Band Music Festival

A festival born from the Sabina band tradition

The Band Music Festival in Forano is one of the most cherished events on the summer calendar of the municipality, located in the province of Rieti in the heart of the Lazio Sabina region. This is not a manufactured festival, but the natural evolution of an ancient practice: the band gathering, an occasion where musical groups from neighboring towns meet, play together, and share a common history.

The Sabina region boasts a centuries-old tradition linked to musical bands, understood not just as artistic ensembles but as true centers of social cohesion and cultural growth for entire generations. In many villages of the Lazio Region, the band has been, and still is, the first free music school in the area: the place where a child learns solfeggio, picks up a clarinet, and ends up playing alongside their grandfather.

The "Bruto Valerio Giannini" Municipal Band

The host and organizational soul of the event is the "Bruto Valerio Giannini" Municipal Band of Forano, a local institution founded in the 19th century as a Philharmonic Society and named after the composer who guided its first steps. Today, the ensemble brings together about thirty members, mostly young people, and accompanies the civil and religious life of the town throughout the year with concerts, processions, and anniversaries.

In the most recent edition, the artistic direction of the day was entrusted to maestro Eugenio Renzetti, who coordinated the meeting between the guest groups and the Forano band.

How the day unfolds

The program follows a well-tested format that is highly popular with the public:

• The gathering: guest bands arrive in the afternoon and meet at Colle Romano Park, the starting point of the event.
• The parade: the groups march through the streets of the historic center with uniforms, banners, and parade marches until they reach Piazza Vittorio Emanuele.
• The concerts: in the square, each group presents its own repertoire, ranging from symphonic marches to operatic transcriptions, soundtracks, and pop music.
• The collective finale: all bands join together to perform the National Anthem, a moment that concludes the official part of the festival.
• The evening: food stalls in the square and live music until late.

Guest ensembles

The festival attracts groups from the lower Sabina and neighboring territories, between the inland Lazio area and the Roman countryside. The last edition featured the Associazione Soratte in Musica, the Collevecchio Band, the Gavignano Band, the "G. Verdi" Philharmonic of Montebuono, and the Colonna Band, in addition to the local band. About a hundred musicians in total, transforming the square into an open-air amphitheater.

Why it's worth the trip

Visitors from outside the region will find something here that large festivals no longer offer: a village-scale celebration, without tickets or barriers, where the audience is made up of the musicians' families and neighbors. It is also an excellent way to discover Forano, a village overlooking the Tiber valley just a few kilometers from Poggio Mirteto, and the Sabina of olive groves, DOP extra virgin olive oil, and small medieval towns.

A second event in September

The calendar of recurring events in the Municipality of Forano also notes a music festival in Gavignano Sabino, a hamlet of the municipality, on September 11th and 12th. This is a separate event from the June one; it is advisable to check the program published by the Municipality each time.