Sabadell loses its most iconic music school: CEME will become homes

The historic CEME of Sabadell is closing after 37 years. The building will be converted into housing. A municipal decision that marks the end of a cultural era. Families and musicians are left bereft of their space. The change is now irreversible.

Sabadell's cultural pulse has suffered an unexpected blow: the Centro de Estudios Musicales Especializados (CEME), a reference for almost four decades, will cease to exist to make way for homes. The City Council's decision, authorising the change of use and a comprehensive renovation of the building on Espirall Street, brings an end to a period that shaped generations of musicians and families in the heart of the city.

The news comes after months of uncertainty. The definitive closure of CEME, scheduled for June 2025, is due to the school's inability to acquire the property, a condition imposed by its ownership. The property market and pressure on the urban centre have ended up suffocating an educational project that for years filled the area with life and talent.

The building, which for 37 years was an epicentre of creativity and training, will be turned into a single-family residence. The local Junta de Gobierno gave the green light to partial demolition and the conversion of the space, thereby erasing the last vestiges of an institution surpassed only by the Conservatorio in musical influence in Sabadell.

The closure leaves around 200 pupils and a community of teachers and families without their usual meeting point. CEME not only offered modern-music classes and pioneering programmes such as “Mini Músics”, but also promoted music therapy and the integration of English into musical training. Its cross-disciplinary approach made it a breeding ground for the city's bands, orchestras and cultural projects.

The farewell has not gone unnoticed. Improvised concerts and gatherings on Espirall Street have paid tribute to a history that is now fading. The change of use approved by the council seals the building's fate: soon, CEME's posters and memories will be only part of Sabadell's collective memory.

CEME was much more than a music school. It was born in the 1980s in response to demand for alternative, flexible arts training, at a time when public provision was limited. Its commitment to educational innovation and closeness to pupils made it a benchmark for families looking for something different. Over the years, the centre knew how to adapt to social and cultural changes, always maintaining its essence as an open, creative space. Its legacy endures in the hundreds of musicians and professionals who passed through its classrooms and now play an active part in Sabadell's cultural life.