'Fête De La Musique' is an annual festival celebrated across the world on 2ist June. And it was done in style here in Marseille. It coincided with the 'Fête du Panier', an event organized as part of the city's position as the Cultural Capital of Europe this year.
This combination of events saw a lot of activity such as live bands, food, crowds, barbecues, etc. All roads were closed to traffic and people had come down in hoards to witness these events. Here are a few videos and pictures from the evening of 21st.
There two pictures are from the square right behind our apartment. We live in that building behind the screen.
This combination of events saw a lot of activity such as live bands, food, crowds, barbecues, etc. All roads were closed to traffic and people had come down in hoards to witness these events. Here are a few videos and pictures from the evening of 21st.
There two pictures are from the square right behind our apartment. We live in that building behind the screen.
A 40-year old college band called Fanfare Piston we have seen often around Vieux Port was playing in a corner, as usual in their good-humoured attire and loud music. Not a very decent picture of them below...
A percussion band called 'Tambores Da Liberdade' provided a pulsating and heady combination of the best beats I have heard in a long time. I am very partial towards percussion instruments and percussionists and this band just lifted my spirits sky high. For some reason, I am unable to upload the video. But please go here to check their energy despite playing for most part of a very humid evening!
We walked onward to the main event area where they had put up a big stage for famous pop artists from around France. The crowd was massive and you could a famous guy was on stage from the screams and shouts from fellow revelers. Check out the numbers that had poured out that evening in the pic below!
While we were walking around, we chanced upon a band that was either Turkish or Algerian. Towards the end, their men started dancing their folk dance and EVERYONE joined in. It was lovely! They were in a rather dark square so neither the pictures nor the videos have come out good. But I had a great time learning their dance moves.
As always, the organization was on a massive scale and it was flawless. Not a single instance of any form of harassment anywhere. It'd have been easy to pull off something crazy in these crowds. But there was nothing except maybe few cases of pick pocketing, perhaps? That's lot to say about the local attitude. They just LOVE to have fun!
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