World Music Day

This annual music celebration urges and allows amateur and professional musicians to play music outside in their neighborhoods or in public spaces and parks. Free concerts of a wide array of genres are organized, where musicians play for fun, not for pay. It started in France as Fête de la Musique—which means "festival of music" and "make music!"—where it still goes by the name. Around the world, it goes by other names such as World Music Day, International Make Music Day, Make Music Day, and Music Day.

In 1981, Jack Lang, France's Minister of Culture, appointed Maurice Fleuret to be the Director of Music and Dance at the Ministry of Culture. A study released by the Ministry the following year revealed that five million citizens—including half of young people—played a musical instrument, but that only a small minority participated in musical events. Lang, Fleuret, and Christian Dupavillon believed this meant time was ripe for a public musical event, and they organized the first Fête de la Musique. It was held to great success in Paris on the summer solstice in 1982. In less than a decade, it was being celebrated in 85 countries, and it is now celebrated in over 120 countries and 1,000 cities.

How to Observe World Music Day

Celebrate by making music with others in your neighborhood, in parks, and in other public spaces. It doesn't matter if you are an amateur or a professional! If your city is signed up to participate, check what events are happening, and register your own event if you have one. If your city isn't signed up, you can still create your own event and register it. There is an event toolkit you could download to get ideas for your event. You could also check online for scheduled concerts and "National Projects" you could join in on.

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