The Ashland World Music Festival: A collaboration in showcasing culture and artistry

Flamenco Pacifico performing at the 2018 AWMF. Photo courtesy of Bob Palerminin.

Mark your calendar, the Ashland World Music Festival is around the corner on May 16th -19th. This year the festival is expanding from a single day in Lithia Park, to a multi-day, 8-event experience, and all events are FREE.

Our mission in producing this festival is to create cultural connection through the celebration and experience of world music, inviting people of all backgrounds to build community. We hope that the Ashland World Music Festival is a celebration of life, music, cultural diversity, and our community; that AWMF is a place where people can express themselves and connect with each other through global music traditions. This is a BIG undertaking, and we could not produce this sort of community event alone. Luckily, we have some incredible festival partners.

We co-produce the Ashland World Music Festival with the Ashland Parks and Recreation Commission. This is a natural partnership for two organizations that share a commitment to enhance community well-being with recreational and cultural arts opportunities. Together, we’re strengthening cultural connections and celebrating artistic expression in the heart of our community with the Festival’s main event in beautiful Lithia Park. With sponsor support, this public-private partnership is bringing the world closer to home, and having fun doing it!

In addition to our ongoing partnership with APRC, we seek to amplify the positive by showcasing an incredible program that a local nonprofit organization is producing each festival year. Our 2019 festival partner is ScienceWorks Hands-on Museum. Their current main exhibit, Wild Music (Feb 2nd – Sept 2nd), explores sound and music found in nature and in life. Discover the roots of music in cultures from around the globe in this exhibit. Join us at ScienceWorks for multiple Ashland World Music Festival Events, or just to check out Wild Music, and stay tuned for more festival information!