The Byblos International Festival is a Lebanese festival held in Byblos, believed to be the first Phoenician city, founded around 5000 BC. The festival is the biggest in Lebanon, and attracts thousands of tourists from all over the world.[1]
History
The International Festival has been held annually since 2003, in July. It takes place by the seaside in the historic quarter, in front of the castle built by Crusaders in the 12th century. The festival's aims are to boost tourism, promote the Lebanese culture, and spread music and art from the Middle East to the rest of the world.[2]
Performances
2003
- Oum (a musical about the life of Umm Kulthum)[3]
- Gregorian
- Gotan Project
- Tosca
- Blind Boys of Alabama
- John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers
2004
- Bryan Ferry
- Star Academy Arab World
- Erik Truffaz
- Gabriel Gutierrez
- Josh Miguel Dabilbil
- Nash Dela Cruz
- Jimmy Cliff
- Munir Bashir Group (a group formed in memory of Munir Bashir)[4]
- Placebo
2005
2006
2007
- Nouvelle Vague
- Alessandro Safina
2008
- Patti Smith
- Vaya Con Dios
- Barbatuques
- Chucho Valdés Quintet
- Michel Legrand
On 12 July 2008, midway through the festival, Byblos held a Nuit Blanche.[5] Among those who performed that night were:
- Lumi
- Sebastien Tellier
- Mouse on Mars
- Munma/Trash Inc.
2009
- Loreena McKennitt
- Keane
- Grease
- Jethro Tull
- Misia
- Gonzales (musician)
- Cocorosie
- Y.A.S.
2010
- Tribute to Wadih el Safi with Najwa Karam and Wael Kfoury
- Mashrou' Leila
- Caetano Veloso
- Jesse Cook
- Gorillaz
- Riverdance
- Le Nozze di Figaro (an opera by Mozart)[6]
2011
- A musical based on Don Quixote, created by Marwan Ghadi and Oussama Rahbani.[7]
- Scorpions
- Moby
- Florent Pagny
- Jamie Cullum
- Thirty Seconds to Mars
- Amadou & Mariam
- Les Mystères Lyriques [8]
2012
- Slash
- Julien Clerc
- B.B. King
- Ute Lemper
- Kadim Al Sahir
- Snow Patrol
- Tinariwen
2013
- Yanni
- Nightwish
- Anuryzm
- CeeLo Green
- Lana Del Rey
- Pet Shop Boys
- OneRepublic
- Rahbani Summer Night
- Paco De Lucia
- Crazy Opera
- Scorpions
2014
- Lang Lang
- Marcel Khalife
- Yanni
- Massive Attack
- Epica
- Stromae
- Mulatu Astatke and Ibrahim Maalouf
- Guy Manoukian
- Beirut
2015
- John Legend
- The Script
- Michael Schenker's Temple of Rock
- Rodrigo Y Gabriela
- Gregory Porter
- Mireille Mathieu
- Hiba Tawaji
- Sacré Profane
- Alt-J
See also
Beiteddine Festival, Baalbeck International Festival, Ehmej Festival
References
- ^ Official website
- ^ Byblos Festival on Facebook.
- ^ Oum, Byblos Festival.
- ^ Munir Bashir Group, Byblos Festival.
- ^ Nuit Blanche, Byblos Festival.
- ^ Le Nozze di Figaro, Byblos Festival.
- ^ Don Quixote, Byblos Festival.
- ^ Les Mystères Lyriques, Byblos Festival.
External links