PM, the "Gran Chap" meal will be served, featuring a seasonal menu available à la carte or as a set meal for 22 € per adult and 10 € per child; at 9:00 PM, a concert by Papa Gahus, performing rock in Occitan-Gascon, preceded by Didier Tousis.