Will Santana Be Playing At Bansko Beat Festival?

Santana… Rock Festival… Bansko. I’ve just read about the “Bansko Beat” rock festival. I’m not normally prone to discuss events until formally announced… but today I have to make an exception.

Three Day Rock Festival

On the talkbansko.com forum, the highly respected German expatriate, Frank Nadler, mentioned plans for a three day rock festival “Bansko Beat” in Bansko this year. Probable dates are for the weekend of 10th or the following weekend, 17th July 2009.

If you’re a  Santana fan like me, then this is superb news. A summer trip to Bansko for good music will be welcomed by many.They are planning for around 15,000 visitors for the event.  But, again, I will add my caveat at this stage. Nothing has been confirmed officially. Neither the festival, nor the real Santana.

But I’m excited that this major event will happen, and could well become an annual fixture.

Samtana Tribute Band

In early March, I went to see the Santana tribute band Samtana concert in the UK, and took the video you see above.

OK, I now must own up to a personal connection here. The new lead guitarist of Samtana, Spud Hole, who plays Carlos in “Samtana”, the Santana tribute band, is a good friend of mine. He joined Samtana in January.

But I can say for sure that the audience were really impressed with Samtana. It was good to see a younger generation enjoying the music. Not surprising as this seven piece band had no weak links.

All in all, it was a show that delivered an uplifting Santana experience.

Back to the point of this post -  a Bansko Rock Festival is, in principle,  the future for a developing Bansko tourist proposition.

I am hopeful that the line up of bands will be excellent.  I anticipate a selection of Bulgarian rock bands as well as international names. This would make a great mix. From what I have seen, there is plenty of talented Bulgarian bands. Do check out some of The Happy End Band videos in video section.

Whilst researching for this post, I also found a professional video taken by some students at the same Samtana concert, see below. So this may help for you to decide if the real Santana is your thing. Here’s wishing the organisers the best of luck in making this all happen.

Watch this space for updates.