Monday Blues was a thing of the past in Kuala Lumpur on June 21st as the sounds of music thundered along the streets of Jalan Bukit Bintang and Changkat Bukit Bintang following the Fête de la Musique celebration.

Deemed the street party of the year, the event was organised by HELP Institute, Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) and Alliance Francaise with the support of the French Embassy. Fête de la Musique or "Festival of Music" in French was the opportunity for Kl-lites to head out into the streets for 12 hours of ultimate celebration of song and dance.

Today, Fête de la Musique is celebrated in more than 120 countries around the world. An international success and a social phenomenon, the festival is also a showcase for new musical trends which it sometimes introduces. However, it always expresses a renewal of traditional music, an explosion of world music, the development of choirs, rap, techno and the revival of musical carnivals.

Celebrated for the third year in Malaysia, the 12-hour-non stop music extravaganza featured over 200 performences by 150 professionals and amateur musicians.

An assorted number of performances kicked of at 12 p.m. and lasted till 12 a.m. at various locations which include Berjaya Times Square, Bukit Bintang Plaza, Lot 10, Sungei Wang Plaza and K.L. Plaza. Performances at Tengkat Tong Shin began at 7 p.m.

Stages were set up in front of Yayasan Selangor, Times Square, Sungei Wang Plaza, and Tengkat Tong Shin. Besides the stages, spot performances also took the crowd by storm at locations such as Lot 10, K.L. Plaza, Labodega, Jiak Guan, Sao Nam and Allson Genesis.

City dwellers had the opportunity to wet their appetite for music with a unique blend of tunes ranging from hard rock to reggae, acapella, jazz, pop, classical and traditional music. Bands such as Popshuvit, Akar Gita Estetika, Dancing Queens, Flat Line, One Buck Short Sandwich took the on-looking crowd by storm.

The highlight of the evening was the launching ceremony which took place at 8 p.m. at the main stage erected at Changkat Bukit Bintang. Fête de la Musique was launched by Dr Paul Chan, Executive Director of HELP Institute, Datuk Halijah Othman, Kuala Lumpur City Hall deputy director-general (administration), H.E. Mr Jacques Lapouge, Ambassador of France to Malaysia and Pn Jamaliah Ambia, President of Alliance Francaise Kuala Lumpur.

In his speech, Dr Chan said that it was encouraging to see many musically talented individuals participating in the festival. "Since we introduced Fête de la Musique in year 2002, the number of performances for the event has increased significantly and all these performers looked forward to showcasing their acts again the following year".

"HELP is indeed proud to be part of this music festival because culture is one of the windows to the world and by encouraging our students, staff and members of the public to participate in this event , we are in one way enriching their lives."

Following the launch was a riveting performance by the Victoria Institution brass band members. The 64-member-band kept the crowd in awe with their skills at the bagpipes, percussion, trumpets and cymbals.

The DBKL cultural troupe then took the helm with their graceful moves and colorful performance showcasing the Melting Pot of Kuala Lumpur. The troupe then invited the enthusiastic crowd to throng the streets dancing along to the music as a finale to their performance.

As the night was still young, partygoers were continuously treated to more music and dances. The slick movements of the Capoiera Bantus dancers were more than words can describe and the uplifting beat of the Tugu Drum Circle was just too much for passerby's to resist as they all rejoiced culminating in a dance frenzy.

All in all, Fête de la Musique 2004 certainly brought new meaning to Just Another Manic Monday because it was a blast and it lived up to its name: A festival of music!