A weekend-long festival dedicated to the areas of Transylvania, the Carpathian Basin, and its wide-ranging food, drink, and folk traditions will return to Manchester this summer.
Called Góbéfest (Góbé being a friendly word for a ‘crafty Székely’), the festival celebrates the little-known culture and traditions of the Székler people – a minority group of ethnic Hungarians living in Transylvania, part of Romania.
Now in its sixth year, 2022’s event will bring together foodie delights like kűrtőskalács (chimney cake), mititiei (Romanian skinless sausages), Hungarian honey bread and Csiki beer, alongside folk music and dance traditions that date back hundreds of years.
For three days in June, stages in Cathedral Gardens and Exchange Square will play host to an array of bands, choirs, ensembles, orchestras, dance groups and solo performers, hailing from as far as Transylvania, Croatia, Hungary and Romania.
A food and drink market will serve up popular dishes from around the region, including langos, chicken paprikash and goulash, and for the first time, Sunday will be a dedicated dance day, featuring folk groups in the Bulgarian, Hungarian, Romanian and Polish traditions.
Here’s a rundown of what’s on offer over the three days.
Image: Gobefest
Food and drink
Refreshments will be provided by a number of independent food and drink traders, offering favourites from around the Carpathian Basin, including langos (deep-fried flatbreads topped with creme fraiche and cheese) from Langos Factory.
Festival favourites Szekely Csarda will be back with a menu that includes mititiei (barbecued Romanian skinless sausages made from pork, lamb and beef) and disznó flekken grilled pork steak.
Image: Gobefest
Pompas Mezes’ Hungarian honey bread is amongst the most intricately embellished in the world, often featuring designs reminiscent of lace and embroidery. The honey preserves the cookie, so it can be kept for over 10 years in its sealed packaging.
Tastylicious Catering’s dishes including halaszle, a paprika-based fish soup also known as fisherman’s soup, stuffed cabbage rolls, chicken paprikash, zserbo, a layered chocolate topped apricot and walnut cake and rigo jancsi, a traditional cube shaped chocolate sponge.
Beer is by Transylvanian artisan brewer Csiki Sor, who took on Heineken in a trademark battle and won, and a Szicsek palinka bar will provide traditional fruit spirits with no added sugar, up to 50 percent proof.
Image: Gobefest
Folk music
Barozda formed in 1976 in Transylvania and for almost half a century have been exploring Hungarian folk music from its roots, taught and inspired by village musicians, travelling all over Transylvania. They were the initiators of the Hungarian dance house movement, bringing traditional folk music to a wider and younger audience and setting the standard of the great Hungarian “tanchaz” movement in Transylvania. This is their first time at Góbéfest.
Tokos Band, a six piece band featuring strings and accordion, formed in 2010 by students of the Kolozsvár Music Academy in Transylvania. As part of the vibrant dance house movement in the city, they initially entertained the student population in pubs, clubs, cafes and dance houses but they soon became popular guests at festivals around Transylvania. In 2014 they won first place in the televised Hungarian folk music contest Fölszállott a Páva.
Góbé Band is a Hungarian six-piece who met at the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music in Budapest. Merging their folk sound with rock, blues, dubstep, reggae, metal, jazz, pop and hip hop, they say their style is entertaining and contemporary whilst preserving the traditional nature of their music. Between them they play violin, viola, bagpipes, recorder, guitar, kobza, double bass, hammered dulcimer, hurdy gurdy, viola-tambura and flute Góbé Band played at the first Góbéfest in 2017.
Bercy Biro is a Transylvanian folk singer now living in North Wales
The Kalina Balalaika Ensemble is a community group for adults and young people in south Manchester, coordinated by MyHub Music Centres in collaboration with One Education Music. The group play Russian and Ukrainian string instruments balalaika and domras and rehearse at Chorlton Central Church.
Image: Gobefest
Non-folk music
MIRO Ensemble (Manchester International Roots Orchestra) is led by Romanian-born double-bass maestro and composer Michael Cretu and was set up by Community Arts North West in partnership with the Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM). Its members have roots from across the world and its repertoire combines diverse musical influences from haunting eastern European melodies, to the delicate textures of Middle Eastern percussion and vocals through to soulful Sufi chants of South Asia and joyful African gospel, embracing rap, hip-hop, classical music and jazz along the way.
Chuva is a Manchester based guitar/ mandolin/double bass folk/classical trio that was founded in 2018 by guitarists Rafael Onyett and Borna Kuca, whilst studying at the Royal Northern College of Music. Kuca is Croatian, whilst Onyett is of Latin American heritage.
Oliver Wolf (Zsolt Farkas), 22, was named Hungary’s young jazz musician of the year in 2018 and graduated from Leeds College of Music three years later. Though his background is in jazz, for Góbéfest, he is trialling a new RnB sound.
