Folkest: thirty-nine editions of a festival exploring music and culture from all over the world

39th Edition – from the 22th of June to the 27th of July

More than sixty events will be showcased during the 2017 edition, starting on Thursday 22nd of June in Fiume Veneto (parco casa dello studente, 09.15 p.m.) with Heron Valley, a Scottish folk band from Argyll. Playing in Italy for the first time after a British tour. The Heron Valley band will perform also in San Giovanni d’Antro (Friday the 23rd, 08.30 p.m.) and in Chiasiellis (saturday the 24th, 09.15 p.m.). On Wednesday the 28th in Montreale Valcellina, a very expected set will be played by Enzo Avitabile with his Acoustic World Tour, an acoustic reinterpretation of his wide discographic work. Among the artists performing at Folkest there are Teresa De Sio, Ray Wilson, Ron, Fairport Convention, the singer – songwriter Maldestro and many more. The festival will end with an Abdullah Ibrahim concert in Villa Manin.

Artists from all over the world, since 1979, will perform during Folkest, the main and longest-lasting festival that explores music and cultures from all over the world through a series of concerts held in 24 Friulian squares (Udine, Spilimbergo, Villa Manin; Tolmezzo, Udine), in Koper and in Slovenia.
Following last year’s focus on Sardinia, Folkest’s homage to Italian folk music will be centered around the city of Naples. Enzo Avitabile will lead the south-Italian artists. Enzo is a musician that addresses his music to outcasts from all over the world, especially those living in his homeland. He was awarded with two David of Donatello awards for the best soundtrack and the best theme song of a film called “Indivisibili” directed by De Angelis. Enzo will perform in Montreale Valcellina on the 28th of June (tickets are already available on folkest.com) with two musicians. Enzo’s tour will feature his historic songs played in a very intimate and original way. Avitabile collaborated with some of the most important musical characters in the world (James Brown, Tina Turner and Marcus Miller, to name a few), some of which from his homeland, like Pino Daniele and Edoardo Bennato.

Another important artist starring in the line-up is Teresa De Sio, whose performance will pay tribute to the late singer Pino Daniele and the performance will be held in Capodistria on the 21st of July. On Sunday the 2nd of July, thanks to the collaboration with the Pro Loco of Tolmezzo, Maldestro will perform. Maldestro is a true enfant prodige, a talented director, actor, playwright and a Targa Tenco- awarded musician too. In Tolmezzo, will also perform Nobraino (07/01) and Doro Gjat (07/02).

Songs of English tradition will cover an important role too, with british folk-rock Godfathers like the Fairport Convention (07/10 in Spilimbergo) awarded with Folkest career award, and Ray Wilson, former Genesis singer (07/11 in Spilimbergo). On the other hand, attention will be given to the Italian band called Folkstone (07/12 in Spilimbergo), folk-metal innovators, and of course to the Italian song-writer Ron (07/22 in Koper).
Closing Folkest 2017, a maestro of music, the over-eighty years old Abdullah Ibrahim will perform. Abdullah collaborated with the most important names in history of jazz and he is directly linked to the social, cultural and historical developments of the 20th century. Born Adolphe Johannes Brand in Cape Town in 1934, his career began in 1949, when he was still an adolescent, with the name of Dollar Brand. The musician lived and pursued his musical interests with Miriam Makeba in his homeland until the 60’s. In 1965 he was noticed by Duke Ellington who took him to New York. During the 70’s and the 80’s he became the most important advocate of integration in the African jazz scene. His concert will take place in Villa Manin on the 27th of July, an event belonging to the “Villa Manin – Estate nel parco” series of events, organized together with ERPac.