If you’re heading to Cali for Petronio this year, you’re in for a treat.
Next week, the annual Petronio Álvarez festival will return to Cali, celebrating Colombia’s Pacific culture through food, drink, fashion and – most of all – music. Now in its 28th year, it is a huge celebration of Afro Colombian culture.
The 2024 Festival Petronio Álvarez will run from August 14 to 19, in the Unidad Deportiva Alberto Galindo. The sports complex is expected to welcome over 500,000 people to listen to more than 1,200 artists.
This year, 47 groups will be competing in the following categories: Marimba and traditional song, caucano violin, chirimía flutes, chirimía clarinets, and free style. The musicians come from Buenaventura, Guapi, Cali, Bogotá, Quibdó, Puerto Tejada, Tumaco, and Esmeraldas in Ecuador.
The history of Petronio Álvarez
Petronio Álvarez was a key figure in Pacific folk music, particularly for the song “Mi Buenaventura,” but he never received recognition in his lifetime. Putting the festival in his name is a way of honouring him and other artists who racism had all but written out of history.
Colombia Visible says he was one of the greatest musicians and promoters of the music and folklore of the Colombian Pacific. So much so that he was known as the King of Currulao. The poet and composer never studied formally but spent much of his life traveling the Pacific coast and making music. He died in 1966, aged 52, from bone cancer.
The first edition of the festival took place in 1997 and has grown exponentially since then, moving to its current location in 2012 after it grew too big for the previous venues. In addition to the music competition, there’s a strong educational element, with workshops for young people.
Petronio Álvarez 2024: What to expect
Festival Petronio Álvarez 2024 will feature an incredible lineup of big names. Stage times haven’t been announced yet. But watch out for Nidia Góngora, Herencia de Timbiquí, Grupo Socavón, Grupo Saboreo, and more. There will also be some international guests such as Síntesis from Cuba and Didá from Brazil.
There will be music on all the stages throughout the day. Petronio is a competition, and the groups of musicians will be competing in several categories. The most powerful performances will happen towards the end of the night, so it’s better to arrive around lunch time (or mid afternoon) and be ready to stay until the end. Make time to wander around – there will be plenty of other things to see, including a Pacific fashion show.
Don’t miss the food
When you arrive at the festival, you’ll find lines of craft stands, a hall dedicated to Pacific food, and another space featuring viche. Organisers say there will be over 150 stands in total. Food-wise, you will find every possible combination of fish, shellfish, coconut, plantain, rice, and more.
When it’s quiet, talk to the stall owners about their dishes. If you don’t know much about food from the Pacific region, you are in for a treat. The easiest way to find the best bites is to look for the stalls with the biggest queues. If you are feeling adventurous, look for pianguas – a type of clam or cockle.
Look out for:
- Stews, especially with seafood and coconut, in the form of cazuela, sancocho, and sudado.
- Atollados, a stewed rice dish with meat, fish, and vegetables from the Valle del Cauca.
- Papas rellenas, balls of mashed potatoes stuffed with fish or meat and deep fried.
- Encocados, essentially various things cooked in coconut cream.
Celebrate viche
You can’t take two steps in Petronio without encountering viche. It’s brewed from sugar cane and a mix of herbs. If the labels are to be believed, it can cure all kinds of illnesses. Particularly sexual ailments. Many of the drinks also boast aphrodisiacal properties. Commercial viche used to be illegal, but that has changed and in recent years the spirit has become a lot more mainstream. There’s even a viche cocktail bar in Bogotá.
I am no expert. Like the food, the best way to learn about viche is to talk to the stall owners and taste the different types. Here are a couple of types you will find:
- Tomaseca, a slightly sweeter viche flavoured with cloves.
- Arrechón, this is made with condensed milk. Kind of like a creamy viche Baileys.
- Viche curao, which is usually packed with herbs and has a slightly bitter taste.
- Pipilongo, brewed with a peppery spice called pipilongo.
Are Harry and Megan really going to be there?
Apparently so. It’s a strange choice of international invitee, given this is an Afro-Colombian festival. According to El Tiempo, they will be in Cali for one day to visit the festival and some other social initiatives. But thankfully the stars of the show won’t be the estranged royals. It won’t even be Francia Márquez, though she was pretty inspiring last year. This is about celebrating and appreciating the culture of communities in Colombia who are often sidelined and maligned.
This year, local authorities in Cali also want to put an eco spin on the event. With COP16 around the corner, organisers say there will be a focus on recycling, sustainable fashion, and environmental preservation.
What about the remates?
In previous years, I have been to the remates – kind of like an after party – where residents of predominantly Afro-Colombian neighbourhoods open their houses and play music through the night. It is an experience I will treasure. Part of the spirit of Petronio is passing the music down through the generations. That happens away from the main stage when the old folk make music with youngsters and everyone in between.
Sadly, in some ways the remates have been the victim of Petronio’s success. Last year thousands of people – both tourists and locals – crammed into the alleyways between the houses. There were too many people. Lisandro Vallecilla Riascos, a musician and social leader, was killed in an altercation. Another man also died. If you want to go to a remate, be aware of where you are. And be prepared to leave if the streets are overcrowded.
Festival do’s and don’ts
If you are visiting Petronio for the first time, this isn’t a music festival like, say, Festival Estereo Picnic or Lollapalooza. It is special in a whole different way. The Colombian Pacific is one of the most culturally diverse musical regions in the country, both maintaining tradition at Petronio and forging new paths with bands such as ChocQuibTown and Afro Legends.
Do
- Drink and share viche. Once you have a bottle, offer it to the people you meet.
- Go hungry. That way you can try several different dishes and snacks.
- Dance and join in. Get a white handkerchief from one of the many sellers and wave it along with the rest of the crowd.
Don’t
- Get drunk. The viche will be flowing at the festival, but you won’t see a lot of drunkenness.
- Forget sunscreen and water. It will be hot and you’ll need to stay hydrated if you want to last to the final acts.
- Forget to take cash. There aren’t any ATMs near the stadium and few places will take cards.
As a foreigner, I am conscious of the fine line between appreciating different cultural traditions and invading or taking over. Petronio is my favourite festival in Colombia and one I’d recommend to anyone. Embrace the music. Talk to people and learn about an often overshadowed part of Colombian culture. Curiosity is often what keeps us on the right side of the line.
