Beach-side music festival draws well-known performers

Gulangyu's first beach music festival came to a climactic end on Saturday after running for more than two months.

The concert, Fashion Music in Gulangyu, was organized as a contest, and six bands made it to stand on the final stage, including Isolated Island, F18 Flight, Tredub and Waylife. The colorful light and powerful music attracted a large number of visitors and local residents to the beach.

Visitors waved their hands to the rhythm and applauded for the music and performance of the young players.

"It is excellent that the competition was held on this beautiful island Gulangyu. I regarded this competition as our daily performance and enjoyed it very much," the lead singer of Waylife told media representatives.

The music festival was organized by Gulangyu local administrators and Xiamen's institutions in the fields of fashion music and music broadcast, under the guidance of the Xiamen organizing committee, to celebrate the success of Gulangyu being listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

The organizers of the festival invited well-known musicians and music producers to do the evaluation work for the festival.

Chen Jianping, one of the referees, said: "This festival is comparable with the Kenting Spring Wave Music & Art Festival (a major outdoor music festival held in Taiwan) as it is held on such scenic stage - Gulangyu. The audience atmosphere is also excellent." Facing the crystal sea water and blue sky, backed by the green trees and red-roofed mansions, the festival was held on the soft sand of Gangzaihou Beach, one of the three beaches on the island.

As an isolated island on the sea, the beaches on Gulangyu have become major entertainment places for local residents.

Elderly people walk along the beaches at dawn and dusk. Some of the locals have mastered the technique of capturing fish and shrimp on the beaches, said a 57-year-old local resident surnamed Chen.

In the daytime, there will be couples drawing hearts on the beach to show their affection for each other. Children play in the sand, often burying themselves until only their head is visible. At night, however, the sea is peaceful and quiet. Local fishermen wave their fishing rods, hoping for a night of good luck. After the music festival, visitors could choose to have a seafood feast in the household restaurants, open a coconut and then walk slowly back to hotels and enjoy a peaceful night's sleep.