The Bellingen Taranta Festival will run from Friday 30 October to Sunday 1 November 2026, with concerts, workshops, street performances and community events across Bellingen and a gala night in Coffs Harbour.
Global music is at the centre of the festival. Folk traditions from Southern Italy sit alongside music and dance from across the Mediterranean, the Middle East and South America, performed by local, interstate and international artists in the Bellingen Shire.
This year's theme is identity. Across the weekend, the program looks at how music, dance, food and storytelling carry culture from one generation and one place to the next.
Headline acts include Ars Nova Napoli from Italy, Ginkgobiloba and Diego Jascalevich from Argentina, Melbourne's Hyperbaroq, and Bellingen's own Santa Taranta Orchestra, who will launch a new album at the festival.
Program highlights
Friday 30 October – Opening day and gala night. Workshops, talks and music run across Bellingen at N. 5 Church Street, The Bellingen Brewery and Bellingen Memorial Hall. In the evening, the gala concert moves to the Coffs Harbour Conservatorium, with Hyperbaroq, Diego Jascalevich and the Santa Taranta Orchestra album launch. Seats are limited.
Saturday 31 October – The World Stage. Morning and lunchtime sessions in town lead into workshops, poetry and movement, then night concerts at the Memorial Hall. Performers include Ars Nova Napoli, Gink
gobiloba, Alessandro Santacaterina (Italy), Transatlantico (Colombia/ Melbourne), The Bellingen Singers, LOOM Storytelling and Hyperbaroq. The night ends with a samba da roda dance party led by Wombatuque (Brazil/Melbourne).
Sunday 1 November – Celebrating diversity. The final day brings a Sunday market with food and free live music at Maam Gaduying Park, a pasta-making workshop, Playback Theatre and a special BYO Sinfonia Ensemble event with festival artists. The “Pakistani Pavarotti” Farhan Shah & SUFI OZ (Adelaide) will bring Sufi Music on the closing night, which finishes with the Santa Taranta Orchestra joining Ars Nova Napoli on stage for a memorable finale.
Across the weekend there will also be free jam sessions, community art, roaming performers and conversations. Other artists include Zayton Dabke Palestinian dance (Brisbane), Capoeira ACDP, Camino Flamenco, Taranta Meanjin (Brisbane), Budaabang Bari Dancers, David De Santi and Laura Targett.
The full program is at tarantafestival.com.au.
About the Bellingen Taranta Festival
The Bellingen Taranta Festival is run by Taranta Arts Incorporated. It celebrates folk traditions from
Italy, the Mediterranean and beyond through music, dance, food and shared stories. Professional and community artists perform side by side, and the festival works to keep cultural traditions alive and build connections between people from different backgrounds in regional NSW. The festival takes place on Gumbaynggirr Country.
Event Details
Dates Friday 30 October – Sunday 1 November 2026
Main venue Bellingen Memorial Hall, 32 Hyde Street, Bellingen NSW 2454
Other venues N. 5 Church Street, The Bellingen Brewery, Maam Gaduying Park (Bellingen); Coffs Harbour Conservatorium gala)
Cost A mix of free and ticketed events. Full weekend passes start at $150 (early bird) – d [confirm current
Tickets Humanitix
Program tarantafestival.com.au
