Music festival

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Musikfest, an eleven-day outdoor music festival held annually each August in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, is the largest free music festival in the United States, drawing over 1.3 million attendees. Weezer Bethlehem 2019 5.jpg
Musikfest, an eleven-day outdoor music festival held annually each August in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, is the largest free music festival in the United States, drawing over 1.3 million attendees.

A music festival is a community event with performances of singing and instrument playing that is often presented with a theme such as musical genre (e.g., rock, blues, folk, jazz, classical music), nationality, locality of musicians, or holiday. Music festivals are generally organized by individuals or organizations within networks of music production, typically music scenes, the music industries, or institutions of music education. [2] :160–164

Contents

Music festivals are commonly held outdoors, with tents or roofed temporary stages for the performers. Often music festivals host other attractions such as food and merchandise vending, dance, crafts, performance art, and social or cultural activities. Many festivals are annual, or repeat at some other interval, while some are held only once. Some festivals are organized as for-profit concerts and others are benefits for a specific charitable cause. [3] At music festivals associated with charitable causes, there may be information about social or political issues.

History

Ancient and medieval

The Pythian Games at Delphi included musical performances, and may be one of the earliest festivals known. [4] During the Middle Ages, festivals were often held as competitions.[ citation needed ]

Modern

Music festival in Nickelsdorf, Austria, picturing both the main stage and the camping grounds on the farm behind Novarock1.jpg
Music festival in Nickelsdorf, Austria, picturing both the main stage and the camping grounds on the farm behind
Leigo Jarvemuusika in 2007 Leigo Jarvemuusika 2007.jpg
Leigo Järvemuusika in 2007

The music festival emerged in England in the 18th century, as an extension of urban concert life into a form of seasonal, cultural festivity, structured around a schedule of music performances, or concerts. [2] :168 [5] [6] [ page needed ] Music festivals generally feature regular and extensive programming, than more spontaneous or improvised forms of music festivity. In traditional genres such as folk and classical music, a music festival can be defined as a community event, with performances of singing and instrument playing, that is often presented with a theme such as a music genre (e.g., blues, folk, jazz, classical music), nationality, locality of musicians, or holiday.

Music festivals have developed as an industry which contributes to national economies. For example, Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival earned $115 million in 2017. [7] Music festivals can be a way of building a brand for a destination, creating a unique image for it and attracting visitors. [8] For example, Lollapalooza, Electric Daisy Carnival Las Vegas, Ultra Music Festival, Electric Forest, and others.

While contemporary festivals are often represented as flourishing grounds for extraordinary experiences, [9] they increasingly serve as a way to create cultural identity, lifestyle, community, belonging and self-actualisation. [10] Furthermore, festivals are a manifestation for creating escapism [11] and a seasonal cultural economy to experience ritually and collectively. [12]

Music education

Another type of music festival is the music education, often organized annually in local communities, regionally, or nationally, for the benefit of amateur musicians of all ages and grades of achievement. [13] Entrants perform prepared pieces or songs in front of an audience which includes competitors, family and friends, and members of the community, along with one or more adjudicators or judges. These adjudicators, who may be music teachers, professors, or professional performers, provide verbal and written feedback to each performer or group. The adjudicator may be someone whom they might never meet in any other way, as is the case when an adjudicator from another city is brought in to judge. They also usually receive a certificate, classified according to merit or ranking, and some may win trophies or even scholarships. The most important aspect is that participants can learn from one another rather than compete. Such festivals aim to provide a friendly and supportive platform for musicians to share in the excitement of making music. For many, they provide a bridge from lessons and examinations to performing confidently in public; for a few of the top performers, they provide a pathway to further professional study of music in a college, university or conservatory.

Festivals around the world

Glastonbury Festival in 2005 Nearly packed at the Pyramid (323799415).jpg
Glastonbury Festival in 2005
Youth attend Przystanek Woodstock festival of rock music in Poland in 2016 07 2016 przystanek woodstock 018.jpg
Youth attend Przystanek Woodstock festival of rock music in Poland in 2016
Kiss performing at the 2010 Sauna Open Air Metal Festival in Tampere, Finland Kiss saunaopenair2010.jpg
Kiss performing at the 2010 Sauna Open Air Metal Festival in Tampere, Finland

