The 38thWOMAD was a classic with 39,000 people enjoying 300 performances and 500 workshops, talks and events by more than 100 artists from over 50 nations covering countless genres of music, art, performance and culture on a weekend of blazing sunshine.
The 2019 festival also saw WOMAD continue its conviction to act and speak on social and political issues which affect its performers and audience.
Thursday saw the festival kick off with its traditional performance by the Malmesbury Schools Project, this year backed by the brilliant Bollywood Brass Band.The evening also saw the d&b Soundscape Stage kick off with German techno-brass entrepreneurs Meute.
Sonic innovators d&b also launched a newfeature at this year’s WOMAD – an immersive binaural live stream of each performance on their stage.
Thursday’s headliner was the storied Afro Cuban All Stars who brought the technicolour spirit of Havana to a gloriously sunkissed evening.
Friday morning saw the revelation of a 300ft crop circle depicting the Extinction Symbol, marking the start of a partnership between WOMAD and Extinction Rebellionwhich saw the climate and ecology protectors curate the Rebel Rebel Stage, host a Celebration of Lifeon Saturday morning, and stage a series of talks, workshops and actions across the festival to call for international cooperation to tackle to ongoing climate and ecological emergency.
Programme highlights on Friday included sax’n’bass pioneers Moon Hooch, and a groundbreaking concert and workshop by all-female desert punk revolutionaries Les Filles de Illighadad.
Friday also introduced the festival to afrobeat dancehall queen and emerging global style icon Jojo Abot, whogained a cult following across the weekend, performing two mesmerising shows and cooking a sumptuous red curry at WOMAD’s unique Taste the World Stage – where artists introduce festivalgoers to a traditional dish from their home country. Another act to combine an acclaimed set with a wildly popular culinary lesson was Scottish folk troubadours Rura, whose Cullen skink drew almost as much adulation as their haunting Celtic melodies.
Other highlights of the day included the mother of her genre and still a semi-mythic force of nature as she approaches her ninth decade, Calypso Rose, as well as the intensely stylish Afropunk duo Tshegue, the musically prodigious and politically engaging Muthoni Drummer Queen– a performer at the vanguard of a fantastically exciting new wave of African pop music, whose show had a tangibly inspiring effect on many of the young women in the audience.
The evening saw two of the music world’s true icons take to the WOMAD stage; R&B and soul legend Macy Gray delivered a set which lent her irresistible voice to a mix of classic tracks and vibrant surprises, before reggae superstar Ziggy Marley gave a powerhouse performance which mixed his iconic back catalogue with some totemic family heirlooms.
Molly’s Barhas proved one of the festival’s breakout hits in recent years and this year’s brilliantly eclectic line-up, ranging from Swing to Techno, to a combination of the two, was headlined by cult DJ and former world snooker champion Steve Davis alongsideKavus Torabi.
A new addition for 2019 was a Secret Campsite Bar complete with a spectacularly ethereal light and music art installation Celestial Sound Cloudby pif-paf– adding a literal element to WOMAD’s ‘festival of discovery’ tag.
The World of Physicshas grown over the past four festivals to become a cornerstone of the WOMAD experience, with highlights this year including The Physics of Beer, Live Links with Apollo 7 & ISS Astronauts, Science in the Movieswith the special effects expert behind Interstellar Graham Jack, and, new this year, a magnificent inflatable Planetarium.
Saturday morning began with a Celebration of Lifeby Extinction Rebellion culminating in a Rebel Roar in defence of the planet, as well as a lively and informative talk by the organisation at the World of Words.
Other highlights from WOMAD’s celebration of literature and the spoken word included BBC Radio 4’s Four Thoughtand a fascinating talk on war and music by journalist and perhaps the foremost authority on the worldwide relationship between music and politics, Robin Denselow.
Artists juggling appearances at the World of Words with their performances included Calypso Rose and Emmanuel Jal & Nyarauch– the South Sudanese former child soldier turned hip-hop impresario and his (until recently) long-lost sister who spent time as a refugee.
Other talks and events across the site included the hugely popular Ecotricity Debates, with Saturday seeing a panel chaired by Jon Snow discussing the impact of veganism.
Musical highlights included indigenous Australian musical royalty and expert of the yidaki (didgeridoo) Larry Gurrruwiwi & Malawurr, who, as well as putting on a sonically atmospheric and visually stirring performance, were also amongst those to host a workshop at the All Singing, All Dancingtent.
Other shows which caused a stir included London’s hottest afrobeat octet Kokoroko and genre-traversing musical explorers Jungle by Night, both of whom did full justice to the magnifenct d&b Soundscape acoustics, and Liniker e os Caramelows the Brazilian soul outfit led by talismanic singer Liniker whose story of being a trans-artist in Brazil’s tempestuous political climate has proved inspirational worldwide.
Their mainstage performance was followed by that of a legend: Salif Keita – the man who put African music on the map in the Western world and paved the way for festivals like WOMAD, in what might be his final performance on the hallowed Charlton Park stage.
Then came Anna Calvi, whose stirring and intelligent melodies, rock star stage presence and fearlessly political lyrics, gained her a third successive Mercury Nomination on the eve of a barnstorming salvo. Calvi was part of a number of powerful, politically charged WOMAD performances from a new waveof predominantly female artists including her friend and fellow rising homegrown star Nadine Shah, Palestinian rapper Maysa Daw, Ukranian folk aficionados turned protest punks Dakhabrakha(who also cooked a fantastically received borscht at Taste the World), and eclectic globetrotting outfit Hejira.
Rounding off the day, a fantastic late-night discovery came in the form of Ustaad Saamifrom Pakistan – the last remaining master of the awe-inspiring 49-note Khyal singing technique who blew away the Siam tent.
Sunday’s breathtaking programme included a chance to relive Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan’s world changing 1985 show in an immersive experience at the d&b soundscape, masters of Irish storytelling folk The Breath, and an explosive and audience-interactive performance on the Ecotricity Stage from Turkish psychedelic rockers Baba Zula(who also got Taste the World rocking with their Turkish spiced dumplings).
The afternoon saw one of the highlights of the Charlie Gillett stage programme; an enormously powerful performance from Brushy One String– who also held a workshop to teach the WOMAD audience his unique instrumental style in the World Rhythms Tent.
The Children’s Parade is another time-honoured tradition with this year’s theme of Space providing an educational treat for the festival’s youngsters and a visual feast for spectators.
The evening saw respects paid to departed WOMAD legend with a toast to the great Alan James before an evening of fantastic music to bring the curtain down.
Saving Grace ft. Suzi Dian & Robert Plant brought a musical legend back to the stage for a masterclass in country-folk mysticism, before the legendary Orbital created a rapturous climax with their electronic dreamscapes accompanied by a stunning laser show.
WOMAD Global Festival Director Chris Smith said, “This has been a landmark year. We’ve always been forthright about the potential impact of the political climate on global culture, and this inspires and energises us in our effort to both use music and arts to celebrate our common humanity and creative diversity, and to speak out when these pillars are threatened.
“Offstage we demonstrated these values with our continued commitment to environmental sustainability and global cooperation, while on stage we programmed a line-up with genuine variety and countless opportunities for musical discovery from American R&B to Ukrainian folk-punk, to Caribbean calypso, to indigenous Australian roots, to classic British EDM. What’s unique about WOMAD is that all of these extraordinary artists have, as always, and more closely than at any other festival, rubbed shoulders with one of the biggest, most diverse audiences we’ve ever had, proof if it were needed that music can – literally- bring the world together.”
So ends a classic. Details of WOMAD 2020 will be announced soon.
