The venue will once again be the Quarry Park at the Penang Botanic Gardens. It is a tranquil and nature-inspired setting to showcase the diverse range of musicians that will be making Penang home in the last week of March this year.

A total of 12 bands will be featured at the festival during the two days. Among them are Mu from Portugal, Kimi Djabate (Guinea- Bissau), Nasout (Iran), Alp Bora Quartet (Turkey), Saharadja (Indonesia), Inka Marka (South America), Kalayo (Philippines) and Malaysian bands.

Each of the bands will showcase their unique music and instruments and together they will create a world tune that will rock the Pearl of the Orient. Mu will present the upbeat Portuguese folk tune using the bazouki and hurdy gurdy, cello and percussion while Kimi and his talented musicians will serenade the audience with the sound of Africa on the balafon.

Inka Marka will be making their second appearance at the festival, having performed once in 2007. This South American band will showcase the tunes of the Andes.

Kalayo which means fire is expected to put the heat on at the festival with their melodic traditional folk music infused with pop rock beat.

All the bands will be performing at the concert at night and in addition daily workshop sessions with the musicians will take place in the afternoon prior to the concert. This workshop allows the public and audience to participate and learn the unique music making processes of the international artists. The event will be held in the open air and will proceed through any weather conditions.

This encourages an atmosphere of openness and will enrich the visitors’ experience as opposed to conventional concert venues.  From the traditional to the avant garde, the rich spectrum that is World Music will be represented over two exciting days and nights of music and friendship.

This annual festival is organized by the Penang State Tourism Development and Culture Office and it is aim at attracting visitors to the island state. Tickets to the festival are priced at RM80 per day for adult and RM40 per day for a child between five and 12 years old.

For inquiries on the festival, please e-mail to info@visitpenang.gov.my

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I can still remember the first year I was there. It didn’t live up to its hype. It was so much smaller than Kuching’s Rainforest World Music Festival. But still, it rained and I remember clearly the few of us dancing in the rain. It was great and such a nice feeling to be able to feel the music that transcends culture and geography.

The second one was such a blur. It wasn’t great. I didn’t like it. I remember a friend of mine Samantha being there but I was disappointed in the act and the energy.

Thank god, this year it came back. With a vengeance. I was a part of their photography team and being there to capture this event was phenomenal. The crowd, the atmosphere, the acts, the stage, the people… everything was top class. One thing for sure people… if you’re there for the experience, it didn’t disappoint. If you’re there expecting the place to explode, you might want to simmer down. At the end of the day, be there with an open mind and be prepared to make a fool out of yourself. You’ll come out wiser.

Now, let’s take a look at the scene.

First up was Rentak Balai representing Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. Then we had Phong Nguyen Ensemble originating from Vietnam. Their folklore tunes were enigmatic and it was genuinely beautiful. After PNE, it was time for Will Crummer& the Rarotongans hailing all the way from New Zealand. Their upbeat music and vocals brought the place to their feet and we were mesmerized by Will and his family. Griff Trio from Belgium came up next with their beautiful bagpipes. They played the tunes of different bagpipes originating from different cultures and places. After that, Wild Marmalade from Australia came on and they were absolutely pumping with their high-energy dances. The didjeridoo tune was an eye opener. It totally rocked the place. Finally, our own Malaysia ASEANA Percussion Unit came on with their 10 piece extravaganza. I didn’t stay for the after-party featuring The FIX but Saturday will be a whole different ballgame.

Enjoy…

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State Tourism Development and Culture Committee chairman Danny Law said the shuttle buses would pick up passengers from George Town, Queensbay Mall and hotels in Batu Ferringhi to the venue, and vice versa.

He advised those heading to the festival to use these shuttle buses or car-pool to help reduce possible traffic congestion.

“As the road leading to the gardens will be closed, those who still intend to drive may park their cars at the Penang Municipal Park and hop on one of the shuttle buses stationed there to ferry them to the venue,” Law said in an interview.

He said the shuttle buses from the Muni-cipal Park will be free while passengers have to pay to take the buses from the other places.

He said the ticket price and other details for the shuttle buses, such as their schedule, would be announced later.

Law said the organisers hoped at least 12,000 people would come for the three-day festival from March 30 to April 1.

“Music festivals like these are a crowd-puller anywhere in the world. It brings revenue to local businesses like hotels, restaurants and shops, which will benefit from the visitors’ spending.

