Wave-Gotik-Treffen

Wave-Gotik-Treffen (ger. "das Treffen" means "the meeting") is an annual festival for music and arts in Leipzig, Germany. 150+ bands and artists from various backgrounds (Gothic rock, EBM, Noise, Darkwave, Neofolk, Neoclassical, Symphonic metal, Medieval Music, Experimental, Gothic metal and Deathrock being examples) play at several venues throughout the city over 4 days on Whitsuntide. The festival also features several fairs with medieval, gothic and cultural merchandise.

With its regular 25,000 attendants (unofficially up to 30,000), the WGT is the largest event of the Goth, cybergoth, and rivethead subcultures worldwide, closely followed by the annual M'era Luna festival in Hildesheim, Germany with 20,000-25,000 attendants.

History

A first attempt at a "Treffen" was made in 1987 in Potsdam. However, as the laws of the German Democratic Republic made this kind of event illegal, only a few hundred visitors attended.

In 1992, after the re-unification of Germany, the first official Wave-Gotik-Treffen was held in the "Eiskeller" club in Leipzig. Since then, the number of visitors has increased greatly and most well-known bands of the genres favored by visitors have played at the "Treffen" at least once.

The largest installment of the WGT was the one of the year 2000 with over 300 acts and an estimated 27,000 visitors. However, that year's festival suffered financial collapse on the third day and had to be aborted. After all festival security guards, most bands and much of the technical staff had left, volunteer helpers and several bands who played for free staged a final concert with an estimated 5,000 people in the audience. Contrary to police expectations, no rioting of any sort occurred and the final day of the festival was celebrated by the remaining visitors in a way that has been compared to the Burning Man.

Since then, the festival has had 18,000 to 21,000 guests per year, most of them returning after previous visits. As the most well-known Goth festival, it draws visitors from all over the world. Many of the guests from Germany choose to camp in massive campgrounds, while guests from overseas are more likely to stay in hotels.

Events

The major attraction of the Wave-Gotik Treffen is the band performances. Generally, the number of musical acts is close to 200, spanning the breadth of "dark music" from acoustic folk to Medieval-influence to deathrock to elektro/EBM/industrial. The dozen-or-more venues are equally varied, from the stately Schauspielhaus to the somber Krypta of the Völkerschlachtdenkmal to the Parkbühne under the trees to the massive 10,000-person capacity AGRA fairground halls.

In addition, there are Renaissance fairs, Viking and Pagan markets, CD/DVD and film premieres, literary readings, artist signing events, brunches celebrating Absinthe, and many late-night danceclubs with top-name DJs. The main market in the AGRA that runs the entire duration of the festival is perhaps the largest for the goth community anywhere in the world.

Festival participants typically stay either in designated camping areas outside the Agra venue or in the hotels and hostels in and around Leipzig. In order to stay at camping areas, participants must pay extra for an "Obsorgekarte", which gives them access to the camping areas. Camping spaces and hotel rooms fill up quickly.

The date of the WGT varies from year to year. It is held on the German holiday weekend of Pfingsten, known in English as Pentecost or Whitsun, which is 7 weeks after Easter. List of Pentecost dates, 2002-2020. Unofficial events start in Leipzig on the Thursday night preceding the date of Pfingsten, while the official festival starts on Friday and runs until early-morning on Tuesday, as Monday is an official holiday in Germany.

External links

* [http://www.Wave-Gotik-Treffen.de Official Website Wave-Gotik-Treffen Leipzig]
* [http://www.SadGoth.com/ 'SadGoth.com' an unofficial Guide to Wave Gotik Treffen]
* [http://www.shout.ru/specials/WGT2008_r.htm Russian Guide to Wave Gotik Treffen 2008]
* [http://www.AmericansInLeipzig.com/ Website for the US group "AmericansInLeipzig" with FAQ and lodging guide]
* [http://festivalinfo.net/?page=gallery&gid=405 Photos from Wave Gotik Treffen 2004]
* [http://Picasaweb.Google.com/SebastianLor/WaveGotikTreffen2007LeipzigGermany/ Digital photos from WGT 2007]
* [http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/view?q=Wave%20Gotik%20Treffen%202007&psc=G&# Photos from WGT 2007]
* [http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/view?q=Wave%20Gotik%20Treffen%202008&psc=G&# Photos from WGT 2008]