Vilanova International World Music Festival is a multicultural festival of music, workshops and conferences, that takes place every year on the third weekend of July, in

Vilanova i la Geltrú Vilanova i la Geltrú () is the capital city of Garraf '' comarca'', in the province of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Historically a fishing port, the city has a growing population of approximately 66,000, and is situated 40 km south-west of ...

, in

Catalonia Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a '' nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy. Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the no ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

. Started in 1981, it is the oldest world music festival in Catalonia , and also in Spain, having been far ahead of its time. The festival lasts for three days, from 11 o’clock in the morning until night. There are more than thirty activities for children and adults. Most of performances in this event are free. The festival is also characterized by the good atmosphere and the breadth of its audience, from Vilanova i la Geltrú locals and also tourists. The festival is organized by Vilanova i la Geltrú Council, with Catalan national government support. This festival belongs to the most selected group of world music festivals in

: Etnosur (

Alcalá la Real Alcalá la Real is a city in the province of Jaén, Spain. According to the 2006 census ( INE), the city has a population of 22,129. Geography Alcalá la Real is situated from the provincial capital, Jaén, and from Granada, on the slopes of ...

, Jaén,

Andalucía Andalusia (, ; es, Andalucía ) is the southernmost autonomous community in Peninsular Spain. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It is officially recognised as a "historical nationality". The ...

Getxo Getxo () is a town located in the province of Biscay, in the autonomous community of the Basque Country, in Spain. It is part of Greater Bilbao, and has 77,946 inhabitants (2019). Getxo is mostly an affluent residential area, as well as being th ...

( Basque Country), La Mar de Músicas ( Cartagena,

Murcia Murcia (, , ) is a city in south-eastern Spain, the capital and most populous city of the autonomous community of the Region of Murcia, and the seventh largest city in the country. It has a population of 460,349 inhabitants in 2021 (about one ...

Ortigueira Ortigueira is a seaport and municipality in the province of A Coruña the autonomous community of Galicia in northwestern Spain. It belongs to the comarca of Ortegal. It is located on the northern slope of the Serra da Faladoira, the river Me ...

(

Galicia Galicia may refer to: Geographic regions * Galicia (Spain), a region and autonomous community of northwestern Spain ** Gallaecia, a Roman province ** The post-Roman Kingdom of the Suebi, also called the Kingdom of Gallaecia ** The medieval King ...

), and Pirineos Sur (

Aragón Aragon ( , ; Spanish and an, Aragón ; ca, Aragó ) is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises th ...

). In Catalonia another important event is

Fira Mediterrania in Manresa Fira Mediterrània of Manresa (Catalonia-Spain) is a performing arts fair rooted in Mediterranean tradition. It has two main areas of focus: popular culture (based on a dialogue between traditional, regional culture and creative innovation) and wo ...

, the most important folk market in Mediterranean area. A long list of artists (more than 300) from the Catalan Countries and all over the world (from more than sixty different countries) have paid a visit to the Festival throughout its history. Some of the names on the roll have become internationally well-known and famous artists. In 2008 the Festival incorporated, for the first time, a section addressed to children, named "Small Musicians", and another known as "Vermut Meetings", in which the artists explain to the public their projects. In 2010 the Festival celebrated its 30th anniversary. Television of Catalonia produced a special program devoted to the thirty years of the festival, through the program Rodasons. Also in 2010, the festival created the network Festivals with Charm, together with the festival Altaveu in

Sant Boi de Llobregat Sant Boi de Llobregat () is a city in the Province of Barcelona in Catalonia, Spain, located on the banks of the Llobregat river. In 2019 it had 83,605 inhabitants. The city is divided into six neighborhoods (named ''barris'' in Catalan): Ciuta ...

, and Acústica in

Figueres Figueres (, ; , es, Figueras, ) is the capital of the ''comarca'' of Alt Empordà, in the province of Girona, Catalonia, Spain. The town is the birthplace of artist Salvador Dalí, and houses the Teatre-Museu Gala Salvador Dalí, a large mus ...

. In the summer of 2010 issue, Interfolk magazine said of the Vilanova festival: "one of most important appointments of the musical summer in

. FiMPT was born in full effervescence of the process of recovery of traditional elements and festivities, and conceived like an open platform to every type of traditional music, coming from the country and internationally, to announce the possibilities of expression and of definition of this type of music. Three decades after its creation, it has consolidated fully and has accredited as one of the most important examples in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

in its style and one of the most complete in its genre".

References

* Albà, Josep: "El Festival Internacional de Música Popular Tradicional de Vilanova i la Geltrú", ''Revista d'etnologia de Catalunya'', núm. 3, 1993, pp. 132–139. * Bianciotto, Jordi / Riera, Ferran: "El FiMPT de Vilanova i la Geltrú: bressol de festivals", Ajuntament de Vilanova i la Geltrú / Revista Sons, Barcelona, 2010. * ''FIMPT. Festival Internacional de Música Popular Tradicional. 25 anys. 1981-2005. Vilanova i la Geltrú'',Ajuntament de Vilanova i la Geltrú / El Cep i la Nansa, 2005. * Soler, Joan (director): "Música, dansa i teatre popular", a ''Tradicionari. Enciclopèdia de la cultura popular de Catalunya'', vol. 6, Enciclopèdia Catalana, barcelona, 2006.

External links

Official websiteFiMPT at WomexFiMPT information at Womex website
{{Music festivals in Spain Vilanova i la Geltrú Music festivals in Catalonia World music festivals Music conferences Folk festivals in Spain Summer events in Spain