“It was previously one of Penang’s biggest draws and many quarters have been urging us to bring it back,” he said.

He said the expected influx of local and foreign visitors for the event was expected to benefit the local economy to the tune of several million ringgit.

Law said the state government was spending some RM1.5mil to organise the festival again after a three-year hiatus.

He appealed for more parties to come forward and sponsor the event to help offset costs.

Eighteen bands will perform at the festival which is organised by Law’s office, with UCSI Communications Sdn Bhd as the event management consultant.

One-day passes are priced at RM90 (adults) and RM45 (children) while three-day passes are RM220 and RM120 respectively.

They can be obtained online at www.ticketxpress.com.my or through ticket hotlines at 016-4110000 (via Law’s office) and 013-3398113 (via Discovery Overland Holidays). For more information, visit www.penangworldmusic.com or www.visitpenang.gov.my.

For sponsorship inquiries, contact Law’s office at 04-6505136.

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Together, Grace Nono (pic) and Bob Aves have successfully brought the Philippines contemporary culture-based music to the world and they will be performing at the coming Penang World Music Festival 2012 in March. They will perform with a mix of talented musicians and The Grace Nono-Bob Aves Group is expected to take the festival audience dancing to their tempo.

Grace songs are mostly about issues of importance to Filipinos like the living identity, environment, women’s issues and inter-faith spirituality. Bob, a graduate from the Berklee college of Music in Boston, is known for his effort in championing the development of Philippine-South East Asian jazz with mainstream jazz and integrating the region’s traditional musical elements, leading to the establishment of a distinct jazz identity.

Both Grace and Bob have been collaborating for more than two decades, either performing or lecturing about their music and songs. They are not only known back home in Philippines but they had also created a name for themselves within the region.

Catch Grace Nono and Bob Aves Group at the festival from March 30 to April 1, 2012. The festival will be stage at the Quarry Recreational Park, Botanic Gardens.

The festival will also showcase other world renowned bands like Wild Marmalade from Australia, Maite Hontele (Colombia), Griff Trio (Belgium), Loyko (Russia), Phong Nguyen Ensemble (Vietnam), Tori Ensemble (South Korea), Gus Teja World Music (Indonesia), Altan Urag (Mongolia), Kalja Riddim Klan (Vanuatu) and Will Crummers & The Rarotongans (New Zealand). These foreign bands will be join by Malaysian own groups like Aseana Percussion Unit from Kuala Lumpur, Didit Dinai (Sarawak), Rentak Balai (Negeri Sembilan), Penang Dhol Blasters (Penang) and Geng Wak Long (Kelantan).

With all the big names in the world music scene, the festival is one event that should not be missed. Organised by the Penang State Tourism Development and Culture office, the festival is managed by UCSI Communications Sdn Bhd (UComms) and supported by Hard Rock Hotel Penang, Discovery Overland Holidays, Canon Marketing (M) Sdn Bhd, KDU College Penang Campus, Virtual Malaysia and Straits Quay.

Tickets to festival is priced at RM90 and RM45 per day for adult and children (between 5 to 12 years) respectively. Besides daily ticket, three-day ticket priced at RM220 per adult and RM120 per child is also available. Tickets can be purchase online at www.ticketxpress.com.my, all Discovery Overland Holidays Offices nationwide and Penang State Tourism Development and Culture Office (hotline: 016 4110000).

The festival’s program include music workshop from 2pm to 5pm, Kidz World workshop from 5pm to 6pm and night concert starting from 7pm. There are also various booths selling wide selections of food and beverages, souvenirs, musical instruments, t-shirts, performers’ CD and services like face painting and airbrush tattoo at the Festival Bazaar.

The post Grace Nono And Bob Aves To Woo World Music Fans With Philippines’ Contemporary Culture-based Music At The Pwmf 2012 appeared first on Penang World Music Festival.

State Tourism Development and Culture Committee chairman Danny Law Heng Kiang said lights surrounding the stage would be off and only minimal lights would be switched on at the stage that night.

“We will provide candles to the public and the atmosphere under candlelight for an hour will be fun,” he said.

The Earth Hour will be observed from 8.30pm to 9.30pm on March 31.

The open-air festival will feature 13 international bands from Africa, Australia, Belgium, New Zealand, the Philippines, Colombia, South Korea, Russia, Mongolia, Vietnam and Indonesia.