Stikli is a pop rock band from Budapest. They released their first album in 2018 and say there is ‘quite a bit of jumping and dancing wherever we perform’ The band has been invited by festival partner the New Generation Centre in London.
Hungarian Choir of Great Britain is a Góbéfest project, which began during lockdown in 2020 and initially rehearsed over Zoom. The choir performed live together for the first time at Góbéfest 2021.
Katy Carr is a singer songwriter with Polish roots who is known for her songs about Polish history. A fan of the 1930s and 1940s, she plays vintage instruments and wears clothing and hairstyles from the period. Her album Paszport, a tribute to those who fought in World War II, won Best Concept Album from the Independent Music Awards in 2014.
Manchester Youth String Orchestra members are aged 11-18 and from schools and colleges across the city. All play at grade 5 or above. The orchestra is coordinated by MyHub Music Centres in collaboration with One Education Music.
Image: Gobefest
Folk dance
This year, for the first time, Sunday will be dance day, featuring folk dance acts from all over eastern Europe including Szeklerland (part of Transylvanian), Poland, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria.
Polonez Manchester is a Polish folk dance troupe that formed in the city in 1949. The group was started by expatriates, who were unable to return to Poland after WWII, due to the communist regime. They wanted to keep the culture and traditions of their homeland alive, through song and dance and taking part in operettas and dramatic productions.
Százlabú (Caterpillar) folk dance ensemble from Transylvania began in 2006 with the aim of teaching Hungarian folk dances, games, songs to young generations. The 35-strong group will be performing various dances from different parts of Transylvania on each day of the festival.
Hunique Hungarian Folk Ensemble was founded in London in 2008. Its members are enthusiastic Hungarians living in London and its surrounding counties.
Gergiovden Folklore Fitness Group are Bulgarian ‘horo’ folk dancers. While it’s believed that horo derives from ancient Thracian times, this traditional dance continues to be an integral part of any Bulgarian gathering to this day. Dancing horo is considered to be akin to yoga, with its many benefits to physical as well as mental health.
The Hungarian Folk Dance Group of Bristol was formed in Sept 2019 and recently held its first Hungarian folk dance house in the city. The group will demonstrate Szatmari, Szeki and Moldvai dances.
Ansamblul Tezaur is a Romanian folk dance group based in Warwickshire & Coventry, created to promote Romanian traditions in the UK.
Image: Gobefest
Children
Family activities will be centred around the children’s activity tent in Cathedral Gardens and will include:
Zenkő Karda is an award winning designer, illustrator, painter, stage and costume designer, from Transylvania. She has illustrated over 25 books, produced in many languages. Zenkő will be running workshops for children and families in folk tale illustration, drawing and clay, with a fairy tale theme.
Enikő Szabó is a storyteller from Transylvania, bringing traditional tales to life for children and adults. She is the organiser of the Onceuponatime Storytelling Festival in Transylvania which welcomes storytellers from all over Europe.
Cimborák Puppet Theatre Company was established in Transylvania in 1998. The company works with folk tales, encouraging the community, both young and old, to cherish these traditional stories. The piece they will be performing is based on the stories of famous Szekler Hungarian writer Elek Benedek
Mátyás Király Zither Ensemble launched in 2009 at the Mátyás Király Elementary School in Hungary. By 2014 and 2015 the young group of musicians was regularly winning gold medals at national folk music competitions. Góbéfest is delighted to welcome the zither ensemble back. They have played at the festival every year since 2017.
When is Góbéfest this year?
Founded by Ottilia Ördög, who is herself of Székely origin and has worked in Manchester’s music scene for the past years, including alongside the likes of Tony Wilson, the free to attend festival will take place this year from Friday 24 to Sunday 26 June 2022, spreading out across Cathedral Gardens and Exchange Square.
Feature image – Gobefest
News
Oasis left ‘shocked and saddened’ after fan falls to his death at Wembley Stadium concert
Emily Sergeant
Oasis have been left ‘shocked and saddened’ after a fan sadly fell to his death at one of the band’s Wembley Stadium concerts.
According to media reports, the man fell from the stadium’s upper tier.
Metropolitan Police confirmed in a statement that officers on duty at the stadium on Saturday night (2 August) responded, alongside venue medics and the London Ambulance Service, at around 10:20pm to reports that a person had been injured, and when they arrived at the scene that found that a man in his 40s sustained injuries ‘consistent with a fall’.
Despite the best efforts of all emergency services involved, the man was pronounced dead at the scene.
A concertgoer on social media said they saw the incident and described it as ‘horrific’, and the police are presuming that many other present at the concert will have also witnessed the event – therefore urging them to come forward with any information they may have.
“The stadium was busy, and we believe it is likely a number of people witnessed the incident, or may knowingly or unknowingly have caught it on mobile phone video footage,” Met Police said in a statement.
