Concept Fit For Toledo

Befitting a label and artist-management company that epitomizes musical multiculturalism, MoonJune’s second annual global gathering takes place in the storied cultural crossroads of Toledo, Spain. With its rich history as the onetime capital of Castile, first capital of Spain, and current capital of the La Mancha region, Toledo is a UNESCO World Heritage site that traces its roots back to Roman times – a place where Christians, Jews, and Muslims lived together with tolerance for centuries, hence its sobriquet, the City of Three Cultures. Appropriately, the 2023 edition of MoonJune’s annual festival will be staged in the historic El Circulo del Arte de Toledo in the erstwhile church of San Vicente, founded by King Alfonso VI shortly after the Muslim conquest of Spain. Once notorious as the headquarters of the Spanish Inquisition, the building has been reborn as a chapel for worship and the creation of art. The magical mysticism and immense beauty of Toledo, rich in more than 2,000 years of history and culture, in a region of La Mancha which deserves to be better known to the world, fits perfectly with MoonJune’s philosophy.

Eclectic Music Beyond Borders

It’s a festival of eclectic, international progressive music exploring and expanding the boundaries of jazz, rock, global music, and the unknown. Musicians, who are already part of the extended MoonJune Global Family, are from different parts of the world: Spain, United States, Uruguay, United Kingdom, Indonesia, Germany, Mexico, Israel, Cuba, – and they are from different spectrum of spirituality: Christian, Jews, Muslims, Hindu, Agnostics. 

MoonJune’s Guiding Principles

MoonJune’s guiding principles – or as Leonardo Pavkovic prefers, “modus moonjundi” – are in tune with what legendary British bass player Roy Babbington (Soft Machine and much more) memorably described as “poetic entanglement” – that is, the art of being alert to, and confidently acting on, the affinities and happenstances of the moment, in a spirit of openness, curiosity, and goodwill. MoonJune’s mission is to spread unity, joy, and hope through music, toward the elusive goal of peace and understanding on this troubled earth.

The dynamic personality of the festival’s founder, Leonardo Pavkovic – a resident of Toledo since December 2021 – lies at the epicenter of the Festival’s initiative and its spiritus movens. A unique figure in the worldwide musical milieu, “Mr. MoonJune” has long been one of the most creative forces supporting, producing, developing, and organizing ambitious musical projects the world over. The MoonJune Festival is a celebration of the creative spirit and international friendship, a gathering of likeminded musicians, journalists, music activists, and of course music lovers. After a very successful first edition of the festival in Leonardo’s native city of Jajce, Bosnia & Herzegovina – itself a historically important cultural crucible – in June 2022, the Second Annual International MoonJune Festival could not be staged anywhere else but in Leonardo’s new home town of Toledo, Spain, thus connecting two beautiful historic cities.

In February of 2023, Leonardo Pavkovic has joined forces with Mexican born Spaniard Mauricio Aguinaco, also resident of Toledo, who is bringing his rich experience in organizing a vast array of cultural events in the fields of music and film festivals.

A Sensory Feast

Designed as an immersive, multisensory experience, the Second International MoonJune Festival showcases MoonJune talents from around the planet, including distinguished musicians from the United Kingdom, Germany, USA, Spain, Indonesia, Uruguay, Israel, and Mexico. The event offers not just a series of concerts but a unique “pentasensorial” experience blending sounds, flavors, aromas, and audiovisual elements evoking the rich cultural legacy of Toledo and its surrounding La Mancha region, famed for Don Quixote, Miguel Cervantes, the Windmills of Consuegra, El Greco, olive cultivation, and much more. The festival will combine:

• Hearing – extraordinary music performed by exemplary players representing MoonJune’s global diaspora
• Sight – projected images complementing live musical performances
• Taste – the gastronomic richness of La Mancha’s regional cuisine, wine, and olive oil
• Smell – fragrances of Toledo’s unique natural and built environments
• Touch – tactile encounters with the walls and buildings of the ancient town, imbued with mysticism from two millennia of history

In addition to the concerts, the festival will include expert roundtable discussions on the state of today’s post-COVID music industry, flamenco and global music as the unifying force in today’s troubled world, plus the inaugural “MoonJune de la Mancha Awards” for Lifetime Achievement in performing and recording music and an outstanding career in the music business.

MoonJune and Toledo invite You to have a unique and unforgettable “MoonJune Toledo Experience”; for those unable to attend in person, high-definition audio and video of all events will be streamed worldwide a few weeks after the termination of the festival.