Planning transport to fest: Law (third left) with UCSI Communications acting director of business development and operations Tan Chung Siong (third right), Canon Marketing (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd (Penang Branch) senior branch manager Francis Kim (fourth left) and Tanjung Bungah Beach Hotel assistant director Belinda Yeoh (left) posing in front of a Rapid Penang bus at Tanjung Bungah Beach Hotel.
Seven Malaysian bands will also be participating.

Law said there was ample parking lots for the public at the Penang Municipal Park or along one side of the Jalan Kebun Bunga leading to Botanic Gardens.

“We will also provide 10 vans to transport the public from the Penang Municipal Park to the Penang Botanic Gardens’ Quarry Recreational Park.

“We will discuss with Rapid Penang how to provide transport from Batu Ferringhi to Penang Botanic Gardens for RM1.

“We plan to arrange for one Rapid Penang shuttle bus to stop at every hotel to pick up guests going to the festival.

“However, this is still under discussion,” he told a press conference at Tanjung Bungah Beach Hotel yesterday.

Law said the state government was spending RM1.5mil to organise the festival again after a three-year hiatus.

There will also be a festival bazaar offering a wide range of food and beverages, souvenir items, handicrafts and CDs of performers.

“We got feedback that the ticketing price of RM90 is quite high for them, so the organisers have now decided to offer two tickets for the price of one.

“Those who purchase the tickets earlier can redeem for the free ones at my office on Level 53, Komtar, during office hours before the start of the event,” he said.

Law added that he hoped the festival from March 30 to April 1 would achieve its target of attracting 3,000 people per day.

Tickets are available at Discovery Overland Holidays offices (013-3398113), the Penang Tourism Development and Culture Office (016-4110000/04-6505136), Switch outlets in Queensbay Mall (04-6465591), Gurney Plaza (04-2295591), Sunway Carnival (04-3972591) and USM (04-6588591).

They are also available online at www.ticketxpress.com.my.

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While the workshop is dedicated to youngsters, adults and those young at heart are also encourage to attend and participate in the fun.

Various interesting programs have already been lined up for the Kidzworld Workshop and all these will involve active participations from the audiences. They will have the opportunity to learn about the art of Wayang Kulit at the workshop titled Shadow Play. This workshop will be held on the first day of the festival.

Those with passion for percussions and drums should not give the Little Drummers workshop a miss. This workshop will be held on Saturday evening and it will be conducted by the members of Aseana Percussion Unit.

An added attraction to the Little Drummers workshop is that Aseana Percussion Unit will give out some percussion to the audience to bring home. However, the number to be given away is limited.

Another interesting workshop to look out for at the Kidzworld Workshop is the salsa dancing with Maite Hontele, the band from Colombia. Called Salsa Me, Salsa You, this workshop is scheduled on Sunday evening.

Fan of salsa dance should come dressed up and ready to do the Salsa.

Besides learning about art, culture, dance and music, those attending the Kidzworld Workshop will also have an opportunity to bring home an attractive bag sponsored by Canon Marketing (M) Sdn Bhd. Cannon will give out 50 bags each day at the Kidzworld Workshop area.

The three-day festival will be staged at the Quarry Recreational Park, Botanic Gardens in Penang from March 30 to April 1. The event is organized by the Penang State Tourism Development and Culture Office and it is supported by E&O Trading, Capital fm, Hard Rock Hotel Penang, KDU College, Penang Campus, Virtual Malaysia and Discovery Overland Holidays.

A total of 18 bands will be featured at the festival and these bands come from various countries and will showcase wide genre of world music. The bands will also bring with them all kind of traditional and unique musical instruments.

The bands are Grace Nono and Bob Aves Group from Philippines, Kalja Riddim Clan (Vanuatu), Altan Urag (Mongolia), Will Crummers & The Rarotonga (New Zealand), Tor Ensemble (South Korea), Didit Dinai (Sarawak), Gus Teja World Music (Indonesia), Griff Trio (Belgium), Geng Wak Long (Kelantan), Phong Nguyen Ensemble (Vietnam), Loyko (Russia), Rentak Balai (Negeri Sembilan), Beoga (Ireland) and Penang’s own Penang Dhol Blasters.

