Ouvre la Voix

2026 edition cancelled

There will be no Ouvre la Voix festival in 2026. Rock School Barbey announced the news in a statement on its website: "It is with a heavy heart that we have decided to cancel the 2026 edition of our wine, cycling, and music festival, Ouvre La Voix."

The association cites two main reasons. Cuts to subsidies have "significantly undermined the festival's financial stability." Furthermore, the local political calendar—specifically municipal elections followed by votes on the formation of community councils—has "greatly delayed preparations" for the event, affecting both programming and communication. The decision is described as "difficult to make" but "necessary."

This is not an isolated case. On May 28th, 2026, Rue89 Bordeaux published an article about festivals in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region that have been forced to cancel their editions following cuts to cultural budgets. Ouvre la Voix is featured in the piece, accompanied by a photo captioned "will not take place this year."

The festival up to 2025

Ouvre la Voix is designed to be experienced by bike. The route follows the Roger Lapébie cycle path, a former railway line in the Entre-deux-Mers region, with each stop featuring a concert at locations such as old train stations, village halls, community centers, or bike stations. Along the way, visitors can enjoy stalls featuring local producers and Bordeaux wines.

The most recent edition was held from September 5th to 7th, 2025. It kicked off on Friday evening in Sauveterre-de-Guyenne, continued on Saturday from Sauveterre to Créon with Dominique A at the Espace Culturel Arcades, and concluded on Sunday with a choice of three starting points (Bordeaux, Lormont, or Créon) and a grand finale at the Aérocampus in Latresne featuring Vaudou Game.

As of mid-August 2026, no plans for a return have been announced. Any future editions will be announced on the Rock School Barbey website and the festival's official Facebook and Instagram accounts.