Muso Festival

A festival grown in the shade of Villa Altieri

For over twenty years, Muso Festival has been the most anticipated summer event in Oriolo Romano, a small town in the province of Viterbo, in the heart of the Lazio Tuscia. Born from the initiative of a group of friends in the I Musi association and supported by the Municipality of Oriolo Romano, the festival has maintained a unique character in the Lazio festival scene: completely free entry, programming built on independent music, and an equally serious focus on the world of comics and illustration.

The venue is the park of Villa Altieri, a green lung adjacent to the 17th-century palace that overlooks the village. The tall trees, paths, and lawns become a small village for three nights: the main stage, author stands, bookstore, market, kitchen, and cocktail bar coexist without barriers, in an atmosphere that feels more like an extended village fair than a commercial event.

Music: independence and discovery

The artistic direction favors emerging bands from the Italian scene and local musicians linked to independent music. Over the years, the stage has hosted rock, singer-songwriter, folk, and world music projects, with forays into electronic music during late-night DJ sets. The audience consists of locals from Tuscia, Viterbo, and Romans heading to the hills to escape the heat of the capital: Oriolo Romano is less than an hour from the center of Rome and is served by the Rome-Viterbo railway line.

The comics area and bookstore

The section dedicated to the ninth art is one of the hallmarks of Muso. Every evening, the comics area hosts illustrators, self-published works, fanzines, drawing workshops, and meetings with masters of the field; nearby, the bookstore offers volumes, graphic novels, and small independent publishing. The craft market completes the picture with handmade creations and self-produced projects.

Eating and drinking under the trees

From 8:00 PM, food stands and beer stations open, with simple offerings designed to be enjoyed outdoors at tables set up in the park. The cocktail bar accompanies the final part of the evening, when the program shifts from the stage to DJ sets.

Why it's worth the trip

• Free entry for all three nights, no reservation required.
• Multidisciplinary formula: concerts, comics, books, crafts, and food in the same space.
• Historical setting: the park of Villa Altieri, one of the most beautiful places in southern Tuscia.
• Proximity to Rome: reachable by train or car in just over an hour.
• Independent spirit: no big-festival logic, great care in the choice of artists.

Oriolo Romano and surroundings

The village, founded at the end of the 16th century with a regular urban layout, preserves Palazzo Altieri with its frescoes and the famous monumental Beech Forest, recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage site among the ancient beech forests of Europe. Those arriving for the festival can easily combine a visit to the lakes of Bracciano and Vico, to Sutri, and to the Via Clodia. It is a simple way to discover a part of Lazio often overlooked by the most beaten tourist circuits.