Tickets to the festival are now on sale online at www.ticketxpress.com.my and at both Penang State Tourism Development and Culture Office (hotline: 016 4110000) and Discovery Overland Holidays offices nationwide. Tickets are price at RM90 per day for adult and R45 per day for a child age between five and 12 years old. Three-day ticket is priced at RM220 each for adult and RM120 each for a child.

Besides the Kidzworld Workshop, other programs at the festival are music workshop from 2pm to 5pm and night concert which starts at 7pm. There is also a Festival Bazaar with stalls selling wide variety of food and beverages, souvenir items, apparel, fashion accessories, musical instruments, performers’ CDs, spa service and air brush tattoo.

Prior to the actual festival date, two preview shows will also be held. The first preview show will be at Hard Rock Hotel Penang on March 28 and another one at Straits Quay on March 29.

For more information, you can visit http://www.penangworldmusic.com/.

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Instead, they infuse contemporary influences and the end result is a unique musical style that has been widely accepted by world music fans.

Not forgetting their roots, Altan Urag has also showcases their unique traditional instruments like the morin khuur (horse head fiddle), ikh khuur (grand horse head fiddle) bishguur (traditional horn) and yoochin (a type of hammered dulcimer) to create wonderful tunes.

They are also featuring the khoomii (throat singing) in their acts, throat singing is unique to Mongolian.

A household name in the music industry back home, Altan Urag’s music has also been prominently featured in the Mongolian movie. The first was in 2006 for the film Khadak and another in 2007 for the movie Mongol.

Altan Urag will be among the 18 bands performing at the Penang World Music Festival. The festival is organized by the Penang State Tourism Development and Culture Office and is it from March 30 to April 1. The festival will be held at the Quarry Recreational Park, Botanic Gardens in Penang.

The other bands coming to the festival include Beoga from Ireland, Grace Nono and Bob Aves Group (Philippines), Kalja Riddim Clan (Vanuatu), Aseana Percussion Unit (Kuala Lumpur), Will Crummers & The Rarotonga (New Zealand), Tor Ensemble (South Korea), Didit Dinai (Sarawak), Gus Teja World Music (Indonesia), Griff Trio (Belgium), Geng Wak Long (Kelantan), Phong Nguyen Ensemble (Vietnam), Loyko (Russia), Rentak Balai (Negeri Sembilan), and Penang’s own Penang Dhol Blasters.

Tickets to the festival are now on sale online at www.ticketxpress.com.my and at both Penang State Tourism Development and Culture Office (hotline: 016 4110000) and Discovery Overland Holidays offices nationwide. Tickets are price at RM90 per day for adult and RM45 per day for a child age between five and 12 years old. Three-day ticket is priced at RM220 each for adult and RM120 each for a child.

The festival program include music workshop held daily from 2pm to 5pm and Kidzworld workshop from 5pm to 6pm. The night concert will kick off at 7pm and each night six bands will take centre stage.

There will also be a Festival Bazaar with booths set up around the festival venue and offering wide selection of food and beverages, souvenir items, spa service, musical instruments, apparels and air brush tattoo.

Two preview shows will be held prior to the festival proper. The first preview will be at Hard Rock Hotel on March 28 and the second one at Straits Quay on March 29. The preview shows are scheduled at 8pm.

The organizing of the festival is supported by KDU College, Penang Campus; Virtual Malaysia; Hard Rock Hotel Penang; Discovery Overland Holidays; E&O Trading; Cannon Marketing (M) Sdn Bhd and Capital fm.

For more information, you can visit http://www.penangworldmusic.com/.

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The festival is organized by the Penang State Tourism Development and Culture Office and managed by UCSI Communications Sdn Bhd (UComms). The festival is also supported by KDU College, E&O Trading, Capital fm, Penang Campus, Virtual Malaysia, Hard Rock Hotel Penang, Discovery Overland Holidays and Cannon Marketing (M) Sdn Bhd.

Tickets to the festival are now on sale online at www.ticketxpress.com.my and at both Penang State Tourism Development and Culture Office (hotline: 016 4110000) and Discovery Overland Holidays offices nationwide. Tickets are price at RM90 per day for adult and R45 per day for a child age between five and 12 years old. Three-day ticket is priced at RM220 each for adult and RM120 each for a child.

Two preview shows will be held prior to the festival date. The preview shows will be at Hard Rock Hotel Penang on March 28 and at Straits Quay on March 29.

The daily festival program include music workshop from 2pm to 5pm, a one-hour Kidzworld workshop from 5pm and night concert from 7pm onwards.

