Balelec Festival

Festival Balélec
Genre
DatesYearly, in May
Location(s)Lausanne, Switzerland
Coordinates46°31′6.41″N 6°33′59.05″E / 46.5184472°N 6.5664028°E / 46.5184472; 6.5664028
Years active1981–present
Foundersstudents at EPFL
Attendance16'000 people
Websitehttps://balelec.ch/en/


The Balelec Festival is the largest musical event organized by students in Europe.[1][2] It is usually the first open-air music festival happening in Switzerland each year during Spring. It is organised by volunteers on the campus of École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne[3] near lake Geneva in Lausanne, Switzerland around the beginning of May.

Originally the ball of the school's electronics faculty, the festival is known to happen on a rainy day. It has been held at EPFL since 1981.[4] Each year on a Friday night the school welcomes 15'000 people (since 2003) and 30 live concerts. [5][6] Concerns about excessive consumption of alcohol at the festival are denied by the organizers.[7]

In 2015 and again in 2016, the festival once again attracted a sold out crowd of about 15,000 spectators.[8] The budget for the 2016 festival was 650,000 swiss francs.[9]

  1. ^ "Le festival Balelec séduit malgré la pluie". 24 Heures
  2. ^ "Chers festivaliers, c'est le printemps". 24 Heures.
  3. ^ "Le festival Balélec vu du ciel". Tribune de Geneve, Xurxo-Adrián Entenza 22.05.2012
  4. ^ "Festival Balelec". People Magazine. Sacha Voeffray
  5. ^ "20 minutes - Balélec frappe très fort et dans tous les styles - Nightfever". 20 Minutes.
  6. ^ "Festival Balélec 2011 à Lausanne : programme et clips". francomix.com.
  7. ^ "A Balélec, l'alcool n'est pas un souci". 20 Minutes, May 9, 2014.
  8. ^ "Balélec repart pour un tour". 24 heures, 27 October 2015
  9. ^ "La bonne humeur a été au rendez-vous à Balélec". 20 Minutes, May 14, 2016.