The four-day event is touted as Taiwan’s biggest outdoor festival dedicated to world music, and will feature a variety of music shows, cross-artform performances, international showcase events, exotic bazaars and more!
By The Editors

The 2023 World Music Festival @ Taiwan (WMF@Taiwan) expands its portfolio with bigger programming and a more diverse lineup featuring Taiwanese and international music acts.

This year, the music-focused, multi-format event will take place on October 12-15, 2023, at the Taipei Music Center. The festival is divided into two major parts, one is Going Global Trade Fair on October 12-13, and the other one is the Our World Music Festival on October 14-15.

Taiwan’s very own Outlet Drift and Joanna Wang lead the roster of performers, alongside global superstars ADG7 from South Korea, Hitoto Yo from Japan, and Balaklava Blues from Ukraine and Canada.

A total of 24 Taiwanese music artists and international groups are set to perform through various music formats, consisting of four immersive parties with music and scents. The highly acclaimed world music festival will also put a spotlight on two co-productions highlighting global collaborations and cross-cultural exchanges: Ohelen (SK) and Leaf Yeh (TW) will team up together live, and Hitoto Yo (JP) will also step up their game with a special performance featuring Taiwan’s Sangpuy and Tzu-lung Hung.

For the first time ever, the multicultural festival held an open call for international musicians to participate in its global showcase. The result yielded submissions from more than a hundred artists from 31 different countries expressing interest in participating in the festival, including six from America, fourteen from Asia, seven from Europe, three from Africa, and one from Oceania.

From the entries collated, the largest global music festival in Taiwan is set to announce the 13 finalists who will be performing live on October 11-12 and will be watched by 11 international delegates.

As an exclusive international music festival brand showcasing Taiwan’s cultural uniqueness, the World Music Festival @ Taiwan “is dedicated to promoting Taiwan’s multicultural and multilingual music, as well as fostering a cross-cultural feast of folk traditions with international music, bridging Taiwan and the world through the power of music.”

WMF@Taiwan Artistic Director Peiti Huang explained  last year via UK-based outlet Songlines that the festival aims to “export Taiwan’s culture and import international artists for our audiences,”  as that “We are keen to attract the local expat audience [and there are a lot in Taipei], because they are interested in this wider musical spectrum as well as the local scene.”

Beyond the exceptional performances, the World Music Festival @ Taiwan will feature a range of peripheral activities, such as interactive drumming shows, music and dance workshops, and nearly 100 exotic stalls showcasing crafts and cuisines from around the world.

The festival ambiance will be reminiscent of a grand carnival, featuring an assortment of world-class music and parties.

At World Music Festival @ Taiwan, cultures unite and take center stage. It’s a splendid celebration of music, where categories cease to exist and where people from all nations come together in shared joy.

Tickets are now available for purchase here.

Revisit last year’s edition below.

Stream the official playlist via your chosen platform here.