MANILA, FEBRUARY 18, 2013 – This year, Puerto Galera is gearing up to be home to some 3,000 nature and music lovers for three days as the Malasimbo Music & Arts Festival is set to return on its third instalment on March 1-3, 2013.
The festival, named after the inactive volcano that overlooks the Puerto Galera bay, will also be headlined by international stars: reggae singer Jimmy Cliff and soul musician Joss Stone.
Envisioned to promote the Philippines as a tourist destination, the Malasimbo fest is described as a “holistic way to appreciate music and nature”. Along with the music after sunset, the three-day fest will have art installations, an organic food market, creative workshops, tree-planting activities, yoga sessions and cultural lessons on indigenous tribes.
The Grace Nono-Bob Aves group will open the March 1 show; Cliff is set to perform on March 2; and Stone will close the fest on March 3.
Four young Filipino bands have been shortlisted to play at Malasimbo: Jazlagiba (from Davao), Similar Objects, Yolanda Moon and Ivan Theory. Five more groups are still set to be chosen by the festival music committee.
The acoustics of the venue is a big factor in choosing the bands and musicians who will play at the festival, said Miro Grgic, Malasimbo co-organizer. The amphitheatre, where the festival is set to take place, resembles the Ifugao Rice Terraces and the sound that is condusive to the venue “is roots and soul music, which could be folk, blues, jazz, Latin and electronic music with a soul twist.”
