The Île de France is the region in which Paris is located, and is often referred to colloquially as the “région parisienne”. The Île de France music festival takes place, in autumn, in multiple locations in and around the capital city.
From September 6 – October 12
For over thirty years, the Île de France music festival has been a popular annual event for all ages, attracting between 20,000 and 25,000 visitors every year. For 2014, the theme is “Taboos: Music and the Forbidden” (Tabous, musiques et interdits), which aims to examine and explore the history of censored music, taboos, and musical expression.
This year thirty concerts will take place in twenty-five different locations (including farms, an abbey and a chapel!) It’s a great opportunity to discover some of the region’s lesser-known architectural treasures, charming villages and local sites of interest. There’s something for everyone, regardless of what music genre you prefer: from popular music to ancient, baroque, classical and contemporary repetoires, you’re sure to find a performance and location to suit you. We’ve put together a list of some of the Île de France festival’s most exciting concerts:
Back to Punk
Oct 11, 7.30pm
La Cigalle, Paris
Skewed pop, electro, garage rock, sixties punk. Three musicians give a modern interpretation of punk music.
Burlesque
October 26, 27, 28
Times vary
Cirque d’Hiver, Paris
Le Cabaret New Burlesque explores and flaunts social codes of proporiety. Fun, frolics and feathers but not a hint of cliché.
Cabaret
September 6, 8pm
La Trianon, Paris
Let the Tiger Lillies take you back to the USA in the 1930s, mid Prohibition…
North meets South India
September 13, 8pm
Abbaye de Maubuisson
A country rich in musical and dance history, this performance unites the traditions of both northern and southern India. Discover the controversy of the “devadasis”.
Freud sans tabou
September 21, 10am.
Neuilly-sur-Marne
Music and psycholanalysis collide in this concert-reading which takes place in the chapel of a mental hospital.
Creole
September 27, 8.45pm
Ferme du Buisson Noisiel
Listen to maloya, traditional Creole music. Used as a medium to protest against slavery, poverty and French government, maloya was censured by France until the seventies.
For more information on the other concerts happening during the Île de France festival, as well as ticket prices and accessibility, download the program here.
Interested in getting out of the city and visiting more areas outside Paris? Try our Skip the Line – Versailles Château and Gardens Tour.
