Recap of the 2006 Pattaya Music Festival

Hundreds of thousands of people of all ages thronged Beach Road last weekend for the Grand Pattaya International Music Festival 2006, the largest in the five consecutive years the event has been staged. The return of the new style Tik Chiro. On Friday March 17 at the Orange Stage set up at Soi 9, the official opening ceremony as conducted by Juthamas Siriwan, governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand, Chonburi Governor Pisit Ketphasook, and Mayor Niran Watthanasartsathorn. The music festival was organized by the Tourism Authority of Thailand, Chonburi Provincial Administration and Pattaya City Council, with help from Thailand’s music industry. There were three stages set up along Beach Road to accommodate the three music giants taking part, GMM Grammy, RS Promotions, and Music Television Networks (Mtv), who each lined up their own star performers. The Orange Stage at Soi 9 featured artists under the Mtv banner such as Clash, Body Slam, Thaitanium, and Blackhead. At the Yellow Stage on Soi 6 were artists under the GMM Grammy label including Mos Patipan, Paradox, Zeal, Ebola, Skalaxy and Ka La. The Green Stage near Bali Hai Pier featured artists under the RSS Promotions label with the likes of Dan-Beam, Gear Knight, James, CC Pu, and Dang Pankorn. Beach Road was closed off to traffic from 5 p.m. each day, causing the inevitable congestion on other main roads and leading to some frantic rushing on foot to get to the stage where a favorite artiste was performing. Some also complained that the entrance to the stages, especially the Orange Stage, were too narrow resulting in people crushing up against each other. But at the end of the day it was music all the way, with the added sound of success providing sweet music for the tourist industry. The overall atmosphere at the event was hectic with the many tourists visiting the event each day. On the final day, just before the concerts were about to get underway, it started to rain heavily throughout Pattaya which delayed the start by about an hour, but this didn’t dampen the crowds’ determination. Over 400 stalls were spread along Beach Road from North Pattaya to South Pattaya. The stalls did brisk business, as they were no less busy than the actual concert, and were able to bring a large amount of income into the city. The best sellers were beverages – water and alcoholic beverages, with clothing and jewelry not far behind in terms of sales. Police and volunteers from Banglamung were on hand providing tight security throughout the three days. Rangsan Wajeesajja, assistant director of Tourism Authority of Thailand Region 3, said that over 400,000 music fans attended the event, generating more than a billion baht. Rangsan said 98 percent of the hotel rooms were booked up one week in advance. Rangsan went on to say that he hopes next year will be as successful as this year. Source: Pattaya Mail