Another burst of sounds of harmony
The Jaffna Music Festival began in 2011 with the aim of bringing back forgotten folk traditions that were neglected during the 30-year conflict. The folk music, dance and drama showcased over three days helped revive the forgotten folklore of mainly the North and East as well as gave the people an opportunity to experience and appreciate other cultures.
The Jaffna Music Festival held in March 2013 which showcased an eclectic array of music including folk, contemporary and classical attracted an audience of over 25,000 over a two-day period. This year, the festival will be held in Jaffna on May 29 and 30. Groups performing at the main festival on May 30 will be an interesting mix from all parts of the island: Banku Raban- Mathugama, Sabaragamuwa Bali- Ratnapura, Yaal Kiramiya Sangamam- Jaffna, Sufi -Ampara, Baliphonics – Colombo, Pooli Koothu- Batticaloa, Udappu – Puththalam ,University Collaboration Act (Jaffna/Batticaloa/Peradeniya universities) and Thappu – Kilinochchi. Three groups from Bangladesh and India will also perform.
The festival will be two-fold focusing on folk, traditional and folk fusion. The first part will be the Children’s Festival to be held on May 29 and the second part will be the main festival – the Jaffna Music Festival 2015 which will be held the following day, with 8 – 10 local groups most from the Northern region and the rest from different parts of the island making it an unique, colourful, cultural experience.
The main festival will be from 4 p.m. – 11 p.m. with a photographic exhibition displaying pictures of the previous festivals from 2009 – from 3 p.m. onwards. The Children’s Festival will be from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. on the 29th. The Jaffna Music Festival, the sister event of the Galle Music Festival is an initiative of the Sri Lanka-Norway Music Cooperation, implemented by Sevalanka Foundation in partnership with Concerts Norway with artistic direction from Aru Sri Art Theatre, and core funding by the Royal Norwegian Embassy .
The music festivals have been organised with the main objective of building ethnic harmony through cultural interventions. The festivals are held annually alternating between Jaffna and Galle.