Irtijal Festival’s home city of #Beirut has undergone, in the past year alone, the steady collapse of its economic and banking sectors, waves of revolutionary protests, a deadly criminal blast that devastated entire neighborhoods, and, last but not least, renewed and virulent spikes in Covid-19 fatalities.
In view of the above, we at #Irtijal remained uncertain as to whether we should hold an edition of our festival this year. A vital year for us, since it commemorates our twenty years of existence. Twenty years during which we have truly weathered through thick and thin; until we finally decided that this year would be no different: we will hold our ground and be present in 2020.
Due to prevailing health conditions, Irtijal’20 will take place over two weekends, and entirely feature local musicians. Faithful to its tradition, it welcomes new talents such as the up and rising #Nâr, unprecedented collaborations such as the duo of Paed Conca and Ghassan Sahhab, and the pairing of Egyptian songstress Aya Metwalli with rock power trio #Calamita, and regular festival collaborators such as #FadiTabbal and Rabih Beaini.
Last but not least, we are looking forward to the Kinematik Ensemble, a collective effort curated especially for Irtijal’20, and featuring what is essentially the most interesting Lebanese rock group nowadays, along with a host of collaborators.
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