The festival

Society in the 21st century cannot continue to ignore what has become one of its greatest challenges: learning to live together in a multicultural environment in which difference makes us grow and uniqueness enriches us.  Today's world is marked by a globalisation in which music is one of the best catalysers for communication between peoples. The Festival reflects this spirit and is also a loudspeaker for all those pure, distant repertories where the spirit of oral traditions is still conserved. Our aim, as always, is to channel the curiosity and the transit of the citizens towards the unknown.

The Festival invites the public to experience sensations and emotions but also aims to transform our perception of the world. After ten years of existence, the Festival continues to provide food for thought on our surrounding social reality, as well as examining our heritage and building bridges between traditions. In this sense, Africa is the theme underlying the parallel activities designed to capture the issues that we are encountering.

Furthermore, the image by Bill Viola, one of the world's leading visual artists, provides the crowning touch for this ambitious programme of high-quality cultural events.

May the 10th Festival be a treat for the senses!

Anna Pagans Gruartmoner
Mayor of Girona