France’s Fête de la Musique: Music in the Streets on the Longest Day of the Year

A band playing in front of the then under-reconstruction former Les Deux Garçons bistro. Aix-en-Provence, France. November 28, 2021.

Each year on the first official day of summer—June 21, the day after the summer solstice—France (and the rest of the world, so I hear) celebrate Make Music Day.

Now, if you wonder how you could have missed it, rest assured: Your city may not have celebrated.

In France, though, not only do they have what feels like endless free concerts throughout the summer months in towns throughout the country, they really lean into the whole Fête de la Musique tradition on the official day of the event.

As well they should. After all, they created the holiday.

The History of the Fête de la Musique

The Fête de la Musique kicked off in Paris as an initiative of the French Ministry of Culture. Since then, it’s spread to more than 700 to 1,000 cities in 120 to 130 countries.

The idea for the festival came from Maurice Fleuret, the director of music and dance for the French Ministry of Culture. When he learned of a 1982 research study’s finding that five million people in France played a musical instrument, he began to muse on how he could bring all these amateur musicians out into the streets to bring the culture together around its evident shared love for music.

In 2022, the festival celebrated its fortieth anniversary. You can click through each year’s official poster at the bottom of this Ministère de la Culture website. (My favorite is from 2003. Yours?)

Fête de la Musqiue Fun Facts

The musicians donate their time to perform for the Fête de la Musique—including professional musicians who typically charge considerable sums for their concerts—and the events are free for everyone to make it truly a community celebration for all.

And don’t expect only classical music for the Fête de la Musique—at least, not in France. From its origins, the French festival has been open to all types of music and musicians.

From its beginnings in 1982, the Fête de la Musique has been a raging success in France—though they weren’t at all sure whether it would happen at all that first year. Far too late for preparations, they thought, the organizers had sent a message across France to social, political, and musical leaders to announce the day and outline the vision.

Yet, despite low expectations on the Ministry of Culture’s part, the event was a hit. That first year, thousands of musicians poured into the streets, the squares, the gazebos, the parks, the gardens, the train stations, and every other imaginable public space to play and play and play for the entre length of the longest day of the year.

What Happens During the Fête de la Musique?

During the Fête de la Musique in France, you’ll find stages dotted throughout even the smallest of cities offering a full day of programming for each platform. In most of these cases, you’ll see a poster- or even banner-sized schedule next to the stage.

But musicians and bands don’t limit themselves to the grandstands! Just as or even more often, you’ll encounter people playing music wherever they could find a public space.

The atmosphere for the festival truly is magic. Take a long walk down any street in almost any town in France from the beginning of the day until late in the night and you’ll encounter all types of music at all levels of ability played everywhere listened to by clusters of people, some of whom even kick up their heels and dance together or separately.

I’ve never once intentionally planned a visit to France for the Fête de la Musique, yet I often find myself there for the day and I love it. When I can, I capture my goofy little amateur videos to commemorate the moment. I’ve linked to a few below.

I’ll add more as I film more!

Have You Experienced the Fête de la Musique?

Whether in France or elsewhere in Europe or the world, have you experienced the Fête de la Musique?

When we first encountered musicians playing in the streets in far greater numbers than normal—my first Fête de la Musique—I was surprised and my French spouse took it as an obvious given. (Me: “Ooo! This is so wonderful! What’s going on? I love this!” Him: “Oh, yeah, that. Happens every year.”)

May I, no matter how French I get over time, never become this blasé about something so fantastic!