HOSPITALITY AND TOURISM MANANGEMENT
“IS 2017 THE YEAR THE MUSIC FESTIVALS DIED”
ACADEMIC REPORT
BY
EUGENIA EZE
Student Number: 3029362
TABLE OF CONTENT
INTRODUCTION …………………………………………………………………………………3
THE MAIN IDEA BEHIND MUSIC FESTIVALS ………………………………………………………………4
EXAMPLS OF MUSIC FESTIVALS IN THE UK………………………………………5-7
SIGNIFICANCE OF MUSIC FESTICAL TO THE UK ECONOMY……………….8
THREATS TO MUSIC FESTIVALS IN 2017…………………………………………..9-11
REFERENCES………………………………………………………………………………………12-14
INTRODUCTION
The idea of coming out in large numbers, sometimes in groups and families and bonding with other people from different walks of life, sharing common interest, after a winter’s isolation was central to the idea of music festivals. Oxford Dictionary defined Music Festival as “An organized event, typically lasting several days, featuring performances by various musicians, singers, and groups”. https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/music_festival. It is a core part of the British culture and a way of life and, a phenomenon that has expanded across the globe.
Music festivals generally revolve around producers and consumers, food and drinks and night time economy, resulting in both positive and negative social and economic benefits.
The Pigeon Detectives perform at Hope ; Glory festival before it was shut down.
THE MAIN IDEA BEHIND MUSIC FESTIVALSMusic festivals in the UK provide a forum where everybody on the site is on the same side at a particular point in time. It aims at stimulating the brain all day and partying throughout the period of the festivals – be it 3 days Notting Hill Carnival in London or any other festival. Music has the power to unite people of various races, religion, cultural and educational background. It acts as a stress reliever when nothing soothes their mind. Music, though entertaining, yet collectively according to (Robinson 2016, p. 7), “the media also produced ominous depictions of reality”. Music festivals provide opportunities for both producers and consumers to meet and interact as summarized by (Robinson 2016): the role of the producer is to create suggestions. The role of the consumer is to experience them….controlling the shape of suggestions means controlling the experiences of the recipient; the media relationship is always a relation of power.
The history of festivals in Britain has also been inextricably intertwined with the British aristocracy and the Establishment (Clarke 1982; McKay 2000, Gornall 2015).
EXAMPLS OF MUSIC FESTIVALS IN THE UK
Revellers enjoying themselves at Glastonbury 2013
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/the-filter/10922801/What-exactly-is-the-point-of-music-festivals.html
The Notting Hill Carnival, London is arguably the most famous street festival in Europe
Green Man. In Wales
Festival No 6 at Portmeirion, Wales
Curious Art Festival at Pylewell, South East England
Wilderness Festival in Oxfordshire.
SIGNIFICANCE OF MUSIC FESTICALS TO THE UK ECONOMY
Music Festivals provide a welcome income stream for the organisers. According to (Eavis 2008), the local economy gets £100m a year from Glastonbury festival. Music festivals lasting over some few days such as the Notting Hill Carnival in London though are good source of revenue for the government and create employment, attract more tourists to boost the night time economy and generate income through the consumption of food and drinks, they nonetheless has its own drawbacks such as acting as an avenue for antisocial behaviours such as crimes, drugs, prostitution. Some festivals are indeed awful places, serving bad food and squalid conditions and hideous for some criminal acts. Cristo Foufas, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/the-filter/10922801/What-exactly-is-the-point-of-music-festivals.html
Music festivals have been sites for social and political debate, and sometimes action (McKay 2003, 2005), and the frivolity of festivals sometimes masks deeper socio-political issues around race, religion, class, sexuality, and gender (Falassi 1987; Burr 2006; Bartie 2013; Wilks 2013; Pielichaty 2015). Festivals have been remarkable sites for experimenting with alternative lifestyles and practices, including narcotics (Clarke 1982; McKay 2000; Wolfenden 2004; Partridge 2006; O’Grady 2015.
