Music For The People
Week-long Free Music
Fest Napuan, Fest Nalenga & Zion Fest are all free to air public music concerts combined over a week long festival held each year in the Vanuatu capital, Port Vila
The annual Fest’Napuan event is now the biggest event held in Vanuatu each year, last year attracting around 40,000 people over 5 nights. It is also now one of the most important regional cultural events held in the Pacific Islands. To date, it has featured musical artists from Japan, Samoa, Tonga, Australia, New Zealand, New Caledonia, West Papua, Rapa Nui (Easter Island), the Solomon Islands, the Fiji Islands, Papua New Guinea and Maluku (the Molucca’s).
Music For Evriwan
This year’s Fest’Napuan will be the 16th, the event having happened every year since 1996. Fest’Napuan2011 will feature local string bands (“Fest’Nalenga”, Wednesday 9th November), contemporary ‘pop’ music (Thursday 10th, Friday 11th and Saturday 12th) and Gospel music (“Zion Fest”, Sunday 13th). Confirmed overseas artists include ‘The Red Eyes’ (veteran dub reggae band from Melbourne), ‘East Journey’ (young Aboriginal group from the Kimberley), ‘Flowz’ and ‘DJ Raw’ (hip hop artists from New Zealand), ‘Raz Bin Sam’ (an Israeli reggae artist), ‘Ian Tambo’ (ni-Vanuatu-descended artist from Adelaide), a group to be nominated by the Northern Province of New Caledonia, and the winner of Radio Australia’s regional “Pacific Break” competition (still to be selected).
Each concert focuses on a blend of music central to the particular concert. Fest Napuan brings together all popular and contemporary music, Fest Nalenga uniquely Vanuatu 'String Band' music and Zion Fest celebrates gospel and religious music.
Sister Festival On Santo
In 2011, a sister festival to the Fest’Napuan, the Lukaotem Gud Santo Festival, will be established in Vanuatu’s second city, Luganville. The Lukaotem Gud Santo Festival will take place in Unity Park on the 4th and 5th of November 2011. This date, the weekend before the Fest’Napuan Festival in Port Vila, will enable some overseas musicians coming for Fest’Napuan to perform in Santo and Santo musicians attending Fest’Napuan to perform for their home audience. In addition, the Fest’Napuan Association will be sending popular Port Vila band Ruff Haos to participate in the Santo festival.
Regional Success Story
The Fest’Napuan’s regional significance has been recognised by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), which has broadcast the Fest’Napuan live to the Pacific region over its Radio Australia network since 2004, and whose “Pacific Break” competition offers a slot at the Fest’Napuan as the first prize for the best unsigned artist in the South Pacific. The opportunities for cultural exchange and networking that have resulted from the Fest’Napuan have provided significant opportunities for artists in all participating countries as well as to Vanuatu artists.
Success Through Community Support
Each year the Fest’Napuan is organised by its own committee, all of whom are volunteers. The committee comprises mostly young people, many of who are musicians themselves and many of whom are unemployed. Their participation in the organising committee provides them with skills and experience in office management, administration, logistics and organisation that greatly improves their prospects for later employment. Many have found gainful employment afterwards.
The Fest Napuan committee are thankful to all the support provided by Supporters and Sponsors alike and would like to convey their gratitude to all who help make Fest Napaun the biggest music festival in the South Pacific !
