Source: www.Feuerwerk.net
THE FIREWORKS IN TARRAGONA, MORE INTERNATIONAL THAN EVERThe International Fireworks Displays Competition of Tarragona has got to the nineteenth year with the most international selection of all. For the first time, four foreign companies will be firing in our city, one more than on other occasions, at this competition of reference on the Mediterranean area. The six competitors have prepared 9546.12 kg of fireworks so that the 360,000 spectators who enjoy the displays can admire the latest pyrotechnic offers at international level. This year the competition in Tarragona is focused on a series of actions in order to minimize the environmental effects of this event and to improve the environmental quality, which has been agreed with the new partner, the Centre d’Iniciatives Ecològiques Mediterrènia.
The interest this competition arises, which has become the pyrotechnics fair on the Mediterranean area, is proved by the fact that this year a total of 24 companies applied for participation in some of the six available places. 16 of those companies were foreign and 8 were Spanish. Applications arrived from Germany, Australia, Canada, Italy, the UK and Sweden. The country which sent most applications was Italy, with eight companies interested in participating. Precisely this wide presence of foreign companies led to the final selection of four foreign and two local companies.
A year of premieres
This year, three companies will be firing in Tarragona for the first time: the German First Class Pyro-events, the Swedish Göteborgs and the Portuguese Macedo’s. The two Spanish –Zamorano Caballer and Astondoa- and the Italian –APE Parente- have already taken part here. In this sense, the pyrotechnic company with a wider experience in Tarragona is the Basque Astondoa, which has fired here twice before, while the Valencian and Italian have done it just once each. For the first time, a Swedish company is visiting Tarragona. Three of the participants have a long tradition. The oldest is the Italian Parente, founded at the end of the 18th century. The two Spanish companies date back from the last third of the 19th century and are therefore centenarian too. However, the German is the youngest company, with only four years of experience. In this respect, the selection committee in Tarragona has always tried to combine the presence of older and younger companies, a fact which lets us see tradition and technology in the same festival. As far as the business volume is concerned, there are three huge pyrotechnics manufacturers: the Valencian Zamorano Caballer, the Portuguese Macedo’s and the Italian Parente. The other three companies are smaller.
The prospect of the displays has created a great deal of excitement, as it is proved by the fact that specialised media and observant companies from Germany, the Netherlands and Eastern Europe are accredited. These groups will come to Tarragona with their recording equipment. The prestige of this competition is not only private but the system has also been used as a model of organisation at the recent symposium on safety organized by the City Council of Bilbao on 15th and 16th May. Tarragona’s was one of the four guest organization teams in Bilbao at this symposium on safety at big events, which had fireworks displays as the focal point.The International Fireworks Displays Competition of Tarragona shared protagonism with other well-known festive celebrations like the Falles from Valencia or the very Semana Grande of Bilbao, next to very special experiences from an insular area like the Canary Islands. This was the first time the organisation from the City Council of Tarragona had been invited in Spain next to festivities as important as the Falles from Valencia or the Semana Grande of Bilbao, a fact that strenghthens the present leadership of Tarragona in the world of pyrotechnic competitions in the Mediterranean area.
Economic impact
Yearly, 360,000 spectators see the six displays of the competition in Tarragona, of which in 2007, 87,228 came from outside the city and from other regions than Tarragona. According to a survey on the subject carried out from 6564 opinion polls, last year there were 18,339 overnight stays at the tourist area of the Costa Daurada during the week of the competition, and which were directly related to this festival. Compared to the first survey from 2006, there was an increase of visitors by 32.60%. The organisation think this success is due to the effect of the Champion of Champions, that multiplied extraordinarily the promotion of the event, apart from the prestige gained by the competition itself.
Among this number of visitors, 86% came from other regions in Catalonia and increased by 2.59% with respect to the previous year. Worth mentioning are in this order: from Baix Camp, the Tarragonès (except the city of Tarragona), the Alt Camp, Barcelonès, Priorat, Baix Penedès and Conca de Barberà. Another conclusion is the increase of the presence of interior regions from Tarragona. The competition also gathered visitors from other further Catalan regions, like the Segrià, the Pla d’Urgell , the Garrigues, the Urgell, the Noguera –from Lleida-; the Bages –from central Catalonia-; or the Gironès and Alt Empordà – from Girona-. There were also visitors from the areas of Alt Penedès, Baix Ebre, Baix Llobregat, Garraf, Maresme, Montsià, Ribera d’Ebre, Terra Alta, and Vallès Occidental and Oriental.
Visitors from the rest of Spain were 6.75% of tourists. The Valencian Country, followed by Andalusia and Galicia are the main areas of origin. Although fewer, there were also visitors from Madrid, the Basque Country, Aragon and Cantabria. Out of this group of Spanish tourists, 71.30% came to Tarragona to enjoy the fireworks competition, while 28.70% came for professional reasons related to the business of fireworks. Therefore, locally there was also an increase in business, as it grew by 5.57% with respect to 2006.
Foreign visitors were 7.25%, two points over the previous year, which can be exchanged by those coming from Spain.The countries of origin in order of attendance are: Germany, Italy, Argentina, Austria, Andorra, El Salvador, Slovaquia, Finland, France, Holland, Lebanon, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Mexico, the UK, Romanis, Sweden, Turkey and China. This amounts to a total of 17 different countries, six more than on the previous year.
From this group of foreign visitors, 47.41% came to Tarragona for pleasure, while 52.58% came for professional reasons related to the business of fireworks. Therefore, there was an increase of the professional section by 29.45%.
Habits of the audience
Also, the survey lets us know the habits of the audience. 30% attend all the displays, that is, six nights. The spectators from Tarragona are the most regular, by 31.51%. Catalan spectators also reach a similar percentage, as 30.22% watch the fireworks daily. About the members of the audience from the rest of Spain, 10.39% do it daily, while 24.66% attend a minimum of two nights. About foreign members of the audience, the most common visit is for two displays (36.36%), while 7.27% spend the whole week in Tarragona.