Albanifest
The Albanifest is an old town festival in Winterthur . According to the organizers, it is the largest annual (old) city festival in Europe.
overview
The Albanifest has been held annually since 1971 on the last weekend in June. The festival begins on the last Friday of June and ends on the following Sunday, with Saturday and Sunday falling into the following month of July. Every year around 100,000 visitors visit the Albanifest - in 2007 the organizers spoke of an estimated 90,000 to 120,000 visitors - which, in addition to various concerts, festival / Chilbibbahnen and festival stands, can also come up with various special events. The festival extends completely over the entire historic old town , the Stadthausstrasse located on the edge of the old town and the city park , the forecourt of the art museum and around the meadow north of the town hall . The total area of the festival is approximately 200,000 m². Almost every larger local club is represented at the festival with a marquee or other appearance.
Key data
117 pavilions and boulevard restaurants take part in the festival, offering 10,000 mostly covered seats. 50 dance and entertainment orchestras are present at the festival. 95 associations, clubs and societies are also involved. There are also many entertainment, chilli and sales stands. A number of clubs have live music from DJs and bands from various branches of music. There are 29 Chilbibahnen distributed over different locations in the festival area, where all the important exponents are represented.
traffic
During the Albanifest and especially the Albanifest Night, there is a well-developed transport network in the city as well as regionally. Public transport runs more often and on a denser timetable. Lines 1 (in the direction of Töss, extended to Steig), 2, 3, 5 (in the direction of Dättnau ) and 10 of the Winterthur city bus continue every quarter or half hour at night (Fri – Sat until 2:45 and Sat – Sun until 4:15). At the same time, the night lines continue to run at regular hourly intervals until 4:30 am on both nights. There are also 5 night trains that run until 3:30 am on both nights.
During these days, the passage and parking facilities in the city are rather limited for individual traffic. There are enough bicycle parking spaces.
Names
The Albanifest is named after St. Alban , one of the three city saints of Winterthur. The other two are: Saint Lawrence and Saint Pancratius. In the sacristy of the Winterthur town church there is a medieval ceiling painting with a representation of Alban of England .
history
The date is related to the delivery of the city law letter to Winterthur on June 22, 1264 by Prince Rudolf von Habsburg , an inheritance of the Kyburg family . The city put the day of the solstice ( June 21 proof) as so-called Albanimahl to the birthday of the freedom to celebrate for Winterthur. On this day, the mayor as well as the officials and the city council were elected. The following Albani meal, consisting of wine, cheese and bread donated by the city, took place with dance and music. This Albani meal was held for the last time in 1874 , as the city was in debt as a result of the national railway debacle and could no longer produce enough wine for the many visitors.
In the course of the celebrations for the 700th anniversary of the town charter, the discussion about reviving the Albanifest also arose. In 1969, the first exploratory talks with representatives from neighborhood and residents' associations, town music, inns, the trade association "Junge Altstadt" and the more left-wing cultural association "Kulturpodium" were started. The first small forerunner to the Albanifest took place on June 20, 1970 in Steinberggasse , organized by the Kulturpodium, members of the Guggenmusik “Pro Lapsus” and the residents' association Steinberggasse. Half a year later, on December 15, 1970, an Albanifest Committee was formed from representatives of FAKOWI under the chairmanship of former Mayor Urs Widmer , and in 1971 an official Albanifest was held again, which quickly grew and became the largest of its kind. As part of the Albani festival service, an Albani meal has been held again for a few years.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Albanifest - the largest annual (old) city festival in Europe . Retrieved February 14, 2017.
- ↑ Alexandre-Michel Hoster: How the Albanifest was revived . In: Winterthurer yearbook 2004 . Edition Winterthur, Winterthur 2004, p. 60-61 .
- ↑ Announcement on the official fixed page
