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openfestivalIn the plethora of summer, Katerina visits a music festival which is also a liberation in the new Serbia, while Dejan remembers what those bands were doing in the 1990s; Harry takes us to an international theatre festival in the castle where German democracy has its roots; and Matt to the forests and lakes of Portugal, to dance for six kilometres a day. Meanwhile, Caspar, Peter and Rosemary investigate music fests in the UK: Europe's biggest street festival - the Notting Hill Carnival; Glastonbury at thirty; and the mingling of professionals and amateurs in Devon's singing revolution.
Glastonbury has been a magnetic summer gathering-place for music fans and cosmonauts of inner space for 30 years. Will its free spirit survive enclosure? Read the rest of this post...
How well do you know yourself, or what happens if you dance for six kilometres a day? You are invited to find out. Read the rest of this post...
Stroll, swagger and boogie (red stripe can in hand) through the streets of West London and the highlights of Europe’s biggest street festival. Read the rest of this post...
London’s Notting Hill Carnival has come a long way since the 1950s. Caspar Melville charts the history of the music, the traditions and, crucially, the conflict that has made the event a vital part of British multiculture. Read the rest of this post...
The Dartington festival in England’s west country has since 1947 brought together amateur and professional musicians in creative mingling. This year, the ‘infinite riches in a little room’ contained an especially suggestive magic – and it wasn’t just the lemon meringue pie. Read the rest of this post...
Harry Bauer’s native region of Palatine in south-western Germany is the home not just of endless chestnut woods, small picturesque villages, and old vineyards lined with avenues of walnut, fig and almond trees – but of the annual International Theatre Festival – held every year in its historic castle, the ‘Hambacher Schloss’, where German democracy has its roots. Read the rest of this post...
Rock music remained a vibrant and pan-Yugoslav force even up to the country’s fragmentation in the 1990s. To remember the idols and trends of those decades is not just an act of affection, but a reminder of the bonding and healing power of music. Read the rest of this post...
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