Musical virtuosos, spectacular collaborations, and world-class Filipino artists come together in two weekends of the Malasimbo Festival this March 2016 on Mount Malasimbo in Puerto Galera, Oriental Mindoro. Now going on its sixth successful year, the Malasimbo Music and Arts Festival is held from March 4 to 6; and the Malasimbo Lights and Dance Festival, on its second year, falls on March 24 to 26
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Malasimbo Music & Arts Festival, March 4 to 6
Headlining this year’s music instalment is the acclaimed UK musician Jacob Collier. Twenty-year-old Collier is a musical prodigy backed by noted American record producer and composer Quincy Jones (who worked as conductor and arranger with Frank Sinatra and co-produced Michael Jackson’s multi-platinum solo albums). Collier, who is set to launch his debut album this year, is hailed for his stunning ability to create “a digital one-man band using contemporary technology: multitrack recording, looping pedals, and a strange Vocoder-like program that enables him to sing audacious harmonies through a Novation keyboard,” says The Guardian of the UK.
Highly renowned GongMyoung of South Korea returns after five years to the Malasimbo stage to electrify the audience. The “ambassadors” of Korean traditional music are favorites at numerous international festivals. GongMyoung is known for their harmonious mix of traditional Korean and Western percussion and wind instruments, creating crowd-stirring musical pieces guaranteed to leave you raring for an encore.
Malasimbo takes your world music experience notches higher with groundbreaking collaborations by local and international artists. A beatboxer with a 16-piece orchestra? That’s definitely the musical treat and visual spectacle you’ll experience with “Thum Prints” a collaboration between Australia’s Tom Thum, whose voice captures a vast repertoire of sounds which he refers to as the “orchestra in my mouth,” and members of one of Asia’s oldest musical ensembles, the Manila Symphony Orchestra (MSO) under the guidance of Brisbane composer Gordon Hamilton. Click here for a preview of Thum Prints (in miniature).
Watch out for the Brat Pack, the only blues band from Asia to ever reach the finals of the prestigious International Blues Competition in Memphis, Tennessee. First-time performers on the Malasimbo stage are the well-loved Tacloban-based Beatles’ cover band Reo Brothers, and the talented classical-contemporary guitar trio Triple Fret, who won first prize in the 27th Guitar Ensemble Festival in Shinagawa, Tokyo last year. Lachlan Mitchell, one of Australia’s best composers and jazz guitarists will collaborate on musical numbers with local artists of the Malasimbo Collective.
Malasimbo favorites—the funky Golden Sound from Australia, the spirited Filipino percussion band Brigada with their rousing Afro-Brazilian beats, soul band SINOSIKAT?—come onstage along with a vast array of up-and-coming artists that Malasimbo will showcase, in collaboration with Radio Republic, as part of their commitment to unearthing new talent. Some of them include Crwn, Reese Lansangan, Lustbass, RH Xanders, Moophs, Paolo Mallari, Asch, Soul_Brk. Local and international DJs playing cap off each evening with soulful, house music guaranteed to keep your energy up past midnight.
Malasimbo Lights & Dance Festival, March 24 to 26
“It is music and dancing that make me at peace with the world,” said Nobel peace prize winner and freedom fighter Nelson Mandela. It’s this same vibe that’s replicated in Malasimbo’s second weekend, when international and local DJs renowned for their contributions to the funk, house, hip-hop, drum ’n’ bass, and electronic music genres converge on the Malasimbo stage from March 24 to 26.
Malasimbo is fast becoming the solid platform for under-the-radar yet brilliant local performers to make their musical works known to an appreciative audience seeking an aural experience that’s out of the usual commercial box. Keep your ears open (and your minds) to the talents of Wolf Squared, Afro x Chrizo, Aries, Diamond Heights, and more to be announced on www.malasimbo.com in the runup to the Lights and Dance festival.
