Island Songs: This Year’s Fête de la Musique will Connect the Whole Country via Stages in Different Philippine Destinations - Arts & Culture

#FeteFromMyIsland will have you enjoying great music from and some of your favorite PH destinations in the comfort of your own home.

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Different countries around the world will come together as one on June 21 for Fête de la Musique, the annual French tradition turned global phenomenon. The Philippine staging this year will be a nationwide musical journey, which will start on June 18.

Called #FeteFromMyIsland, the local celebrations will not only highlight artists and their music, but also our country’s natural beauty and rich culture. This will include some of the country’s most popular destinations and centers such as Boracay, El Nido, La Union, and Metro Manila.

The free-for-all online event will be streamed on the Facebook pages of Fête de la Musique PH, Alliance Francaise de Manille, and B-Side Productions, and on Kumu.

Fête de la Musique Philippines 2021 is presented by Alliance Française de Manille together with B-Side Productions and the Embassy of France to the Philippines. The event is co-organized by the Department of Tourism, a long-time partner of Fete PH in promoting and supporting OPM and Filipino artists.

Island to island

“With the health crisis affecting the Philippines for more than a year now, Fête de la Musique still endeavors to stay connected with our audience who has been celebrating music with us every year,” says Jean-Pierre Dumont, Alliance Francaise de Manille executive director.

“Together with the Department of Tourism, we will give them great music as we also celebrate the talents and the beauty of the different corners of this amazing country,” Dumont continues.

“We are truly happy and excited to be able to host the Fête de la Musique once again,” Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat adds. “As the world knows, music is a huge part of Filipino culture, and we can never pass up any opportunity to celebrate through song.”

Bayang Barrios

While we are still community quarantine restrictions around the country, Romulo-Puyat commends that the event will allow people to “travel” and revel in the wonders of our country through the incomparable musical talents of our people.

Linking cultures

Before the big virtual show on June 21, Fete de la Musique will showcase OPM legends and up-and-coming artists from Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.

The online musical journey will begin on June 18 with a Luzon pocket stage, which will feature performances by Pedicab, Radha, Parallel Uno, Celeste Legaspi, Maegan Aguilar, Zsaris, 10 a.m. Departure, Buwi, and Kayden Umali.

On June 19, talents from the Visayas will take centerstage with exciting performances by Kate Torralba, Project Yazz, Vanessa Monot, doods, soundslikefiona, Vanya, and Dumaguete Trio.

The spotlight on June 20, meanwhile, will pan to Mindanao with music from homegrown talents including KRNA, Moro Beats, Conscious & The Goodness, Joee & I, Levi, and Manic Mundane

Then, on June 21, the Philippines will join the rest of the world in celebrating music with four main stages in Metro Manila, Boracay, El Nido, and La Union.

There will be stages at destinations like (from left) El Nido, La Union, and Boracay / Photos courtesy of the Department of Tourism

The Metro Manila stage will present music by Barbie Almalbis, Joey Ayala, Bayang Barrios, Curtismith, and Leanne & Narra. They will also be joined by Jason Dhakal, The Hernandez Brothers x Lustbass, and Fatima Loo.

For the Boracay stage, there will be performances by I-Dren Artstrong, Trespeace, Mami Beth & Sajid Perez Pelayo. The El Nido stage will feature music by Jako Mandala, Eric Tarre, Robin, Mike & The Wolf, Bathala Na Groove and Jams with Dona & David, and Jewelmer Jazz Band. Lastly, Manskee, Roe Santos, and Jose x Gats Talamak will take over the La Union stage.

Helping hand

As part of the Fête de la Musique tradition in the PH, two foreign acts will play alongside Filipino musicians.  

For this year, multi-awarded and chart-topping singer, composer, and actor Raphaël, who is known for his emotive and artful contemporary pop, will be one of the highlights of the June 21 Main Stage. He has performed and collaborated with icons such as David Bowie, Vanessa Paradis and Tony Visconti to name a few. Also performing on that date is Swiss Jazz band B Connected.

In line with its vision of helping through music, Fête de la Musique 2021 will also feature a donation drive in support of Bayanihan Musikahan. The funds to be raised will be used to address a vulnerable sector of our society who have been seriously affected by the pandemic.

There will also be a Facebook photo contest supported by AirSwift, the details of which will be announced on the Fete de la Musique PH socials.

To know more about this year’s celebration and the line-up of activities and musical performances, follow them on Facebook and at @fetedelamusiqueph on Instagram.

Banner Photo by Chealsy Dale

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