The Petronio Alvarez festival is a 5 day music event and competition held annually in Cali, Colombia. By a process of application and selection over 90 groups are invited each year to compete for the winning title. Across several evenings, bands perform in different musical categories as five judges mark them on appearance, composition, delivery and sound. The diversity is astounding, but all music presented is rooted in the traditions of the Pacific: marimba lead currulao from the south of the coast, home made violins from cauca and cutting dual-clarinet chiramia music from the choco region. As well as strictly folkloric groups, the festival also plays host to more urban interpretations of the Pacific sound, fusing tradition with salsa, reggaeton and rap. The Petronio experience is band focused, but the crowd give so much to the event, a great sense of unity and pride is shared by all who attend. A songline sung on stage soon becomes a thousand strong sing-along echoing around the shaky concrete frame of the bull ring it is held in.

Read the entire article HERE