Official dates for 2007 announced!

Check out your agendas, Gouveia Art Rock 2007 is on its way!!
Our annual progressive music event will take place in the third weekend of April 2007. Don't even think to miss it on the 21st and 22nd.

More news soon!

The Gouveia Art Rock famous quotes! (2)

To those who "comprend le français", maybe our friends of the prestigious Crescendo Festival won't mind if we sneak a bit on their discussion forum. There are some interesting analysis on our latest Gouveia Art Rock 2006!
A bientôt, les amis!! Au revoir!
(Photo of Alamaailman Vasarat taken by Popol de Polignac, originally published at the Forum Festival Crescendo de Rock Progressif)

The Gouveia Art Rock famous... photos! (2)

Long gone are the times when it was rare to find photographic documents of our annual gathering. Now, it's quite easy to "google" around and find myriads of internet references to the Gouveia Art Rock festival and to those who come, sometimes from far, far away.
Well, maybe that was the case with aplodon and ozric75, two members of the internet-based community Progressive Ears. Both came from abroad, and both their testemonies can be viewed by simply clicking on the links...

Across the Nil

Nil. A magical word full of great memories for the pioneers of Gouveia Art Rock... Everyone who was lucky enough to witness it, still remembers how the french quintet, fronted by the beautiful voice of Roselyne Berthet, took the stage on that evening of July 6th 2003. Along with portuguese Saturnia and italian La Maschera di Cera, Nil opened the curtain of the festival's first ever edition. At that time, they were spotted by portuguese enthusiasts after the release of their amazing masterpiece "Quarante Jours Sur Le Sinai". But still, their performance was an absolute surprise, filled with their odd ambiences, strangely melodic and complex interplay, sheer strength and all those little things we, progressive enthusiasts, love so much in music. Actually you can watch part of it on the rare Gouveia Art Rock 2003 DVD.
Anyway, the news is: After a fantastic comeback last year with their fourth album, "Nil Novo Sub Sole", establishing them as one of the most original, avantgardish and bold projects of today's symphonic progressive rock, Nil decided it was time to give late enthusiasts another chance. So here it is: "Quarante Jours Sur Le Sinai", the album that brought them to Gouveia, has just been reissued by the canadian label Unicorn Digital. Our advice is: Get it while you can!
(photo of bassist and Chapman stick player Samuel Maurin live at Gouveia Art Rock 2003 by Miguel Pires)

In Wikipedia

It's always nice to notice how the world looks at the Gouveia Art Rock festival. With only four editions, our annual event is already being regarded as one of a kind.
Wikipedia's article on "progressive rock" shows an indepth overview of the genre. The "festivals" chapter on the online encyclopedia is quite conclusive, as it shows a very limited list of the most prestigious progressive events worldwide. Gouveia Art Rock is the only european festival who gets a mention.

They shall be back!

If there's one thing that distinguishes progressive music from the more established mainstream genres is its ability to transform itself, its permanent metamorphosis. A band can be progressive, yet being also ethnical or pure rock. Ain't that cool?
That is, maybe, a good reason to explain why are the amazing Alamaailman Vasarat coming back to Portugal just some months after they played our Gouveia Art Rock 2006 edition.
Jarno Sarkula and the other finnish boys will be guests at the renowed Sines Festival Músicas do Mundo (FMM) on the July 27th.
This means that their totally unpredictable original brand of crazy "Monty Python movie directed by Emir Kusturica" kind of soundtrack party music (as so "correctly?" defined by Gouveia organizer Eduardo Mota in the festival's presentation) will hit again a portuguese stage.
Those who've seen them in Gouveia know that they are not the kind of band to be missed...

Gouveia Art Rock... TV!

This year Gouveia Art Rock was not only a precious item for press journalists. There was also some national radio and TV broadcast on the issue!
Here and here you'll have the chance to watch two portuguese spoken reports of the University of Porto TV.
A team of two young journalists filmed and reported on the opening moments of the event. Taal's concert deserved a special mention. But there's much more to see.

Have fun!

Portuguese progressive bands play Santiago Alquimista

For the first time ever two portuguese Gouveia Art Rock acts are about to join their forces to play live together in a full portuguese progressive music night.
This unprecedented event will feature the neo-prog flagholders Forgotten Suns and the avant-progressive folk of Miosótis, according to an official bulletin by Portugal Progressivo-Associação Cultural.

Both bands have already contributed to the festival. Forgotten Suns opened the curtain in 2004 (photo of vocalist Linx live at Gouveia Art Rock courtesy Miguel Pires), with a full concert where they performed their then new concept album "Snooze", while Miosótis presented their debut album "O Monstro e a Sereia" in a 2005 multimedia and acoustic showcase.
Next June 29th both will perform in one of the most emblematic Lisbon venues: Santiago Alquimista.

The (new) space of...

... Carlos Tavares, Gouveia Art Rock organizer.
Well, he is always up to something, if you just want to check it out.

