Territorios Sevilla Festival

Since the beginning of time the concept of territory has been one of the greatest of human obsessions. Winning it, expanding it metre by metre, gaining control of neighbouring lands. Seville decided to vote of peace and in 1998 reunited all territories around the world under one common denominator: music. Since then, once a year the Andalusian capital speaks a universal language that knows no boundaries: musical notes, rhythm and the sound of 50,000 people clapping.

Juan Antonio Pedrosa was the founder of the first edition of the festival in 1998 dedicated to Celtic music. “Celtic music was the inspiration and heart of the festival, as well as the reason for its evolution”, explains David Pareja, in charge of programming the yearly event in Seville. Other editions of the festival have been dedicated to the Mediterranian (Italy, Greece, Spain, the Arab World) and the Atlantic (Cuba, Senegal, Galicia and the Basque Country were just some of the areas represented).

In 2002 Pedrosa and his team decided the time had come for a change. Their aim was to “attend to the needs of the city” and they created the International Festival for the Music of the People. Under this name Territorios Sevilla has morphed. Rather than running across two weekends, the festival now runs for three days straight, each day governed by a particular musical genre: rock and pop, hip-hop and world music. “While we are a private festival we have a public vocation. We want to involve as many people as possible”, concludes Pareja.

“Territorios Sevilla has filled a void in the city. This kind of music doesn’t often make its way to Seville, except in very concrete cases and for individual concerts”, he comments. The festival has become a point of reference in the South of Spain, right up there with La Mar de Músicas in Cartagena and Womex. “That world music is now in vogue is something to celebrate. Reggae is fusioning with rap, jazz with flamenco, and rock with world music. This is an indication of cultural wealth”, expresses Pareja, who believes that the tag World Music is somewhat deceptive. “In reality, all music is world music”.

The creative director is very clear about the selection criteria for bands performing at the festival. “We are looking for quality, groups that haven’t played in Seville often and for contemporary music, except in exceptional cases such as De La Soul, who in 2009 celebrated the twentieth anniversary of 3 Feet High and Rising. In my humble opinion this is one of the top five hip-hop albums of all time”. Seville, as a hip-hop city, is always present on stage at Territorios. SFDK, Tote King, Shotta, Jesuly, Dogma Crew make up the Sevilla All Stars, a group of bands which represent the best Seville has to offer in the world of hip-hop.

African music is also part of the programme. Over the years several African bands have performed across the city and featured in sections such as Territorios Solidarios (an international meeting point for social agents and teachers of music and art working in depressed urban areas), Territorios África bring together great musicians from across the African continent. Da Brains, Jac et le Takeifa and Mulatu Astatke are just some of the artists who have taken to the stage at this forward-looking festival.

For the comparatively low price of 25 euros visitors in 2009 had the chance to see a diverse mix of bands including Wilco, Akron Family, The Jayhawks, Lori Meyers, Dj Mehdi, Data, Cycle and The Right Ons. “I think the price is right”, concludes Parja. “Just to watch Wilco play in Madrid costs about sixty euros. The attraction is not just the posibility of watching big names perform, but of discovering new sounds and the cultural variety around us waiting to be discovered.

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