Festivals are also used as vehicles to educate the public about topics beyond simply music, or an enriched understanding of the music (Pitts 2008; BOP 2013a). They have been sites for public engagement and knowledge exchange, academic research collaboration and debate, either directly or indirectly.
THREATS TO MUSIC FESTIVALS IN THE UK IN 2017
Some festivals have faced opposition from the state and local residents, and there can be tension between the imperative for regulation and participants’ desire for spontaneity. (Burr 2006). However, these success stories do not come without some challenges such as poor ticket sales, the extreme weather, overcapacity and lack of manpower to fully organize and handle the event.
In music festivals there are a number of safety concerns. Also if the event is organized in broad sunlight there should be arrangements of hats, glasses, water and a sprinkler system should be installed on the dance floors. (Riotta, 2016)
In spite of all the social and economic benefits of music festivals, the greatest threat to its continued existence beyond 2017 is security. Music festivals have recently become prime targets for terrorist attacks. Across the UK, the menace and potential dangers of terrorist attacks have resulted that the security levels at music festivals been raised to severe. These followed the attacks by terrorists at some festivals. The recent bombing in Manchester in around May 2017 is a clear example.
Due to the real dangers of terrorists at these events, guiding against terrorist attacks at events has assumed prominent positions in the budgets of the organisers. This leads to some organisers having to cancel or postpone preplanned events. And naturally continuous cancellation or postponement of events could ultimately lead to visitors to these events turning off or become disinterested in future events. And there are real dangers that sometimes when events are cancelled; the organizers refuse to make full refund for monies they had collected from ticketing.
The sight of heavily armed police personnel patrolling festival venues example heavily armed police patrolling the 60,000 capacity Isle of Wight Festival event and the Worthy Farm event at Glanstonbury, are a turn-off to some visitors to these events. https://www.dailystar.co.uk/news/latest-news/624040/Glastonbury-Festival-2017-terror-attack-security-check-ISIS-threat-video. Visitors have been subjected to extra security searches and other security measures at the venues. All these are a turn off to these events. These extra security measures consequently lead to long queues before visitors enter the venue. 2017 have witnessed some terror attacks including the terror attack the Ariana Grande concert in Manchester. Similar breach of security at future events would no doubt jeopardize the continued existence of music festivals in the UK.
According to Phillips 2017, ex-head of the National Counter Terrorism Security Office in the UK, the threat of a terror attack at a major event have increased tremendously following the attacks at Westminster Bridge and London Bridge. https://www.dailystar.co.uk/news/latest-news/624040/Glastonbury-Festival-2017-terror-attack-security-check-ISIS-threat-video
Festival Republic, the organisers behind Wireless, Latitude, V Festival and Reading and Leeds, among others, emphasized the importance of the security threats to events thus: “Our priority is and always will be making people safe at our festivals and events. We must all remain vigilant and stay strong together. https://www.dailystar.co.uk/news/latest-news/624040/Glastonbury-Festival-2017-terror-attack-security-check-ISIS-threat-video. The above assertions highlight the threats to the continued existence of music festivals in the UK beyond 2017 if adequate security measures are not in place.
In conclusion, although 2017 had witnessed serious threat to the continued existence of music festivals, with the adequate security measures in place, it is my submission that music festivals have not died in the UK.
In order to ensure continued existence of music festivals beyond 2017, the following extra security measures steps should be put in place:
Visitors to events should be warned to be extra vigilant in light of the tragic events in Manchester and London;
Visitors are to report any suspicious activity to police immediately.
Organisers should liaise regularly with the authorities and share intelligence throughout the festival season
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Clarke, Michael. 1982. The Politics of Pop Festivals. London: Junction.
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Falassi, Alessandro. 1987. ‘Festival: definition and morphology’. Time Out of Time: Essays on the Festival, edited by Alessandro Falassi, 1-10. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press.
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