Milwaukee, Wisconsin's 11-day event, Summerfest, promotes itself as "The World's Largest Music Festival." Operating annually since 1968, the festival attracts between 800,000 and 1,000,000 people each year, and hosts over 800 musical acts. [14] The Woodstock Festival in 1969 drew nearly 500,000 attendees, and the Polish spin-off Przystanek Woodstock in 2014 drew 750,000 [15] thus becoming the largest open air annual festival in Europe and the second largest in the world. In comparison, the Roskilde Festival in Denmark, attracts about 135,000 spectators each year. [16] Glastonbury Festival has a capacity of about 275,000 spectators, but has "fallow years" roughly every five years, so it is the biggest non-annual greenfield festival in the world. The oldest annual dedicated pop music festival in the world is Pinkpop Festival in the Netherlands, [17] though in other genres, there are much older ones: the Three Choirs Festival in the UK has run annually [18] since 1719. The Queensland Music Festival, established in 1999 and headquartered in Brisbane Australia, is the largest music festival by land mass, as a state-wide music biennial music festival, over a three-week period during July.

Lists of music festivals

Lists of music festivals in:

Lists of music festivals by genre

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Folk music</span> Music genre

Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted orally, music with unknown composers, music that is played on traditional instruments, music about cultural or national identity, music that changes between generations, music associated with a people's folklore, or music performed by custom over a long period of time. It has been contrasted with commercial and classical styles. The term originated in the 19th century, but folk music extends beyond that.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Music</span> Form of art using sound

Music is the arrangement of sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm, or otherwise expressive content. Music is generally agreed to be a cultural universal that is present in all human societies. Definitions of music vary widely in substance and approach. While scholars agree that music is defined by a small number of specific elements, there is no consensus as to what these necessary elements are. Music is often characterized as a highly versatile medium for expressing human creativity. Diverse activities are involved in the creation of music, and are often divided into categories of composition, improvisation, and performance. Music may be performed using a wide variety of musical instruments, including the human voice. It can also be composed, sequenced, or otherwise produced to be indirectly played mechanically or electronically, such as via a music box, barrel organ, or digital audio workstation software on a computer.

"World music" is an English phrase for styles of music from non-Western countries, including quasi-traditional, intercultural, and traditional music. World music's broad nature and elasticity as a musical category pose obstacles to a universal definition, but its ethic of interest in the culturally exotic is encapsulated in Roots magazine's description of the genre as "local music from out there".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Festival</span> Organised series of acts and performances

A festival is an event celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, mela, or eid. A festival constitutes typical cases of glocalization, as well as the high culture-low culture interrelationship. Next to religion and folklore, a significant origin is agricultural. Food is such a vital resource that many festivals are associated with harvest time. Religious commemoration and thanksgiving for good harvests are blended in events that take place in autumn, such as Halloween in the northern hemisphere and Easter in the southern.

The music of Hawaii includes an array of traditional and popular styles, ranging from native Hawaiian folk music to modern rock and hip hop. Styles like slack-key guitar are well known worldwide, while Hawaiian-tinged music is a frequent part of Hollywood soundtracks. Hawaii also made a contribution to country music with the introduction of the steel guitar. In addition, the music which began to be played by Puerto Ricans in Hawaii in the early 1900s is called cachi cachi music, on the islands of Hawaii.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roskilde Festival</span> Danish annual music festival held in Roskilde

The Roskilde Festival is a Danish music festival held annually south of Roskilde. It is one of the largest music festivals in Europe and the largest in the Nordic countries. It was created in 1971 by two high school students and a promoter. In 1972, the festival was taken over by the Roskilde Foundation, which has since run the festival as a non-profit organization for development and support of music, culture and humanism. In 2014, the Roskilde Foundation provided festival participants with the opportunity to nominate and vote upon which organizations should receive funds raised by the festival.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pinkpop Festival</span> Dutch music festival

Pinkpop is an annual music festival held at Landgraaf, Netherlands. It is usually held on the Pentecost weekend. If Pentecost falls on an early date in May, the festival is held later in June. Starting in 1970, at Burgemeester Damen Sportpark in the city of Geleen, Pinkpop is the oldest and longest running annual dedicated pop and rock music festival in the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Music of Azerbaijan</span>

Azerbaijani music is the musical tradition of the Azerbaijani people from Azerbaijan Republic. Azerbaijani music has evolved under the badge of monody, producing rhythmically diverse melodies. Music from Azerbaijan has a branch mode system, where chromatisation of major and minor scales is of great importance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coachella</span> American annual music and arts festival held in Indio, California

