ASTI FAROS is a multidisciplinary cultural and musical project that connects Croatian Mediterranean heritage, a UNESCO-protected cultural landscape, history, archaeology, ecology, tradition, and top artistic interpretation into a unique cultural experience. In other words, a concert program, but also a cultural, tourist, and educational platform that creates an authentic story of the Croatian Mediterranean through music, art, knowledge, and experience of space.
The project is inspired by Hvar Island and its millennial identity, with a special emphasis on the Stari Grad Plain, a site inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List – one of the best-preserved ancient cultural landscapes of the Mediterranean. Discover more.
Light of Music in the UNESCO Field on Hvar Island – ASTI FAROS
ASTI FAROS is an event that successfully premiered in September 2025. As a unique event, Asti Faros celebrates the light of Hvar Island through art, connecting the local community and an international audience. The sunny Hvar Island derives its name from the ancient names Pharos (Lighthouse) and Pharia. As the ancient name of Hvar reveals, light has guided events on this sunny island for thousands of years.
The name of the project itself carries historical significance. Asti is the ancient Greek name for a town, while Faros denotes Pharos – the ancient name of the island and the town that was founded in the area of today’s Stari Grad on Hvar Island. ASTI FAROS – The Town of Faros thus connects a contemporary cultural project with the ancient identity of the space from which it emerged.
In the unforgettable atmosphere of ancient heritage, the concert demonstrated music’s power to inspire, connect, and illuminate the spirit of a space that carries a thousand-year-old story.
The second edition of the Asti Faros event, which the organizers announced for 2027, will be held again in Stari Grad Plain, a UNESCO-protected landscape.
“When the Sun Sings” concert in Stari Grad Plain is the central musical event, held at sunset in one of the most important archaeological and cultural sites in the Mediterranean. In the unique acoustic ambience of vineyards, olive groves, and dry stone walls, the concert creates an unforgettable experience of nature, art, and heritage.
The program includes the most beautiful classic crossover melodies – evergreens, chansons, romances, Mediterranean canzones, and works of classical music. Accompanying educational content and workshops for young people are planned as a separate segment of the event to promote awareness of cultural heritage and sustainability.
Light – the Symbol of Hvar Island
The motif of LIGHT runs throughout the entire program – the symbol of Hvar, its vineyards, olive groves, people and art. Light as inspiration connects tradition and modernity, past and present, creating a bridge between heritage and artistic expression. Under the motto “Light of Music in the UNESCO Field”, the morning part of the program is dedicated to creativity, education, and preservation of cultural heritage through art and sustainable practices.
The Asti Faros event is the brainchild of musical artist Antonella Malis, who, as initiator, leader, and soloist, unites multiple musical expressions into a unique artistic experience. The project affirms the cultural and musical heritage of Hvar Island, promotes sustainable development, and interprets the ancient space of the Stari Grad Plain through contemporary music and artistic expression.
A Cultural Project That Connects Croatian Heritage, Art, Education, and Sustainable Tourism Development in the Local Community
ASTI FAROS cultural event and event partners participate in the creation of a long-term project that connects Croatian heritage, art, education, and sustainable tourism development in the local community. The project organizers view culture as a long-term investment in society.
ASTI FAROS is located in a UNESCO-protected cultural landscape and promotes respect for natural and cultural space, awareness of the importance of heritage preservation, a responsible attitude towards the environment, and the use of sustainable approaches in program organization. The project connects ecology and culture through the message that space preservation is a shared responsibility.
Namely, the organizers emphasize the use of sustainable materials wherever possible, respect for the natural and cultural landscape, education of the audience on heritage protection, and promotion of a responsible attitude toward the environment.
In other words, this cultural and tourist project sends the message that culture and ecology are not separate values, but that they arise from the same attitude towards space.
A special segment of the project consists of educational programs that introduce young people to the historical heritage of ancient Greece, the value of the cultural landscape, and the importance of ecology and spatial preservation. The project also emphasizes art and creativity workshops that combine music with related branches of artistic expression.
Cultural Events Create High-Value Tourism
Such cultural events create high-value tourism, as they contribute to the development of cultural and experiential tourism, the extension of the tourist season, and the international visibility of the travel destination. Namely, the ASTI FAROS project creates content that offers guests, along with a visit to the location, a story, emotion, and experience. The promotion of the local community includes cooperation with local artists and creators, the presentation of traditional values, connecting the local community with international visitors, and the promotion of authentic products and customs.
Events like ASTI FAROS become platforms that connect music, heritage, history, archaeology, ecology, education, and tradition, thereby creating a new model of cultural tourism in which space becomes a teacher, art becomes communication, and heritage becomes a living future.
ASTI FAROS – A Cultural Experience Connecting Past, Present and Future
The ASTI FAROS project program is based on a multidimensional approach that connects art, education, heritage, ecology, and the local community. The organizers’ goal is to create a musical event that offers a complete cultural experience in a protected UNESCO area.
The central part of the project is the concert program, ASTI FAROS – The Sound of the Croatian Mediterranean, which connects classical music, crossover repertoire, Mediterranean melodies, film music, and Italian canzone and evergreen heritage. The musical interpretation is adapted to the ambiance of the space and creates a unique blend of art and landscape.
The concert is designed as an artistic event inspired by the location itself, where the history of the area becomes part of the musical story.
Hvar and the Stari Grad Plain represent one of the most authentic cultural landscapes of the Mediterranean.
The Stari Grad Plain – a UNESCO World Heritage Site – represents one of the best-preserved ancient agricultural landscapes in Europe. This area, where traces of civilizations have been preserved for more than 2,400 years, is an example of the enduring connection between man, land, and nature.
Educational Content of the Event
Accompanying educational content introduces the value of the Stari Grad Plain and the wider cultural heritage of Hvar Island. The program includes lectures on the history of the Stari Grad Plain; an introduction to ancient Greek heritage and colonization; interpretation of archaeological sites; talks with experts in the fields of history, archaeology, and heritage protection; and programs for students, youth, and visitors. The goal is to develop awareness that the space that surrounds us is the result of a thousand-year relationship between man, nature, and culture.
We should also highlight music workshops, art workshops inspired by the Mediterranean, creative interpretations of cultural heritage, eco-workshops (introduction to traditional materials, sustainable approach to event production, creative use of natural materials), and workshops for children and youth that include learning about the history of the area through play and creativity, and developing a sense of belonging and responsibility towards the heritage.
Asti Faros continues to grow as a cultural symbol of Hvar — a festival that preserves, connects, and celebrates the most precious: nature, man, and the heritage that shines through generations.
Photographs: Nikola Radovani
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