Wakana Reunion: a sustainable musical experience in Cádiz

 

Sensations, magical moments and unexpected experiences. Friendship, love, peace... That's what we got from the 3 days we spent at Wakana Reunion, a 3-day festival with more than 30 soul, flamenco, downtempo, jazz, ethnic and electronic rhythms groups and a capacity of only 1000 people, which was celebrated this year under the full May moon.

 

Wakana Reunion is already known as the Spanish Coachella, although instead of a desert, this festival is held in a protected natural park of more than 180,000 hectares, the Alcornocales Natural Park (Cádiz, Spain), which overlooks a natural reservoir with mirror waters, on which the environment’s magic was reflected.

 

 
 

Full Moon, the second edition of Wakana has been a new magical experience. This time they outdid themselves, not only due to the line-up, in which they again worked with Muzo Collective and in which 40 groups of ethnic rhythms, funk, R&B or electronic music participated, but with their new eco proposals and new zones to disconnect. Wakana Reunion has gone beyond music, with experiences dedicated to well-being, from cacao ceremonies and full moon odes to meditation sessions, yoga, Ayurvedic massages and organic food menus. The same environment where retreats and private events are held throughout the year became a space of harmony between nature and music from May 17th to May 19th. Hence its name, Wa - -, harmony and Kana - , creating music, in Japanese. For the Sioux Indians, Wakana means “sacred”.

 
 

 

Wakana’s aim is to create a sustainable festival in harmony with nature.

 

As part of their integration into the environment, the festival features Indian Tipis - which house up to 6 people - and Mongolian yurts to sleep under the stars, decorated with recycled materials, which come from local sources or from the Vicente Ferrer Foundation fair trade, all with Feng Shui influence. Wakana Reunion has become the most environmentally-committed musical event.

 
 

 

“Aware of the environmental impact of holding a festival, the sustainable management of Wakana has become one of our priorities. We wanted to work on it from the first edition, to progressively minimize the event’s footprint and, in the medium term, to make Wakana Reunion a festival that leaves its mark on the public, but not on the environment.”

 
 

In this edition, Full Moon Edition, we were able to listen to Alice Phoebe Lou’s voice, a South African pop singer-songwriter, sessions with the less commercial DJs who will be the sound of the future, such as Acid Pauli, an organic DJ who has collaborated with artists like Björk, and bands like Nickodemus, Kalabrese, Otzeki or Yokoo, who, influenced by the full moon and a very involved audience, managed to create a magical atmosphere on the track. 24 hours of music in 3 different stages, each with its own personality, designed with recycled materials by the Zuloark collective. In this edition, a new space has given life to the festival, a palapa overlooking the lake, which has created a magical atmosphere, with piano concerts, static dance sessions and moments of madness to escape the world. 

 
 

 

Seeing the sunrise in the morning and the sunset in the afternoon at Wakana Reunion is an incredible - and almost mystical - experience.

 

Moments for everything, for relaxation, for techno, for good conversations and a space that becomes a place to disconnect. Thanks to the entire team and the organizers for creating such a special event, and for demonstrating that yes, one can organize festivals with a different leitmotif, sustainably and while creating a harmony with the environment. Can’t wait for 2020's edition to begin.

 
 

+ Words:  Helena G.

Helena G. is a graphic designer and writer focused on design, architecture and experiences, with a love for sustainable projects, the future of habitat, underground contemporary culture and new creators.