Rock al Parque
Rock al Parque is a rock music festival which, since 1995, has taken place in Bogotá, Colombia. Entry to the festival is free of charge. In 2004, 400,000 people took part in the event. It is considered the largest rock festival in Colombia and one of the most important in Latin America, arguably the largest free rock festival in the continent. It has ska, punk, hardcore, metal, and other genres included in its program.
History
The first edition of this festival happened in 1995. It started as a continuation of the 'Youth Music meetings' held at the city's Planetarium in 1992. The people behind the organization were Mario Duarte and Julio Correal. The initial purpose was to gain the support of Bogota's Institute of Culture and Tourism, to establish it. The first edition of this festival happened during May 26 and 29, 1995, within several venues. To mention them, the most representative one known as 'La Media Torta', The Simón Bolívar Park, the 'Olaya Herrera's Stadium, and 'the Santa María Bullfighting' Ring. This last one was the only venue requesting admission fees for participants. Therefore, after 1996, the festival organisers decided to exclude this last venue, "the Santa María Bullfighting Ring", in order to feature the festival "free of charge for admission" since.