Among the international DJs making their debut on the Malasimbo stage are English record producer Lapalux with his brilliant, eclectic mix of R&B and house, French hip hop beatmaker Onra, and house and techno DJ San Soda from Belgium. Returning to Malasimbo are British drum ’n’ bass guru Goldie, MBE; and Japanese hip hop DJ and turnatablist Kentaro. Dance aficionados will also enjoy the spectacle of a full moon beaming over the amphitheater fromMarch 24 through 26.
The Malasimbo Experience
The Malasimbo Festival, acknowledged by the Department of Tourism Philippines as a prime catalyst for the country’s continued advance in music, arts, and culture, is exceptional for its breathtaking venue. The amphitheater’s natural landscape greatly enhances the acoustics and sound quality.
This year, festival-goers’ listening experience will be heightened thanks to the addition of a brand new Funktion-One sound system, one of the most efficient sound systems in the world.
The festival grounds, dotted with close to 30 installations from the country’s leading visual artists (see news release “Visual Artists Capture Festival Energy”), are situated on majestic Mt. Malasimbo, which overlooks Puerto Galera bay, an exclusive member of “The Most Beautiful Bays in the World” Club . White Beach, one of Puerto Galera’s more popular coves, will play host to the Malasimbo Kiteboarding Exhibition on March 5, Saturday, led by expert Filipino and foreign kiteboarders.
Malasimbo Online
www.malasimbo.com is your source for the latest updates on the official lineup of acts and performance schedules for the Malasimbo Music and Arts Festival and the Malasimbo Lights and Dance Festival. Purchasing festival passes and booking accommodations at partner hotels or the Coleman Camping on the Malasimbo grounds are made easier on this newly revamped website, malasimbo.com.
The festivals are a production of Volume Unit Entertainment, Inc. and the D’Aboville Foundation, supported by Ipanema and Rider; with the participation of Brew Kettle, H&M Loves Music, Nothing But H20, and Toms; and the support of our official our official TV partners Solar Entertainment Corp., ETC, 2nd Avenue, Jack TV, Solar Sports, Basketball TV (BTV), and CT; official radio partner Wave 89.1; official media partners: Aktivshow, ANC, Explore Philippines, Meg, Megstreetwear.ph, Radio Republic, Travel Now, Travelbook.ph, 8list.ph, Amplify.ph, Archipelago.com.ph, Inflight Traveller, Juice.ph, Myx.ph, Our Awesome Planet, PhilippineConcerts.com, Stylebible.ph, theAsianParent.com, Third Culture, Travelife, WhenInManila.com, Yelp! Manila; our official airline partner Air Juan; our official hotel partner Sofitel Philippine Plaza Manila; and our official ticketing partner TicketWorld. Special thanks goes to Coleman, the Municipality of Puerto Galera and the Provincial Government of Oriental Mindoro, Z Hos-tel, and A-Space Philippines.
The Malasimbo Lights and Dance Festival is produced in collaboration with Japan’s Basscamp with the support of the World DJ Academy, Okamoto Clinic Sendai, Asia Unite, and GOJA.
For more information about the Malasimbo Festival, please visit our website; or our Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or YouTube.
PHOTOGRAPH BY MALASIMBO MUSIC AND ARTS FESTIVAL
ABOUT THE MALASIMBO FESTIVAL
From a turnout of 1,500 adventure-seeking, nature-and-music loving individuals in its first year in 2011, attendance blossomed to some 6,000 festival-goers in 2015, among them travelers from more than 30 countries as far as Denmark to neighboring Hong Kong and Singapore. Headliners of past Malasimbo Music and Arts Festivals have included James Brown’s renowned trombone player, band leader , and musical director Fred Wesley; Rock ’n’ Roll Hall-of-Famer Jimmy Cliff; UK soul jazz artist Omar, MBE; Grammy Award winner Robert Glasper; the godfather of Neo-Soul and one of most sampled artists in the world, Roy Ayers; the king of latin soul, Afro-Filipino, Joe Bataan; Japan’s leading Taiko performers Gocoo; Swedish musician Jose Gonzalez; Bobby McFerrin’s son Taylor McFerrin; and Bob Marley’s son KyMani Marley, among many others who performed alongside a predominantly Filipino lineup of jazz, soul, and world musicians.
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