“If you have any information that could help us to confirm what happened, please call 101.”
Alongside the police appeal, tributes have been pouring in for the man who lost his life – including from Oasis and support act Richard Ashcroft.
Together with their bandmates, Liam and Noel Gallagher have offered their ‘sincere condolences to the family and friends of the person involved’.
Richard Ashcroft wrote in tribute on Instagram: “I was shocked to hear of the death of one of the audience last night. Sending my love to the family and friends.”
A tribute statement was also issued by a spokesperson for Wembley Stadium: “Our thoughts go out to his family, who have been informed and are being supported by specially trained police officers.”
Oasis performed the final show of their five-night run at Wembley last night, and from here will now head up to Scotland, Ireland, Canada, and the United States, before returning to Wembley for two more dates in September.
The top 13 biggest gigs in Manchester music history
Thomas Melia
When you think of Manchester one of the first things that comes to mind obviously after ‘best city in the world’ is one word: ‘music’.
Our capital of the North West has birthed some of the world’s greatest singers of all time and welcomed some of the planet’s biggest stars.
Manchester has many live music venues to host impressive gigs including stadiums, arenas, parks and a wide variety of performance spaces.
The real reason these artists keep coming back is because of you, everyone who shows up and shows out to every single tour and performance happening in our culturally rich city.
Although not 2008, here is Kylie in all her grandeur at AO Arena in 2014 / Credit: Wikimedia Commons
With a tour titled ‘KylieX2008’, the Aussie sensation made our heads spin around in 2008 as she graced the AO Arena for six nights of pop perfection from 11 July to 18 July.
Minogue has a special connection to Manchester and this arena specifically, performing here over 30 times to a total of 400,000 people.
Taylor Swift performing on the B-Stage at Etihad Stadium in 2018 / Credit: The Manc Group
‘Baby let the games begin!’ Swift opened her ‘Reputation Stadium Tour’ in 2018 while standing behind a backdrop of snakes, scales and reptile-like patterns.
The legendary pop star commanded the stage even walking through the crowd to greet fans with smiles and high fives, making sure to get up close and personal even in a venue this grand.
‘Tay-Tay’s last visit to the North West saw her playing three nights of her monumental ‘The Eras Tour’ just a stone’s throw away at Anfield Stadium and who knows, maybe once the Etihad renovation is complete, she might be keen to make another appearance.
11. Oasis: 80,000 – Maine Road (1996)
In signature Liam style, the tambourine is in hand and ready to accompany both the brother’s vocals.In signature Liam style, the tambourine is in hand and ready to accompany both the brother’s vocals / Credit:Wikimedia Commons
The Burnage boys were always destined to be on this list in one way or another due to their incredible impact in pushing Manchester music and bands to the mainstream.
Singing hits from their well-known music catalogue, Oasis attracted 80,000 to Manchester City’s former ground in the mid-90s.
Unlike the tour taking place in 2025, tickets for this gig would’ve only set you back £17.50, you’d have been silly not to grab yourself one!
10. Drake: 94,000 – Co-op Live (2025)
Drake played four non-consecutive gigs at Co-op Live with roars from the crowd each night/ Credit: The Come Up Show (via Flickr)
Canadian rap heavyweight Drake played four huge Co-op Live dates as recent as last week and with two more on the way, with four nights of smash hits
Also referred to as Champagne Papi, the hip-hop artist has played out four impressive nights at Co-op Live on a similarly impressive 360 stage which sees Drake getting up close and personal with fans.
His 2025 visit to the music capital of the North marks his largest scale gig to date and saw him sharing the bill with fellow Canadian performer PartyNextDoor.
9. Billie Eilish – 94,000 – Co-op Live (2025)
Global superstar Billie Eilish had the crowd hooked all four nights at Co-op Live / Credit: Lars Crommelnick via Wikimedia Commons
Bedroom-pop sensation turned global megastarBillie Eilish has visited Manchester three times through her rise to stardom with her most recent being at Co-op Live.
The American singer-songwriter played four non-consecutive nights of her current ‘Hit Me Hard and Soft’ tour, where she commanded 23,500 fans.
Eilish has a soft spot for Manchester as she debuted her single ‘TV’ at AO Arena in 2022 and brought out her brother and fellow musician Finneas as a special guest at her most recent city centre dates.
8. Harry Styles: 99,526 – Old Trafford Cricket Ground (2022)
The former One Direction star Harry Styles spent two nights in June spreading the love with his mega ‘Love On Tour’ and the feeling was definitely mutual.
On 15 and 16 June the ‘Watermelon Sugar’ singer had nearly 100,000 devotees in the palm of his hand as he belted out some of his best solo numbers.
The Cheshire-born superstar even paused his show to find his primary school teacher who he’d been informed was in the crowd, thanking her for all her help and hard work while he was in education. Adorable.
