The interMEDio Festival, a variant of MED but in a special shorter version, took place last week, from 23 to 29 August, seven days from world music in a program of 14 concerts in the historic area of the city of Loulé, «in a positive balance by the organization and the artists».
“It was definitely a winning bet. We took a risk in this model adapted to times when there are still many restrictions, but even so, the public adhered to it every day of this interMEDio Festival. On the other hand, it reinforced the commercial dynamics that we have seen in Loulé, and in the Algarve in general, over the last few weeks», said Carlos Carmo, councilor of Loulé and director of the festival.
The intermedio bet on a poster based on world music, but in which quality was the dominant note.
«National projects, established artists, new discoveries, representatives of the Portuguese language, some commissions, absolute premieres in Portugal and shows with special guests, there was space for a wide range of musical variants that allowed the spectator to experience unique concerts», stressed the Municipal Council of Loulé.
This is also one of the peculiarities of the MED Festival itself: providing the public with something new in terms of musical experiences and allowing the discovery of artists.
«Even with this pandemic, it was possible to bring together a group of top artists within this concept that is part of MED's DNA. We were able to travel through Latin America, Africa, through Eastern Europe, as well as our neighbor Spain, without ever forgetting the house silver, whether they are consolidated names in national music or emerging projects. In this way, we are looking at culture in a global approach», reaffirmed Paulo Silva, artistic director of the MED Festival.
The last two nights of interMEDio also showed the best of what is done within the music industry in the world, the most unusual mergers that contribute to elevate multiculturalism.
«An example of this is the band that opened on Saturday night, the French-Algerians Tiwiza. With a “Berber rock”, they presented a repertoire that combines percussion rhythms, chaabi riffs and desert blues, but with the indomitable rock'n'roll spirit that gave strength to their performance. With lyrics sometimes in French, sometimes in Algerian, sometimes in English, the Tiwiza brought the depth of African sounds, fusing tradition and modernity in a natural way», said the Loulé local authority.
One of the most applauded concerts in the interMEDio was that of Quinta do Bil.
The «greatest representative of Portuguese folk-rock» made the audience vibrate and sing along the band's timeless themes, but this was also an appetizer for the work they are developing to mark the 25th anniversary of the iconic album “No rail do Sol” and, in this context, had the participation of Kátia Guerreiro, Rita Redshoes and guitarist Pedro de Castro on stage, and the concert would even end with a joint performance of the theme “Reunir aos Amigos”.
This Sunday, August 29, «the last day of the event», Rio sounds filled the venue, brought by the Brazilian Luca Argel. His “Samba de Guerrilha” is “a voice of protest because, for him, samba is not just carnival revelry”.
During the show «he praised Portuguese democracy and the historic moment of the 25th of April, spoke about his Brazil and its main sound, but also about his experience in Portugal, particularly in the “invicta” which has allowed him to integrate new musical influences in the their work», highlighted the Municipality of Loulé.
InterMEDio ended with the funaná of Fogo Fogo: “an authentic ballroom for the farewell of this event”.
If the epidemiological evolution allows, the MED Festival will return, in its fullest, to the historic area of Loulé at the end of June 2022.
The president of the Loulé local authority has already said what can be expected from this edition: «We want to make some restructuring, invest in new cultural dynamics and broaden the multidisciplinary range, in order to make the Festival even more complete, but always maintaining its essence, which is the its main success factor», concludes Vítor Aleixo.
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