FolkWorld Live Review 12/2000:

During the weekend of 3-5 November 2000 there has been the 16th edition of the Music-meeting in Nijmegen Holland. Each year the organisation try's to fill three days with music from all over the globe. The Friday evening was especially meant to get younger people to the festival. Several artists brought DJ's and Hip-Hop music. Saturday evening is the central event. At the beautiful, sold-out old theatre "Vereeniging" the audience could enjoy groups like Mila na utumaduni who introduced us in a decent way into the musical tradition of Zanzibar. The choice of music was very safe. Most impressing was Faytinga from Eritrea who sang her old songs with a voice that sounds like a Chinese opera star. The Sunday is always the day for some good concerts. Sit and listen to more fragile music. The Uzbekistan singer Yultchieva made the day start perfectly. She has a very powerful voice that brings the ancient tunes into live again. Highlight of the whole meeting was Alim Qasimov.
This well-known singer from Azerbedjan impressed with his emotional songs. He brought a few top musicians with him who made together with Qasimov this concert to be one of the best I've seen this year. As you can read I only mentioned a few groups. There were many other groups listed but they all disappointed in some way. This used to be a well-known festival of world-music. After this edition I would say they do not deserve this name any longer. Most artists had a strong jazz influence and that would be no problem if it would be innovating but piece after piece the musicians brought save world-jazz without any emotion with as most negative highlight Arto Lindsay. Please stay away from his concerts! I hope that next year the organisation will go back to more pure world-music and will save this once so famous festival.

Photo Credit: Pressphotos: (1) Yultchieva, (2) Alim Quasimov

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