7. Foo Fighters: 100,000 – Old Trafford Cricket Ground (2024)
The Washington-formed band put on two impressive nights where Mancs witnessed ‘music royalty’ on their ‘Everything or Nothing at All Tour’ in June.
As well as ‘The Pretender’ hitmakers, the sold-out shows were spoilt with not one but four support acts split across the two dates, including Wet Leg.
On 13 June the rock champions even previewed an unreleased track ‘Unconditional’ for the first time, adding it to the setlist for the 15 June show too!
Foo Fighters played out to 100,000 people at Old Trafford Cricket Ground / Credit: The Manc Group / Publicity Picture (Supplied)
6. Spice Girls: 150,955 – Etihad Stadium (2019)
Etihad Stadium and Spice Girls spiced up our lives three times in 2019 with three non-consecutive performances from 29 May to 1 June.
This tour was missing one key ingredient, ‘Posh Spice’, who missed out on this string of shows for the first time in her career.
In addition to these four fierce ladies, another UK household act Jess Glynne joined them on the bill as a support act. The girls were met with raptures as they made their entrance to Manchester after 11 years since their last visit.
Just look at those iconic fits! Spice Girls performing at Wembley Stadium on the same tour that visited Manchester / Credit: Wikimedia Commons
In 2023 they brought their Music Of The Spheres world tour to Manchester from 31 May to 4 June for four nights of dazzling lights, wowed fans and of course incredible live arrangements.
Altogether, these shows brought together almost 200,000 attendees who had the opportunity to get involved with the show’s production themselves by cycling electric bikes and kinetic dancefloor which both helped power the stage.
The Coldplay lads in all their glory.An awe-inspiring crowd lighting up the already phenomenal Etihad Stadium.Coldplay performed four nights at Manchester’s Etihad Stadium in 2023 / Credit: Wikicommons / The Manc Group
4. Ed Sheeran: 218,639 – Etihad Stadium (2022)
Starting his musical career just over the hill busking in Hebden Bridge before becoming one of the UK’s most prominent and successful artists of all time.
In 2022, the ‘Galway Girl’ singer took to Manchester City‘s awesome stadium to play hits from his full discography titled ‘The Mathematics Tour’ in honour of his equation-themed album titles.
The one-man, one-guitar show attracted almost 55,000 people across four nights who watched the singing red-head belt out his bangers on a 360 circular stage.
Ed Sheeran at V Festival in 2014, already a star in his own right / Credit: Wikimedia Commons
3. The Stone Roses: 225,000 – Heaton Park (2012)
The Manchester rock pioneers played a three-night hometown residency as part of their reunion tour following a 17-year concert hiatus.
Fans came in abundance to pack out to Heaton Park, a notorious music-hosting site which has hosted a plethora of acts as well as this formidable band.
Spanning from 29 June to 1 July, The Stone Roses played to a whopping 75,000 fans every night across the three sold-out Manchester shows at Heaton Park in 2012.
The Stone Roses performing at Fuji Rock Festival in 2012, the same year as their Heaton Park residency / Credit: Wikicommons Media
2. Oasis – 400,000 – Heaton Park (2025)
This year has seen some cracking live music events but none will ever be as monumental as the five nights the two Burnage boys and their troupe hosted this summer.
Liam and Noel Gallagher decided to get the band back together for a series of groundbreaking shows titled ‘Oasis Live ’25’.
Each night drew in 80,000 avid bucket-hat wearing Oasis fans and the support acts were just as legendary with The Verve frontman Richard Ashcroft and Liverpool lads Cast helping make history.
Oasis was one of the biggest dates in Manchester’s music calendar ever/ Credit: The Manc Group
In 2011, ‘The Flood’ boys put on a remarkable eight nights for nearly half a million lucky Mancs from 3 June till 12 June, making for a summer everyone could ‘Never Forget’.
However, they weren’t the only boyband gracing the Manchester City stadium as dance duo Pet Shop Boys supported them on their ‘Progress Live’ tour across the UK.
A fan-captured moment of Take That reunited amidst their eight show run at Etihad Stadium in Manchester/ Credit: Wikimedia Commons
Honourable mention:
One Love Manchester, 55,000 – Old Trafford Cricket Ground (2017)
Even though this event may not be topping the attendance records, this concert was a special and remarkable moment in Manchester’s history.
Fronted by Ariana Grande, just two weeks after the Manchester Arena attack, Old Trafford Cricket Ground saw a multitude of artists coming together to celebrate the importance of music while paying respect to those affected by the events in the month prior.
BBC reported the ‘One Love Manchester’ live show had 14.5 million viewers at its peak with an average of 10.9 million worldwide and this benefit concert has since raised more than £10 million for the ‘We Love Manchester Emergency Fund’.
Georgina Pellant -
26th April 2022 
