Festival Abbreviations

Festival is (from medieval Lat. festivalis = festive) a term for a periodically held series of performances of music (also for theatre, film, etc.) with a particularly qualitative and/or quantitative character. Festivals are usually thematic and devoted to a single composer, a genre (opera), a period, or polyvalent (combination with other arts).

Among the oldest festivals still held today is the Three Choir Festival (1724; Gloucester, Hereford and Worcester). Especially since the 1950s, the number of festivals in Europe and America has increased sharply, at the same rate as cultural tourism, with which it is closely associated. Among the most famous and oldest festivals can be counted: the Bayreuther Festspiele (1876; Wagner), Glyndeboume (1934; opera), Munich (1901; R.Strauss); ‘Salzburger Festspiele (1920; Mozart, R. Strauss); ‘Donaueschinger Musiktage (1921-1926; 1950: contemporary music); Berliner Festwochen (1951; polyvalent); Tanglewood (1937; Berkshire Symphony Festival); Lucerne (1938; Musikfestwochen); Holland Festival (1948; polyvalent); Festival of Flanders (1959: polyvalent).

The main characteristics of a festival are an artistic or religious idea, special quality of the execution and the festive or sacred atmosphere. The festival is closely linked to the origins and development of the theatre: when the theater was still only a place of worship, all performances had a celebratory character. The cyclical theatrical manifestations in ancient Greece, the medieval mysteries (last remainder: Oberammergau and his passion plays), as well as the grandly mounted displays at the royal courts in the Renaissance and Baroque times, were festivals. In response to the dwindling of professional drama, the festival idea was revived for the first time in Munich in the 19th century with the model performances under F.Dingelstedt of Shakespeare’s works (1854) with the best powers available at the time (Festspiele). The Festspielhaus in Bayreuth, founded by Richard Wagner, served as an example for other festivals, where since 1876, with only short interruptions, cyclical performances of his musical dramas have been given every summer. Munich followed in the early 20th century with Wagren Mozart performances and after the First World War, Salzburg in particular attracted attention (SalzburgerFestspiele). Later the festivals of Glyndeboume and the Maggio Musicale came to Florence. Munich followed in the early 20th century with Wagren Mozart performances and after the First World War, Salzburg in particular attracted attention (SalzburgerFestspiele). Later the festivals of Glyndeboume and the Maggio Musicale came to Florence. Munich followed in the early 20th century with Wagren Mozart performances and after the First World War, Salzburg in particular attracted attention (SalzburgerFestspiele). Later the festivals of Glyndeboume and the Maggio Musicale came to Florence.

After the Second World War, virtually every country in Europe brought together renowned artists at some point (Lucerne, Edinburgh, Berlin, Vienna, Drottningholm, Recklinghausen, Aix-en-Provence, Spoleto, Avignon, etc.). Whether an artistic idea always predominates, however, is the question: the present festival is always threatened by materialistic motives, such as the promotion of foreign traffic; it also promotes snobbery. The Holland Festival started in 1948 and brings artistic manifestations in every field, mainly through guest performances by foreign theater companies, orchestras, music and dance ensembles.

The Festival of Flanders has been a music festival since 1959 in which several cities participate (Ghent, Antwerp, Brussels, Leuven).

List of Acronyms Related to Festival