There is also a Festival Bazaar offering wide selection of food and beverages, souvenir items, festival t-shirt, performers’ CD, apparels, fashion accessories, face-painting and airbrush tattoo will be available at the festival ground.

For more information, you can visit http://www.penangworldmusic.com/.

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Three bands will be performing at each show and members of the public are invited to attend these two preview shows.

The preview shows are the prelude to the actual festival which will kick start from March 30. The three-event which will end on April 1 will be held at the Quarry Recreational Park, Botanic Gardens in Penang.

A total of 18 bands including five from Malaysia will be performing at the festival and their music is varies ranging from court royal tune to salsa, celtic, oriental and reggae tunes.

The festival will showcase big names like Grace Nono and Bob Aves Group from Philippines, Kalja Riddim Clan (Vanuatu), Altan Urag (Mongolia), Will Crummers & The Rarotonga (New Zealand), Tor Ensemble (South Korea), Gus Teja World Music (Indonesia), Griff Trio (Belgium), Phong Nguyen Ensemble (Vietnam), Loyko (Russia), Beoga (Ireland) and they will be join by Malaysian bands like Penang’s own Penang Dhol Blasters, Aseana Percussion Unit (Kuala Lumpur), Didit Dinai (Sarawak), Rentak Balai (Negeri Sembilan) and Geng Wak Long (Kelantan) . Together, all these bands will orchestrate a world beat that will rock the Pearl of the Orient.

Tickets to the festival are now on sale online at www.ticketxpress.com.my and at both Penang State Tourism Development and Culture Office (hotline: 016 4110000) and Discovery Overland Holidays offices nationwide. Tickets are price at RM90 per day for adult and R45 per day for a child age between five and 12 years old. Three-day ticket is priced at RM220 each for adult and RM120 each for a child.

The festival is organized by the Penang State Tourism Development and Culture Office is supported by KDU College, Penang Campus; E&O Trading; Virtual Malaysia; Hard Rock Hotel Penang; Discovery Overland Holidays; Cannon Marketing (M) Sdn Bhd and Capital Fm Sdn Bhd.

Various interesting program has also been line up for the festival goers to enjoy. The programs are targeting at both the young and the old alike and it is for a wholesome festival experience. The festival gate will open at 12noon while the first workshop will begin at 2pm. The workshop will last until 5pm and it will continue on with the Kidzworld workshop and this is for an hour.

All the workshops are lively and engage the festival goers to participate. The night concert will start at 7pm and six bands will be featured each night and festival goers will not see a repeat of the bands during the three nights. Thus, it is best for them to buy the tickets for all the three days so as not to miss any of the bands.

There will be numerous booths set up at the Festival Bazaar for the audience to enjoy. There will be variety of food and beverages stalls as well as stalls selling handicrafts, souvenir items, fashion apparels and accessories, musical instruments, performers CD and festival t-shirts. There is also a booth offering spa treatment and another on air brush tattoo.

For more information, you can visit http://www.penangworldmusic.com/.

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With music genre ranging from blues to salsa and reggae, the upcoming PWMF 2012 is definitely not an event to be missed. Organized by Penang’s State Tourism Development and Culture Office, PWMF 2012 promises to be an exciting event to look out for this year! The tourism office has appointed UCSI Communications Sdn Bhd (UComms) as the event management consultant, to ensure the smooth running of the festival.

To be staged at the picturesque Quarry Recreational Park, Botanic Gardens from March 30 to April 1, 2012, the upcoming festival will feature musicians from all corners of the world from places like Africa, Australia, Philippines, Colombia, South Korea, Russia, Mongolia and Bali. Together with the local Malaysian bands, they will orchestrate a world beat that will definitely rock the Pearl of the Orient.

Among the 18 bands to perform at the festival include Maite Hontele from Colombia, Kalja Riddim Klan (Vanuatu), Gus Teja World Music (Bali), Beoga (Ireland), Tori Ensemble (South Korea) and Wild Marmalade (Australia), Loyko (Russia), Altan Urag (Mongolia), Guinee Percussions (Africa), Phong Nguyen Ensemble (Vietnam), Griff Trio (Belgium), Will Crummers and the Rarotongans (New Zealand) and Grace Nono and Bob Aves Group (Philippines). They will be joined by Malaysian own bands with the like of Aseana Percussion Unit, Didit Dinai, Penang Dhol Blasters, Kumpulan Minang Moh and Geng Wak Long.

