BY BRONWEN BEECHEY
ADELAIDE — The 2001 Womadelaide world music festival, held February 16-18, attracted a record 67,000 people. They braved high temperatures to hear an inspiring and exciting line-up of musicians from around the globe.
Sierra Maestra are one of Cuba's best known Cuban bands, perhaps the first to introduce the traditional Cuban son rhythm to a mass international audience. The band was the highlight of Womadelaide in 1997, and didn't disappoint this time. In their two sets, the band's blend of tight, professional musicianship and their music's infectious joy had crowd dancing despite the heat.
Another, lesser-known outfit who were a hit with the festival's audience was Eugenio Bennato and Musicanova. This group's mix of traditional Italian tarantella and modern dance beats — dubbed "tarantella power" by the band — has led to a revival of this dance form among Mediterranean youth.
The Afro Celt Sound System is composed of musicians from Britain, Ireland and Africa. They combine musical traditions and instruments from these source and add an electronic beat. Other impressive acts included Rokia Traore from Mali, Irish folk band Flook!, and British folk legend Richard Thompson.
Perhaps the most unlikely act was DJ Derek, a 59-year-old former accountant who also happens to be one of Britain's most popular and respected reggae and ska djs.
The Australian line-up had a strong indigenous flavour provided by performers such as Jimmy Little, the Stiff Gins, Narbalek, the Benning Brothers and the White Cockatoo Performing Group.
The festival ended with a high-energy set by African superstar Papa Wemba, a last-minute replacement for Nigeria's Femi Kuti who was unable to come due to illness.
While none of the performers were overtly political, the views expressed by them were generally progressive. Anti-racism was a strong theme. British reggae star Pato Banton, Richard Thompson and others made pointed comments about One Nation, while Jimmy Little, Karma County and David Bridie also referred in song and word to racism, land rights and the stolen generations. These sentiments were greeted with applause by the audience, which also responded positively to some of the more political information stalls set up by Amnesty International, the Coalition for Justice for Refugees, Friends of the Earth and Everyone for a Nuclear Free Future. Green Left Weekly was well-received.
Commercialism was more apparent than at earlier festivals — particularly the intrusive and annoying advertising by one of the main sponsors, Ozemail. The cost of tickets, and of the high prices for food and drink, also detracted from the event. One reason for this was, despite the event's popularity, the South Australian government had decreased funding from $150,000 to $100,000, forcing Womadelaide to seek corporate sponsorship to fill the gap. Meanwhile, the SA government is expected to spend up to $8.4 million on this year's Le Mans motor race.
Despite the commercial overtones, Womadelaide showed that there is a different kind of globalisation possible that the one being pushed by capitalism and its supporters. Respect for human rights, opposition to racism and the destruction of the environment, the knowledge that other cultures have rich traditions that should be shared rather than being feared, were all expressed at Womadelaide.
The decision of Womadelaide's organisers to make it an annual festival means that we will have more opportunities to hear some of the world's most remarkable performers and experience a glimpse of what a better world would be like.