Each year, the World Music Festival transforms Madison into an interactive world atlas. Gigantic, mythical creatures tower above the gaping crowds of UW students. A misfit marching band of adult musicians blasts zombie-mambo over the water of Lake Monona. Tibetan monks lovingly create a mandala sand painting in front of an audience of reflective Madisonians. No study abroad experience could possibly give students the opportunity to immerse themselves in as many international cultures as the World Music Festival does in only four days.
Today marks the beginning of the sixth annual Madison World Music Festival, an international festival held from Sept. 16 to 19 in Memorial Union and at the Willy Street Fair on Saturday. The festival, presented by the Wisconsin Union Directorate Theater Committee, is free and open to the public, but specifically directed toward students as an introduction to cultures worldwide. Artists from Morocco to Hungary have come together for musical performances, and workshops and lectures will offer attendees the chance to explore exotic art from around the globe.
The eclectic music lineup begins with Indian group Red Baraat playing the Memorial Union on Thursday at 6 p.m. The self-proclaimed “bangin’ bhangra brass funk group” from New York City promises to move crowds with their bouncy repertoire. Originally used to celebrate spring, Bhangra metamorphosed during the ’70s into lively dance music. The source of the genre’s key rhythm of bass and high pitch sound is the dhol, a two-headed, wooden, barrel-shaped drum. Along with bhangra, Red Baraat will play traditional Punjabi songs, music from Bollywood Hindi favorites and originals on brass, saxes and percussion.
Another performer at the Union that evening is Kepa Junkera. A native of Basque Country, Junkera is the master of another exotic instrument, the trikitixa. The petite cousin of the accordion, and often referred to as a melodeon, the trikitixa is a diatonic accordion played quickly along with a rattling tambourine beat. The combination of sounds within Junkera’s renowned arrangements creates a blissful atmosphere, a wonderful conclusion to Thursday’s events.
This year’s World Music Festival welcomes back Dragon Knights, a stilt show featuring extraordinarily crafted costumes, elaborate make-up and mysterious entertainment. This year a part-avian Gryphon will return along with a fearsome dragon, Baraka. This magical performance will take place at 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. on Friday. Dragon Knights will return on Saturday with an appearance at the Willy Street Fair.
Playing unique genres of snake-charmer-metal, gypsy-reggaetonand classical Friday is Chicago-based marching band, Mucca Pazza. Mucca Pazza, meaning “Mad Cow” in Italian, consists of 25 adult musicians. Mucca Pazza plays instruments not commonly seen in the average marching band ensemble, including a glockenspiel and a speaker-helmet electric guitar. This “nerd-corps punk circus marching band” is one you just have to see for yourself. They play Friday at 3 p.m. and 6:15 p.m.
Most of the events during the week take place at the Memorial Union, but Saturday, all festivities move to Williamson Street. The Willy Street Fair features a colorful parade and includes performances by Kepa Junkera, Dragon Knights, Hanggai and Los de Abajo.
An incredible ongoing event this week is the Tibetan monks’ construction of a mandala. In Tibetan dul-tson-kyil-khor, meaning “mandala of colored powders,” is an exquisite creative process. Over a period of several days, millions of grains of sand are meticulously placed on a flat platform in geometric shapes and ancient spiritual symbols. The resulting mandala is used as a way to re-consecrate the earth and its people.
During the World Music Festival, UW students have the opportunity to experience this unique artistic tradition at the Memorial Union’s Main Lounge from Wednesday Sept. 16 to Sunday, Sept. 20, in conjunction with The Lamas of Drepung Loseling Monastery’s “Mystical Arts of Tibet” ceremony at the Union (a ticketed event). In the closing ceremony Sunday, Sept. 20, the sand used in the creation of the mandala is then carried in a procession to Mendota Lake and deposited in it. This begins at 2 p.m.
With over eight countries represented and 24 separate events to choose from, the Madison World Music Festival embraces a diverse group of multicultural artists and delivers them to the UW community. So instead of sitting inside jamming to Green Day or dancing to Flo Rida, take advantage of the amazing medley of cultures and music free at the World Music Festival.
For more information on Madison World Music Festival as well as the complete festival schedule, please visit http://uniontheater.wisc.edu/worldmusicfest/.
