The marching course is clear: even bigger, longer and even more extraordinary, including a brass band summit meeting and an Afro rap night. The aim is to make people curious about other cultures, encourage them to open up and experience what the world is like," Banha says in an interview with the General-Anzeiger. The huge interest last year, where everything was sold out except for one event, has shown that this concept works very well," says the world music impresario. "I hope that we can repeat this success again this year."

The program is really impressive. The opening concert will get the festival off to a fantastic start: alongside the Berlin rapper Trettmann will be Äl Jawala, one of Germany's best world music bands - a band that mixes Balkan soul, dance beat and modern klezmer effortlessly and elegantly together and will certainly put the crowd in the party mood. For the quintet, the concert in Bonn also marks the kick-off to their tour, where the musicians will be playing the songs from their new album "Lovers" for the first time.

“In order to experience diversity, you have to be able to transcend borders," says Äl Jawala in reference to the festival’s name " Over The Border "and its slogan "Music Diversity Festival". And it is precisely this diversity that the festival makes possible, as Gata Misteriosa, the Gato-Preto singer Gata Misteriosa explains: "I'm really excited about it, because so much is on offer, from big brass to afrobeat, from local matadors from Germany to musicians from Palestine, India and the Cape Verde Islands".

For example, her duo Gato Preto, who merge Angolan electronic music, favela funk and township grooves, will be performing at the Telekom Forum along with the rap trinity Megaloh, Musa and Ghanaian Stallion alias BSMG, while the Polish Bumbum Orkestrar will play in harmony with the Palestinian 47Soul. Such combinations are the ones that particularly appeal to organiser Banha. "I see myself as a mediator," he says. Of course, I always hope for joint performances of the artists, but I can't force it. It must come from them. Personally, I find it fascinating when diverse musicians come together and create something new." Just like in the chamber music hall, where singers from Madagascar, Mali and Morocco join forces with the Indian lap-slide guitarist Debashish Bhattacharya under the name of Les 3Mas. "I deliberately set up two slots for them."

The nucleus of the festival this year, however, is not made up of international but rather three German formations. When Querbeat joins up with the Hamburg techno-marching band Meute and its southern German counterpart Dicht & Ergreifend, a ‘summit meeting’ of the brass groups will take place that you wouldn’t otherwise experience," says Banha. "Each band has its own unique sound, which I am sure will connect really well with the others." Meute orientates itself more towards dance club beats and acoustically puts techno and house songs together, while Dicht & Ergreifend are more oriented towards Bavarian hip-hop. And especially here in our region, it is no secret that the musicians from Querbeat in Bonn really give it something on the stage.

Manuel Banha is proud of the program. The mix fits. Klezmer enthusiasts get their money's worth with Kroke in the Paulus church and fans of quieter world music will enjoy the performance of the quartet Inspire with the Quadro Nuevo harpist Evelyn Huber in the Brotfabrik. Banha is also fulfilling a personal dream and commemorating the famous Cape Verdean singer Cesaria Evora almost seven years after her death with a concert by her musical heirs. "I'm so glad I can do something like this."

So far there has only been one disaapointment - the Greek superstar Maraveyas cancelled his appearance at the festival for scheduling reasons. This is of course annoying for us because Maraveyas embodies exactly what fascinates me about world music: He is an artist who packs out stadiums in his home country and is largely unknown to us outside the Greek community," explains the organiser. “To offer these people a stage and to show them that they can also touch people beyond the borders of their country has always been my heart's desire," says festival director Banha. "It's a pity that it didn't work out with Maraveyas this time. But instead we managed to get the cult band Imam Baldi on board, who recently performed at the Roskilde Festival and the Montreal Jazz Festival." And this is further proof that music doesn't care about borders.

9th March: Äl-Jawala + Trettmann, Bonn University auditorium, 7pm

10th March: Kroke, Paulus church, 8pm

13th March: Inspire, Brotfabrik, 8pm

16th March: Hommage to Cesaria Evora with Elina Almeida Et le Cesária Evora Orchestra, Telekom Forum, 8pm

17th March: ‘Summit Meeting’ with Querbeat, Meute und Dicht & Ergreifend, Telekom Forum, 7pm

19th and 20th March: Les 3Mas and Debashish Bhattacharya, Beethovenhaus, 8pm

21st March: Bum Bum Orchester and 47Soul, Harmonie, 7.30pm

22nd March: Gato Preto and BSMG feat. Megaloh, Ghananian Stallion & Musa, Harmonie, 7.30pm

24th March: Imam Baildi, Pantheon, 8pm

25th March: Finale with Local Ambassadors, Harmonie, 7pm

Tickets from 25.50 Euro. Festival ticket: 135 Euro plus fees. Available from GA offices. Call (0228) 50 20 10 or visit www.bonnticket.de

For more information about the festival: overtheborder-festival.de

(Original text: Thomas Kölsch Translation: Caroline Payne)