"Back in Gouveia"

Better than our own words, it's always nice to receive news and reviews from some of the festival's dearest visitors from abroad.
Thomas Olsson first came to Gouveia as the manager and concept collaborator of swedish avantgarde ensemble Isildurs Bane, for the memorable 2004 concert.
It seems he enjoyed it enough to accept our invitation to come back as a musicologist and special guest in 2005 and 2006.
So he contributed to the festival's debates and discussions around music, like he just described in the recent May Isildurs Bane newsletter:

For the third year running, IB have been represented at the wonderful Gouveia Art Rock festival in Portugal. Isildurs Bane played there in 2004, a magic concert that was released on DVD (still available through www.justforkicks.de, www.recordheaven.net and www.progcds.com if you haven’t got it already).
Last year, yours truly went to Gouveia to promote IB and lecture on the state of progressive rock today. This year, my lecture from 2005 was printed and sold to the audience. I also chaired a lively panel discussion on prog which was very appreciated according to reliable sources.
Even if I hadn’t participated actively, I would have applauded this initiative. All too frequently, discussions on music aren’t taken seriously or aren’t even considered, but at this forward-thinking festival, the organizers are not interested in fetishizing the music or the artists, they are really into the music itself, the musicians’ideas and what makes them tick. For this, I salute you!
There was some great music at the festival too, of course: headliner Peter Hammill delivered a moving solo set; Matthew Parmenter also played a solo set which was a pleasant surprise for me not having heard any of his music before; Finnish world music act Alamaailman Vasarat were most entertaining and energetic with their Balkan-punk and positive attitude; and finally Present who steam-rolled the audience with their incredibly intense, dissonant and explorative exercises in music.
Apart from the music, the organizers have really understood the importance of the general feeling of the festival, the good-naturedness and the positive attitude that comes with the festival. I took great pleasure in meeting Peter Hammill, of course, but I also had a swell time speaking to IB newsletter subscriber Matthew Parmenter, FixSadler, Fred & his lovely family, Ze, Noca, Mario and last but certainly not least the wonderful people who make this festival work: Luis, Eduardo and Carlos.
I can whole-heartedly recommend any true IB enthusiast to go to Gouveia in 2007. You will easily get your money’s worth, trust me on this one small thing!

Need we say more?

Well... er... maybe! We should all congratulate Thomas for his brand new musical product: little Otto was born! New music and sounds are on their way!
We can only wish for a big and beautiful suite of a long and happy life.

(on the photo, from left to right, Matthew Parmenter, Carlos Plaza, Thomas Olsson and Fernando Guiomar during the 2006 debate, one of the side events of the festival)

The Gouveia Art Rock famous... photos! (1)

Our 2006 edition produced not only its unique musical moments but some fine oportunities for photographers.

A brand new and complete gallery has been uploaded to our official website, featuring the works of our friends Miguel Pires and José Felix da Costa, plus some photos by Gouveia Art Rock organizer Eduardo Mota (whose skills can be closely analised in the Matthew Parmenter pic on your right side).

Mr. Spulit, webmaster of Prog-PT.com, one of the oldest portuguese progressive music websites, is also another old friend of the festival. He took pictures on every edition since the second one back in 2004. Alamaailman Vasarat seminal cello player Marko Manninen can be seen here under the red shadow. But there's much more!
Click the site link if you want to see... the "whole picture" of Spulit's Gouveia Art Rock 2006 fine gallery.

Meanwhile, keep in touch with the blog's updates. We found some great photographic surprises in the net. We'll bring some to you soon!

The Gouveia Art Rock famous quotes (1)

Some of the most important national newspapers and Portuguese online publications published extensive reviews and articles on our festival in the days and weeks that followed, making it one of the most publicized progressive music events in the whole world.

With this post we start a series of quotes and excerpts taken (and, when necessary, translated) from almost everywhere. It will help everyone to understand the impact our festival is having not only among enthusiasts but also specialised and nationwide general media.
(Click on the links to read the Portuguese online articles).

Público: "Peter Hammill, a piano and a guitar" (10-04-2006)
"Guest of honour at this Gouveia Art Rock fourth edition (...) "the thin man" played in front of a sold out theatre, with a lot of people coming from Spain just to listen to him."

Diário Digital: "Gouveia Art Rock: Yes to Music Outside the Big Cities!" (10-04-2006)
"It was really a strong lineup, maybe the best ever. In case this event is able to maintain this high level it will surely become a real contender to other portuguese cult festivals like Sines' world music festival "Músicas do Mundo". The local Gouveia small economy had also a great weekend and the nice hospitality made a lot of people want to wish a fast comeback."

Correio da Manhã: "Peter Hammill loved local gastronomy" (10-04-2006)
"Considered by many as a true icon, Peter Hammill didn't disappoint his devoted followers and, last Saturday night, he just teared a full house down in cheering and applause. His concert closed the Gouveia Art Rock 2006 first day, in the only portuguese festival fully dedicated to progressive music in its several forms."

Welcome to the Gouveia Art Rock official blog

So it is! Only one month after a remarkable musical gathering, the Gouveia Art Rock organization welcomes you to this new form of communication and interaction.
This blog will try to complement our already established official website, providing accurate and up-to-date information for those who want to follow the festival's activities and preparations.
This will be an exclusively English written blog dedicated to all those dozens of foreign enthusiasts who chose Gouveia as their destination during last April 8-9 wonderful weekend. Because they made our festival a true international meeting of real progressive fans, contributing with their colours to the full pallette of what this festival is becoming year after year.
Through this blog you will also be invited to participate with your ideas and thoughts.
Thanks for being part of the adventure!

Like we always keep saying: Our festival is YOUR festival!

(photo of Peter Hammill live at Gouveia Art Rock 2006, taken by Spulit, courtesy of www.prog-pt.com)