The summer’s…coolest breeze blows at the wind instrument celebrating Festival in Katydata. For the sixth consecutive year it takes on a different look in music tradition.

The winds are once again taking a starring role in contemporary music creation, drawing inspiration from world music traditions, as Windcraft Music Fest returns to Katydata, over the weekend of 10-11 August 2019. This year’s event however, aims at hitting a higher note, as street arts will be taking a prominent role in the Fest’ six edition programme.

While harmonically combining traditional and modern arts, Windcraft Music Fest has turned into an institution with the main aim of promoting the remarkable work of Cypriot and foreign artists and encouraging their cooperation, while seeking to interactively include its visitors in the process of musical creation. The ultimate goal of the event is to revive the wider rural region of Solea, situated in the mid-western parts of Cyprus, by… blowing a wind of artistic creation and high energy from the urban centers to the island’s countryside.

By pursuing the conviction that art is not simply found onstage but also in every corner of our lives, this year’s event is especially turning its focus on street arts. Next to an international line-up of bands that will perform on stage, get ready to experience music, dance and visual arts in every corner of the village. Moreover, the Festival’s programme includes workshops, screenings, theatrical plays for children and other activities which will invite each and every visitor to act, explore and exchange experiences and enjoy the wonderful process of artistic creation.

This year’s line-up promises to deliver moments of magic and spontaneous body movement and expression. A number of bands, who are mixing music traditions of the world with modern sounds will appear at the Festival’s three idyllic stages; at the Inn, the Garden and the Square.

French band ‘Ndiaz with roots from the region of Britany are making “acoustic trance” with Brazilian, Middle Eastern and Indian music elements, while The Khat are reviving Yemen’s music tradition with Arab and Jewish lyrics, dressed with sounds coming out of modern, partially handmade, music instruments. Bunta Planedo will be inviting you to dance on electronic covers of well-known songs from Greece and the Balkans. Agios Lavrentios Brass Band’s will be lifting up your spirits with a fusion of Balkan and New Orleans melodies, while Nicolas Tryfonos Quintet will be taking you on a trip to the E. Mediterranean, with a jazz soundtrack.

Also, a special occasion to this year’s line-up are the three new collaborations of Cypriot bands with foreign musicians. Guitarist Odysseas Toumazou’s trio will be joining forces with the innovative EWI and sax player, Itai Weissman, for a show that will take the form of an album presentation of their debut album Ensticto. Latin jazz band Macumba, who recently collaborated with percussionist Nils Fischer in studio, during the recording of their album Como Jugando, will also be taking the stage.

Finally, duet LARVA, which is creating new sounds while drawing inspiration by Cypriot folk music, will be sharing the stage with sax player, Federico Pascucci. Setting the tone early on in the Festival will be Windcraft Band and Batukinio, who with their wind instruments and percussions, respectively, have been assigned with the role of launching this year’s event.

Meanwhile, Windcraft is expanding its activities outside of the confines of the Solea valley district, as this year, the organization has forged a new partnership with Rialto Theatre of Limassol, and will be organizing a residency for professional wind musicians and percussionists in the context of the Rialto World Music Festival. The residency will be held in the Limassol District village of Lofou, up in Troodos, in the period between July 28 and August 1, with New Zealander sax player Hayden Chisholm as the coordinator. The creative fruits of this residency will also be presented at the Windcraft Music Fest.

This year’s Windcraft Music Fest is inviting you to lose yourselves over music’s spells and be charmed by the sound of the winds. Wander in the narrow streets and olive gardens of the village, and capture the moment by creating a music documentary with the help of your smartphone, explore your voice or join the rhythm by beating the drums, design your own mandala, dream with the Little Prince in a Cypriot fashion or simply follow Katydata’s bright August stars…

*Windcraft Music Fest is organised by the non-profit organisation Windcraft Loud and sponsored by the Cultural Services of the Ministry of Education and Culture and the Deputy Ministry of Tourism. The festival has been awarded the European EFFE Label for the period of 2019-2020.

*Browse the Festival’s programme in detail on www.windcraftmusicfest.com

Sponsors: Cultural Services of the Ministry of Education and Culture, Deputy Ministry of Tourism
Supporters: Goethe-Institut Zypern, C.G. Georgallis, Katydata Community Council
Media Sponsors: CyBC (RIK), Kathimerini newspaper
Partners: Rialto Theatre, Codarts Rotterdam