In an exclusive interview, Festivals For All spoke with Ade Goldsmith, one of the organisers behind the ever popular Guilfest festival. Ade has over ten years involvement with Guilfest and FFA were keen to hear his views on the festival scene in general, what Guilfest continues to bring to the party, and his special tips on things to watch out for at this year’s event.

What of today’s festival scene FFA asked; “it’s a pretty saturated market to be honest with new events being announced every year. We are very proud that Guilfest is celebrating its 20th year in 2011. When we started there were far fewer events but a lot has changed in the music scene over the years and more people want to see artists live these days. You can copy music but you can’t copy a live music experience!” replied Ade with a smile. “Festivals help satisfy that demand. With the state of the economy some festivals will thrive whilst others, particularly grant funded events, may struggle. Here at Guilfest we have a well established, thriving event with a core fan base who return year on year, and excellent infrastructure. We’re adding new stages to widen the music genres on offer, and, equally important, the non-music offerings are improving year on year too. For instance this is one of the best comedy line-up’s we’ve hosted. Festivals like Guilfest that provide a broad based appeal to satisfy all tastes and age groups will continue to prosper whatever the economic climate.”

“Given the unique characteristics of Guilfest we attract all ages and types of music lover”, said Ade. “Our excellent transport links and location in Guilford means the younger festival goer can commute rather than have the worry and hassle of overnight camping etc, whilst families are well catered for; look at our first class kids zone for instance. Festivals are more than just music; the whole ‘non-music’ elements and infrastructure need to be right. We are always providing something fresh, like our theatre tent acts and Vintage Fayre this year. People love dressing up, having a good time, and forgetting about the worries of the world for a weekend.”

How does the music policy complement this, FFA asked; “we’ve music eight stages so we can satisfy everyone from the children to the grandparents. Roger Daltrey, our main stage headliner on Friday night, is generating huge interest from all elements of festival goers, and is one of the most talked about acts for many a year. The guy has universal appeal. This year we’ve introduced a Punk & Ska stage. We recognised the demand so we’ve addressed it with a dedicated stage. As with Daltrey, you’ll find something that appeals to everyone across the main stages, whilst we can also meet the needs of those that enjoy one particular type of music with a dedicated scene elsewhere. Take the dance tent; I can promise an excellent vibe there with some big names and others about to break through. They will be massive” added Ade.

The line-up at Guilfest this year sees some international names like Razorlight, James Blunt, Echo & The Bunnymen and N-Dubz amongst a wealth of quality performers, but are there any acts that Ade would specifically advise us to watch out for, FFA enquired; “With my focus on dance I can heartily recommend Benji Boko, DC Breaks, and Redlight amongst a very strong dance line-up in the Funky End Dance Tent. They are all getting a lot of radio air time now and touring to enthusiastic crowds. In a year or so I think they will be international calibre. I also think Yasmin has real star quality, and the excellent Skindred will win even more praise over on The Big Cheese Cave. They are brilliant live ….and not forgetting local lads, Subsource of course!” Having been blown away by Subsource in a rainy field a few weeks back, FFA can only nod in approval.

We can’t wait!

Guildfest 2011 takes place in Stoke Park, Guilford, Surrey 15th-17th July.  Full details and tickets are available here:

http://www.festivalsforall.com/festival/guilfest-2011