Festival rocks to a different beat

ARTISTS from more than 20 countries come together to stage a celebration of cultural diversity at WOMADelaide in the South Australian capital city's Botanic Park.

Ole ... Victor Valdes and the Real Mexico Mariachi Band bring more than just their sombreros to WOMADelaide.

ARTISTS from more than 20 countries come together to stage a celebration of cultural diversity at the WOMADelaide in the South Australian capital city's Botanic Park.

Friday, March 7

The evening offers two of Womadelaide's bill-topping performances, both on for one night only. Murundak, the staged performance by The Black Arm Band, is a hugely successful melding of Aboriginal music, culture and tradition. Mavis Staples sang with all the US greats, from Janis Joplin to Bob Dylan, before emerging as a star in her own right.

Saturday, March 8

Womadelaide proves that some of its stars go into the mainstream of popular music today. John Butler Trio, which was an obscure Australian trio when it first performed at Womadelaide more than a decade ago, now has a huge following.

And Sarah Blasko, who finally makes Womadelaide after years of discussions, has become a national drawcard in her own right.

Sunday, March 9

After two days, everyone at Womadelaide will be familiar with the sounds of the "barefoot diva", Cesaria Evora, who shows the deep roots of African music that influenced the world. From Romania, "gypsy" band Taraf de Haidouks, does amazing things to the classics by taking the music of Bartok and Liszt and Khachaturian back to their folk origins.