Major bands and artists from Wales, Scotland, Ireland and all around the world will be competing for a glittering showcase of the largest audience anywhere of international world music concert and festival bookers, labels, distributors, journalists and industry professionals when WOMEX comes to Cardiff in late October. The premier World Music market, the best in the world, will be exploring Celtic grounds, following the Welsh capital’s successful international bid to host WOMEX for five thrill-filled days from Wednesday, 23 to Sunday, 27 October 2013.

The WOMEX venues are the Motorpoint Arena in the City Centre and the Wales Millennium Centre on Cardiff Bay. WOMEX received proposals from nine cities within Europe for 2013, including Glasgow, Scotland and Dublin, Ireland. A complex selection process, including a round of site visits to the three cities and in-depth talks with all parties involved, preceded the final decision for the Cardiff, which is the tenth largest city in the Uited Kingdom.

Daniela Teuber, WOMEX Director of Production, said: "We're very happy that Cardiff will be hosting WOMEX in 2013. The city offers a most favourable setting for our complex event and its 2,500 delegates and many artists from all over the globe, truly professional, highly motivated local production partners, wonderful venues matching our multi-faceted needs in close proximity; and Wales' outstanding cultural wealth, hospitality and scenic beauty."

This year, for the first time, four of the international showcase bands or artists will be selected to tour the theatres and arts centres of Wales – 16 performances in 16 locations over four days, in a Creu Cymru/Theatr Mwldan initiative, with funding from the Arts Council of Wales.

Touring alongside the international bands will be four Welsh or Wales-based outfits, who have already submitted their applications in April. Decisions will be made as soon as possible after WOMEX announce their showcase roster, which is likely to be late June). For information, contact deborah@creucymru.com or dilwyn@mwldan.co.uk

Welcoming the news, First Minister Carwyn Jones said: "WOMEX is a great opportunity to bring the most important world music stage to Wales as well as developing the sector in a sustainable way within our country. WOMEX Cardiff will place the music from Wales on the world stage alongside more established markets so that Wales' authentic music traditions become more widely known internationally and are positioned beside music from our Celtic neighbours. Hosting WOMEX will allow us to grow the profile of Wales's traditional music, both within and out of the country." 

The bid to host WOMEX in 2013 was led by Cerdd Cymru:Music Wales, a partnership between the Welsh Music Foundation, Wales Arts International and Arts Council of Wales, with support from the British Council and Welsh Government. The two important venues Wales Millennium Centre and Motorpoint Arena Cardiff as well as Cardiff City Council and Cardiff & Co, are all formal partners for WOMEX 13.

A taste of Wales' abundant musical talent, including the bands Calan, 9Bach and Mabon, was showcased at WOMEX 11 in Copenhagen, creating appetite for more among the WOMEX delegates. Here's a Cardiff sneak preview on YouTube.

Five months before the event, the Trade Fair for WOMEX 13 in the Motorpoint Arena is filling up swiftly, with exhibitors from Japan, Serbia, Gibraltar, Lithuania, Latvia, Canada, Spain, Sweden, Colombia, Germany, Portugal, the Netherlands, Romania, Belgium, France and the UK emphasising WOMEX's standing as the most international of all music networking events worldwide.

Looking to showcase your country's or organisation's artists and activities? There are still stands available – check the Trade Fair map: register and book your stand quickly and easily via our website.

Alan James joins the Seven Samurai

Every year, bands submit hundreds of applications to perform in the biggest World Music market – and every year, WOMEX invites seven esteemed members of its global community to join the WOMEX Jury. Otherwise known as The Seven Samurai, these seasoned music professionals work on the Showcase and Conference selection: while five Samurai focus on shaping the Showcase Festival line-up, the other two Samurai address the Conference programming.

The Five Showcase Samurai are:

Alan James, who is chairman of the Welsh Music Foundation and EFDSS and is a director of Cerdd Cymru: Music Wales, started in world music tour managing the Drummers of Burundi for the inaugural WOMAD Festival. Alan now owns Hold Tight Management, working with Sam Lee and Friends, Spiro and 9Bach. Hold Tight have also worked on projects with The Imagined Village, Ananda Shankar, Gopal Shankar Misra, Chris Wood's Handmade Life, and Sheema Mukherjee.

Miriam Leah Brenner (USA/The Netherlands)  obtained an MA degree in ethnomusicology from Utrecht and Amsterdam Universities, after conducting field research in Indonesia. She is assistant artistic director at the Music Meeting Festival and has been a tour producer at RASA. As Kokako Music's founder, she is currently a freelance programmer, tour manager, and represents innovative world/jazz and global bass artists. Miriam is a board member of the Dutch Society of Ethnomusicology and regularly presents lectures. Find out more at: www.kokakomusic.com  or look her up on Twitter: www.twitter.com/miriamsrocking

Valentin Langlois (France) was in charge of world music for the label Arion from 1999 to 2005, co-ordinating hundreds of CD launches. In 2004, he co-created the Parisian label Helico, featuring groups from Brazil, Europe and the Indian Ocean. He has co-directed two musical documentaries and co-organised music festivals in Paris. Find out more at: www.helicomusic.com

Ankur Malhotra (India/USA) is co-founder of Amarrass Records (established 2009), a multi-faceted independent record label based in India and the US. An avid musicologist, he explores, engages, and connects musical traditions from around the world. Ankur's work has been featured in The New York Times, on NPR, and BBC Radio. He is a DJ, a photographer, runs Madison Music review, and is a co-producer of Madison's eclectic street music festivals. He also serves on the Board of Directors of WORT 89.9 FM. Find out more at: www.amarass.com

Fruzsina Szép (Hungary) is the programme director of Sziget Festival. She started her career as manager of live events and groups, including Muzsikás and Márta Sebestyén. She established the Hungarian Music Export Office and directed the Hungarian Cultural Institute in Brussels. Her goal is to build links between cultural markets. Find out more at: www.sziget.hu

The two Conference Samurai are:

Eva Kiltz (Germany)  who is general manager of the German Association of Independent Music Companies (VUT) based in Berlin. VUT represents the interests of nearly 1,300 associated music companies. Eva’s background as a musician and cultural manager emphasises VUT’s holistic approach to improve market access and foster fair competition for both music companies and musicians. Find out more at: www.vut.de

Faisal Kiwewa (Uganda) is the founder and director of Uganda’s leading organisation in the arts, Bayimba Cultural Foundation. It organises the annual Bayimba International Festival of the Arts and a range of smaller festivals across Uganda. It also took the lead in establishing DOADOA as the East African Performing Arts Market initiative that will have its second edition this year. Find out more at: www.bayimba.org

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