The beautiful landscape garden at the Botanic Gardens will provide the magical backdrop to the open-air festival which will start from 2pm with the musical workshop. Other programs at the festival include the Kidzworld workshop which will be from 5pm to 6pm and the night concert which will commence from 7pm. There will also be festival bazaar offerings wide selection of food and beverages, souvenir items, handicrafts and the performers CDs for festival goers to enjoy.

Tickets to the festival are now available online at www.ticketxpress.com.my, priced at RM90 per day for adult and RM45 per day for a child between five and 12 years old. Three-day tickets are also available and are priced at RM220 each for adult and RM120 each for child.

Beside online, tickets are also sold at all Discovery Overland Holidays offices (tel: +6 013 3398113) and Penang Tourism Development and Culture Office (tel: +6 016 4110000).

Hard Rock Hotel Penang is the official hotel for the festival and the international-chain hotel will house all the musicians and the invited media during the festival.

The organising of the festival is also supported by Virtual Malaysia, KDU College, Penang Campus and Straits Quay.

A preview show will be held at Hard Rock Hotel on March 28, 2012 and another at Straits Quay on March 29, 2012.

Band Brief
Aseana Percussion Unit (APU) from Kuala Lumpur which incorporates various ethnic musical instruments ranging from the Malay’s kompang, gendang and serunai; Indian’s tabla and thavil; Chinese’s erhu and dizi in their music. Reflecting the multi racial society of Malaysia, APU infuses the country’s own myriad rhythms and musical influences into a contemporary world music style with a passionate drive and exuberance in a continuous effort to introduce Malaysian music to the world. APU is known to create a wonderful uplifting tempo which reflects the colours of the rhythms and sounds of Malaysia.

Maite Hontele (Colombia) grew up surrounded by music especially the sound of son, salsa and changui beats. Being a daughter of a musician, it was only natural that Maite joined a brass band in her neighbourhood, playing the trumpet at the tender age of 14. Later on she joined bigger bands and performed in various concerts and festivals around Colombia. Now she is settled in Colombia and began a project name Lledgo’ la Mona, Tributo a la musica Colombiana.

The Grace Nono-Bob Aves Group (Philippines) is Philippines’s foremost world music group that spanned over two decades of partnership between two special artistes whose successful collaboration and vision brought the country’s contemporary culture-based music to the world. Grace Nono is an award-winning Philippine world music artiste known for her contemporary interpretation of Philippines traditional chants and for singing about living identity, environmentalism, women’s issues and inter-faith spirituality. A graduate from Berklee College of Music in Boston, Bob Aves is known for his effort in championing the development of Philippine-South East Asian jazz with mainstream jazz and integrating the region’s traditional musical elements, leading to the establishment of a distinct jazz identity.

Tori Ensemble (South Korea) is a world music project group, comprising of four Korean traditional musicians. Combining meditative melody of royal court music with the dynamic and rough rhythm of folk, Tori Ensemble has cleverly re-arranged it into a new modern sound. Making use of Korea’s diverse traditional music, the band is harmonizing Eastern with Western forms, concocting a new sound of beautiful music that can be appreciated by people of all ages and origins.

Wild Marmalade (Australia) is an energetic trance, drum and Didjeridoo band based in Byron Bay, Australia. Playing “totally live” without using any electronic machines, Wild Marmalade’s music is inspired by dance music. Blending the ancient sounds of the didjeridoo with contemborary dance beats, their sound is a meeting of Didge Si’s rhythmic didjeridu playing, combined with the explosive grooves of the drum kit.

Loyko Band (Russia) was originally formed as duet by Sergey Erdenk in 1990. Now the band has expanded to include another member but Loyko’s original musical influence base on the style Gypsy music from Russia remained intact. As the band progress, Loyko has also infused its music with Celtic, traditional Romanian and Hungrian tunes and classic music. The new variant of Loyko, in which Sergey Erdenk, George Osmolovskiy and Michael Savichev takes part, is a result of a long evolution of the band.

Guinee Percussions (Africa) comprised of some of Africa’s finest percussionists, musicians, dancers and acrobats, and together they present a truly electrifying performance enriched by the interweaving of musical expression with cultural tradition. By Sharing Africa’s rich cultural legacy through music, dance and storytelling, Guin’e Percussions wish to contribute to global awareness of the unifying power of the arts to foster respect, gender equality, mutual understand and peace through the world.

