THE SUMMER SOLSTICE GATHERING
Body & Soul began as a small gathering of people interested in music, arts, holistic therapies, performance, community and creative expression. It was a well-loved and integral part of the Electric Picnic. Over the last seven years, it has grown steadily into a heartfelt and colourful platform with a primary vision in artistic and holistic collaboration. It was, and still remains, a modern celebration of an age old tradition.
Body & Soul is more about atmospheric engineering than main attractions and hype. They want their festival goers to enjoy an “experience” rather than just a gig – they’re sustainability conscious, without being too in-your-face, unique rather than boutique, an independent festival with a heart-shaped mind and a cutting-edge soul.
This year, they’re staging the first of their very own annual festivals, bringing together a collaboration of artists, musicians, poets and performers in a chilled-out, enchanted environment – an eclectic, conscious cabaret of electronic and visual arts, featuring homegrown talent, emerging artists and a selection of international guests.
The Body & Soul Summer Solstice Weekend is their inaugural stand-alone festival, which will take place across the labyrinth of stone-walled gardens and woodlands in the beautiful surrounds of Ballinlough Castle, Co. Meath on the 19th & 20th June.
With a capacity of 1,500 guests, the festival promises to be an intimate affair with a strong focus on the little things that make a festival great. The diverse and exciting programme will include a central Holistic Area featuring wood-fired hot tubs, saunas and tipis with over 30 professional therapists offering everything from Massage to foot rubs, yoga, dance workshops and a range of alternative therapies.
Artists, Performers, Musicians and Therapists are brought together to celebrate and contribute to a more intimate side of a festival experience. Through programming, workshops, support for the arts, music policy and respect for the planet, Body & Soul hopes to inspire a heightened awareness of a people-environment connection, while promoting every twist and turn of countless new, alternative and exciting artistic corners and pathways. The vision is to create a permanent festival site for future generations to enjoy, and specializes in hand crafted, bespoke stages, gardens and enchanted spaces.
The festival will stage a host of live bands and electronic acts across the weekend, including pioneer of folktronica Kieran Hebden (aka Four Tet); homegrown electronic heroes Jape; Dr Alex Paterson of The Orb; Tunng and Kormac’s Big Band among the extensive, eclectic line-up. Expect “hands-on” green crafts workshops promoting sustainable and environmentally sound practices, circus performers, Rambling Troubadours, improvised acoustic sessions, impromptu parties, winding paths through delicious food stalls, cellos by the pond, fire ceremonies, drumming troupes, a secluded and dedicated Soul Kids garden, a Masquerade Ball with a moonlit orchestra, bonfires under the stars, and a host of quirky nooks and crannies.
Body & Soul: A festival Full of Surprises.
For more information visit www.bodyandsoul.ie
