Colombia Al Parque 2026: Cantoras, Front and Center.
Colombia al Parque is where traditional, popular, and contemporary music from Colombia and Latin America comes to life with a stage, funding, and an audience. For twenty-four editions, this has happened for free in Bogotá. This year, the focus is not on which genres will be played, but on who has kept them alive. The answer is clear: the cantoras.
“Cantoras: Lullaby, Celebration, and Sowing” shapes the program from its concept to the lineup. Saturday the 23rd is all about celebration, carnival, and festivity, with a focus on the body as territory. Sunday begins with themes of childhood and care, and ends with projects that are redefining Colombian music through new sounds. These three moments share one idea: seeing the feminine as a way to understand how culture is passed on, not just as a theme for a weekend.
The lineup reflects this same idea. Quilapayún comes from Chile with over fifty years of experience; they performed before the coup and continued after going into exile. Belkis Concepción and Las Chicas are an all-female orchestra from the Dominican Republic who broke into merengue when the genre was not open to women. Amantes del Futuro comes from Mexico, where Ima Felini has spent more than twenty years creating a cumbia trance with heavy bass, synthesizers, and the lively beat of neighborhood parties. Colombian cumbia is the starting point, and electronics are the destination.
Among Colombian artists, Martina Camargo stands out the most. She is a tambora singer from San Martín de Loba, on the banks of the Magdalena River, and was nominated for a Latin Grammy in 2024 for Canto y Río. DJs around the world have been asking her to remix this record for years. Other featured artists include Martha Gómez, Bambarabanda from Pasto, Bejuco from Tumaco, KillaBeatMaker from Medellín, and the Orquesta de Lucho Bermúdez. District acts include La Rola Band, a group of six musicians from Bogotá who have blended Colombian folk with Afro-Caribbean rhythms since 2019, and Flor de Cerezo Gaitas, who bring the gaita and drums into the city.
On May 23rd and 24th, Parque de los Novios will open its doors for the cantoras. Canal Capital will broadcast the event live. This week, as Colombia prepared for the festival, news of Totó la Momposina’s passing arrived. She was the great cantora who carried this music for sixty years before anyone thought to honour it with a festival. The timing speaks for itself.
Colombia Malsonante Al Parque Playlist