The Kalja Riddim Klan (Vanuatu) was formed in 2005 after a few friends started to travel around the archipelago of Vanuatu to explain on the custom songs. Inspired by the beats and messaged deeply rooted in culture and tradition, not only did this group of friends created a musical concept, they went to form a band. Their concept is simple- mixing the strong roots and culture of Vanuatu with actual music style and blending with international instruments. The end result is a genuine fusion of traditional and modern perspectives but spurred from the stories of their great grandparents.

The Penang Dhol Blaster (Penang) is a representation of Penang’s multi racial society. Made up of a group of young Dhol performers, they are sure to get the festival dancing to their blastering beat.

Didit Dinai (Sarawak) is an up and coming new star from the Land of the Hornbill. Made up of young and talented performers, Didit Dinai’s music is a blend of traditional and contemporary beat that can be enjoyed by all. Showcasing all the traditional sounds and folk songs of the multi ethnic groups in Sarawak in their music, Didit Dinai’s repertoire is definitely unique and rich in rhythms.

Kumpulan Minang Moh (Negeri Sembilan) is of the Orang Temuan group, one of the indigenous groups in Malaysia. Steep in tradition, the Orang Temuan group is still keeping their culture very much alive and this is reflected in Kumpulan Minang Moh’s music. They will be performing songs and dances accompanied by traditional instruments which are mostly hand-made.

Altan Urag (Mongolian) is Monglian folk rock band that was formed in 2002. As the band members were trained in classical Mongolian music, Altan Urag musical style is very unique after they blended in the traditional tunes with contemporary influences. Formed in 2002, Altan Urag will showcase some of the most unique instruments from Mongolia and their performances also include throat singing.

Gus Teja World Music (Indonesia) is an ethnic music group that blends traditional musical instruments mostly bamboo xylophone, flute and drums with modern instruments like bass guitar. While their music has all the Balinese influence, Gus Teja World Music will also features flutes from all over the world in their performances.

Beoga (Ireland) music is expected to seduce a diverse array of music lovers with their wide repertoire of bluesy riffs to jazzy tunes to raunchy New Orleans jamboree vibes and wonderfully bouncy Irish sound. Energetic yet refreshing, Beoga’s musical creativity will get the festival goers dancing away under the star light.

Geng Wak Long (Kelantan) will showcase the rich traditional culture of Kelantan such as the Wayang Kulit, Mak Yong and Dikir Barat. The group is a familiar face in the Malaysian performing art scene after having performed with mega stars as well as invited to perform r at international events.

Griff Trio (Belgium) uses the skills of three virtuoso bagpipe players (either playing solo or in polyphony), arranged in a modern, though not superficial way. Their repertoire is a balance between new composition and traditional music, using different types of bagpipes, as well as whistles and singing. With motto “pipes but no kilt”, the trio plays tunes in their own style using an army windbags, tubes and pipes and using musical traditions as an inspirational source for their contemporary beat.

Phong Nguyen Ensemble (Vietnam) will showcase Vietnamese traditional music at the festial. The band is led by a renowned ethnomusicologist and performer Dr Phong T Nguyen, who has received a prestigious award – National Heritage Fellowship in 1997 from the former US President Bill Clinton.

Will Crummers and The Rarotongans (New Zealand) will get festival goers dancing to their Polynesian songs and music. With Will Crummer, at vocal, band will definitely work the crowd with the romantic Rarotongan songs. Crummer has been described as master singer and encyclopaedia of Polynesian song for his rich and powerful exotic voice.

About Penang
Penang is one of the 14 states in Malaysia and it is often known as Pearl of the Orient. Known for its friendly people, culture, food and heritage among visitors to this island state, Penang also has many places of interests that attract tourists to its shore.

Penang is easily accessible by air with daily flights from major neighboring cities like Singapore, Bangkok, Medan, Hong Kong, Jakarta, Banda Acheh, Phuket and Perth. There are also direct domestic flights from Kuala Lumpur, Johore, Langkawi, Kuching and Kota Kinabalu. Among the airlines that fly directly into Penang include MAS, Air Asia, SilkAir, Jetstar, Tiger Airways, Firefly, Cathay Pacific, China Airlines and Singapore Airlines.

For more information, you can visit http://www.penangworldmusic.com/.

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