Q+A: Sunfest founder on scouring the globe to bring music to London
As Sunfest launches its 31st edition on Thursday, founder and executive director Alfredo Caxaj tells Free Press reporter Beatriz Baleeiro about the festival he built, along with the global travels that help bring it to life.
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Q: You've travelled the world to scout and book Sunfest acts since you began the festival three decades ago. How many countries have you been to, and what does that travel involve?
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A: I've been to over 40 countries. Travelling these days is not that easy because you have to go through many security layers in many places. Getting into the plane and flying overnight and all those things are not that comfortable, but as soon as you get to the location, you tend to forget about all of that, and you meet new people, but above all, you find all kinds of new music.
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Q: How essential is seeing the acts you book in person before you lock in?
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A: That's one of the most beautiful experiences. When you go to all these markets and you see these groups and you wish and you dream to have them in your festival. And when they come, and that becomes a reality, that's the most rewarding thing that you can imagine.
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Q: What countries stand out to you from your talent-scouting travels, and why? A: I've been in so many countries all over the world, but there are a couple that stand out for me, like South Korea. There are so many young people there doing incredible music while keeping the basis of their culture. Cabo Verde is another amazing place that I go to every year because I experience an incredible array of music from that particular area of the Atlantic coast of Africa. And Colombia, which has so much to offer and we're bringing three groups from there this year.
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A: Something that we do at the festival is that each group performs at least twice. The purpose of scheduling them twice is precisely that people will have the chance to see all of them. We have five stages, so you won't be able to see everyone in one day. That's why we create those opportunities for the groups to perform at least two times.
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A: As a result of what's going on in the U.S, we lost two international acts. Maxida Märak, an Aboriginal artist from Sweden, built all her tour dates in the United States and the only date in Canada was Sunfest, but she was denied a visa to the States. We also lost a group from Cuba, and their visa was denied twice. The argument is that they think that these people want to come and stay in the country.
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