First staged in Casale Monferrato in 1983, the Folkermesse world music festival celebrates this year its sixteenth anniversary. It is in fact the longest running festival of folk music in Piedmont, and one of the most firmly established in Italy. Over the years, it has welcomed top folk groups from all over the world. Hence Folkermesse now represents Piedmont as a whole, staging about 60-70 concerts every summer in over 30 localities in all the provinces of the region and also in some villages of Lombardy. What makes Folkermesse stand out from other similar festivals is the emphasis it places on the artistic and naturalistic heritage as well as the food and wine of the various localities. In conjunction with the gastronomic association Arcigola Slow Food, the general catalogue provides historical and artistic notes and lists of restaurants and food and wine producers for each locality.