FRANCE CELEBRATES THE FETE DE LA MUSIQUE FOR ITS 41ST YEAR
BY GABRIELLE CABANES
La Fête de la Musique is an important event celebrated across France in honor of the longest day of the year, the summer solstice. The holiday was originally created in 1982 by Jack Lang, the minister of culture under the president Francois Mitterand who served between 1981 to 1995. For the holiday, towns and cities big and small host concerts in the streets and in various concert locations as well as bars and restaurants. While some concerts are more official like the one held at the Palais De L`Elysee in Paris, the official residence of the president, other concerts are held in the streets with various amateur artists playing their instruments on the sidewalk or others simply holding up speakers with the playlist of their choice.
The atmosphere of the Fete De La Musique this year in Paris reflected the spirited lifestyle of the Parisien youth. My friends and I started off the night by going near the docks of the Seine by the Place de la Bastille. Even on the metro, groups of teens could be seen listening to music through speakers and chatting as they were getting ready to party for the night. When we got off the metro we decided to sit at a cafe near the place de la Bastille and have a drink since the legal age for drinking in France is 18. We watched multiple groups play instruments and DJ in many different streets. People walked from one concert to the next listening to every sort of music imaginable while enjoying their evening.
After spending time in this area the group decided to take the metro back to a bar cafe close to our apartment. The owner had hired a DJ to play different types of music, mostly Spanish, English and French. We spent the rest of the evening hanging out with the locals and the workers of the bar. They were friendly and welcoming while taking time to get to know where we were from and what we were doing here in Paris. They even started playing more American tunes upon our arrival since they knew this is what we would probably be most familiar with. We ended the night around 2 a.m. and walked back still singing the lyrics to our favorite songs.
Overall, going to la Fete de la Musique as a young adult was an incredible experience which really showed the French youth’s festive culture. Everyone was kind and wanted to enjoy their evening to the beat of their own drums. Whatever tune one may like could be found in the streets of Paris that night and everyone could listen to whatever made them happy. If one finds themselves in Paris for the summer solstice they should consider wandering the streets and getting lost in the music all around them.