Coachella is an annual music and arts festival held at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, in the Coachella Valley in the Colorado Desert. It was co-founded by Paul Tollett and Rick Van Santen in 1999, and is organized by Goldenvoice, a subsidiary of AEG Presents. The event features musical artists from many genres of music, including rock, pop, indie, hip hop and electronic dance music, as well as art installations and sculptures. Across the grounds, several stages continuously host live music.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northwest Folklife</span>

Northwest Folklife is an independent 501(c)(3) arts organization that celebrates the multigenerational arts, cultures, and traditions of a global Pacific Northwest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Music of Goa</span> Music

Music of Goa refers to music from the state of Goa, on the west coast of India. A wide variety of music genres are used in Goa ranging from Western art music to Indian classical music. Konkani music is also popular across this tiny state. Being a former territory of Portugal, Goa has a dominant western musical scene with the use of instrument such as the violin, drums, guitar, trumpet and piano. It has also produced a number of prominent musicians and singers for the world of Indian music. Portuguese Fado also has significance in Goa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Music of Nagaland</span>

Nagaland is inhabited by 15 major tribes along with other sub-tribes. Each tribe is distinct in character in terms of customs, language and dress. It is a land of folklore passed down the generations through word of mouth. Here, music is an integral part of life.

Somerset is a county in the south-west of England. It is home to many types of music.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pol'and'Rock Festival</span> Annual music festival in Poland

Pol'and'Rock Festival, formerly known as Woodstock Festival Poland, is an annual free rock music festival in Poland, inspired by the Woodstock festival. The festival has been held since 1995. In 2009 Woodstock Festival Poland gathered an audience of over 400,000 people, in 2011 the attendance was above 700,000, in 2012 about 550,000 people, in 2013 about 500,000 and in 2014 the attendance reached a record high of about 750,000. As of 2019, the aggregate attendance of the festival is 750,000 making it one of the biggest music festivals in the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Music of Budapest</span>

Budapest has long been an important part of the music of Hungary. Its music history has included the composers Franz Liszt, Ernő Dohnányi, Zoltán Kodály and Béla Bartók and the opera composer Ferenc Erkel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kaustinen Folk Music Festival</span>

Kaustinen Folk Music Festival, celebrated yearly in July in Kaustinen, Finland, is the biggest folk music and dance festival in the Nordic countries. It was first celebrated in 1968. The festival originated in showcasing the famous local fiddle-based music tradition, which has continued uninterrupted 250 or more years, and is still the emotional core of the event. Finland has decided to propose the Kaustinen tradition into Unesco Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage spring 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cork International Choral Festival</span>

The Cork International Choral Festival is held annually in Cork, Ireland and features choirs from all over the world. About 5,000 choristers take part every year; they come from all over Ireland, from Britain, from the European continent, and sometimes from as far away as Africa, America, and Asia. Since its foundation in 1954, there have been about 3,500 choir entries. The most recent festival took place in May 2024.

Folk festivals are an important part of American community life. For the American people, popular folk festivals are important events composed of complex folklore phenomena. Folk festivals are generally used to celebrate folk music and traditional folk crafts, and some folk festivals are embodied in the form of dance and art. Some festivals are used to celebrate the harvest of crops or to gather people to watch performances and enjoy music, dance and folk culture on a specific day. These folk festivals can be categorized into music, dance, traditional culture and art as well as traditional crafts. Some folk festivals have a long history and they have been passed down from generation to generation. Even the folk festivals that have been recognized by people in recent years have received attention. There are hundreds of folk festivals in American waiting to be celebrated, and each festival has its own characteristics and style. As an inclusive country that incorporates a diverse culture, folk festivals are important events for the American people. More music festivals exist in American whether it is outdoors or indoors, the festival attracts a large number of visitors and tourists. This behavior not only promotes the economic development of every city in American, but also makes folk festivals more and more popular. In the American folk festivals, there are also some folk festivals for charity. These festivals will be held in the form of music festivals or festivals, and all the money received through the event will be used to finance poor children or for medical purposes. At the same time, some folk festivals that celebrate the harvest are also used as charity events. Crops and fruits obtained by farmers through labor are made into food or sold directly to tourists in exchange for money. These funds acquired on folk festivals are also used for charity. Folk festivals are not only a way for Americans to relax from their busy work, but also a symbol of history and culture.

References

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