Medimex 2026: everything you need to know about the new edition
From the 17 to 21 June 2026 Taranto returns to be the beating heart of international music with a new edition of Medimexthe International Festival & Music Conference promoted by the Puglia Region and Puglia Culture as part of the Puglia Sounds activities. Five days of concerts, showcases, panels, networking and special projects that transform the Apulian city into one of the main meeting points for artists, sector operators and music enthusiasts from all over Italy and abroad. The 2026 edition ideally moves “from punk to pop”, crossing different genres, languages and cultures thanks to a program that unites big international names, new trends and original productions: «This year’s edition – underlines Cesare Veronico, artistic coordinator Puglia Sounds/Medimex – revolves around two artistic expressions apparently in contrast but in reality with many points in common: pop culture and punk, which have been two powerful cultural accelerators».
The concerts of Medimex 2026
Leading the live billboard will be some of the most important artists on the contemporary international scene. Among the most anticipated events stand out: Pet Shop Boys with their “Dreamworld The Greatest Hits Live”, the first date of the European summer tour and the only opportunity in Central-Southern Italy to attend the show: they will perform in Taranto on June 20, 2026 at the Rotonda of Lungomare Vittorio Emanuele III. Great anticipation for the kids too Suede they Slowdiveboth protagonists of unique Italian dates at Medimex 2026: the two groups will perform in Taranto on June 21, 2026. The festival will also host the Agents of Time: the project of the Apulian duo Andrea Di Ceglie and Luigi Tutolo, active since 2013 and protagonist of the main festivals and dance floors in the world, the June 20th they will take the stage at Medimex with a live set that crosses house, techno and acid. At Medimex also an original production curated by Marc Urselli, sound engineer already alongside – among others – Lou Reed, Nick Cave, U2 and Elton John: there NYC Redux Banda special project dedicated to the music of the Ramones presented as a world premiere on June 21st. The concerts represent the beating heart of the event, but Medimex also confirms its international vocation as a meeting place between music, education and the cultural industry. For information on tickets, subscriptions and updates on the program, you can consult the official website of the festival: Medimex 2026.
Tickets and season tickets
Tickets for the Medimex 2026 concerts are available on Ticketone at this link and on Vivaticket. Tickets for single dates are also available (the one on June 20th with Pet Shop Boys and Agents of Time and the one on June 21st with Suede, Slowdive and NYC Redux Band: the cost for tickets is 30 euros plus presale fees and any additional commissions) what subscriptions (at a more advantageous price: 40 euros instead of the 60 you would have to spend to buy tickets for the two dates).
Showcases, networking and new music scenes
Alongside the major international live shows, Medimex 2026 will offer a busy calendar of showcases dedicated to the most interesting projects of the new Apulian and national scene. There will also be space for professional and networking activities aimed at operators in the music sector, with panels, meetings, music schools, training sessions and opportunities for discussion between artists, producers, record companies and professionals. From the 18 to 20 June the first edition of Medimex Hip Hop Laba project coordinated by Reverendo and Django Music, which includes masterclasses and talks with Shablo, Murubutu, Davide Shorty and Gep Caserta: the project includes a masterclass “Storytelling Rap and R&B” with David Shortysinger-songwriter, rapper and producer who fuses soul, jazz and rap (Thursday 18 June, from 10am to 5pm), the talk “Words Playground: Hip Hop and Literature” with Murubutu (Thursday 18 June at 6pm), one masterclasses”Calligraphy: Gothic flow-Street attitude” with Gep Caserta, among the most important signatures of Italian street art (vFriday 19 June from 10am to 5pm). Saturday 20 June double appointment with Shablobehind the greatest successes of the Italian rap scene of the last fifteen years: the masterclass from 10am “Beatmaking and composition” and at 6pm the talk “Words Playground: Beatmaking and entrepreneurship today“. The various panels and round tables that are part of the Medimex 2026 program include guests such as – among others – Eugene Hutz, Viktoria Espinosa, Brian Chase, Kid Congo, Eugenio Finardi, Michele Riondino, Roberto Ottaviano, Carolina Bubbico, Luca De Gennaro and Stefano Senardi. Among the various activities, it returns from 19 to 21 June Medimex Music Factory aimed at authors, producers and composers which involves three intensive days of structured work, with important tutors, on the various phases of production. All appointments are free: further information and access methods are available on the website Medimex.
The exhibition dedicated to the history of punk
This year too, Medimex will host a great event show. After the one dedicated to Amy Winehouse last year, this time it’s the turn of one exhibition on the impact of punk and the Ramones. “Roberta Bayley: The Ramones, CBGB’s and New York City”, this is the title of the exhibition, will be open from 17 June to 5 July at the MArTA in Taranto. The photos are those of Roberta Bayleywhich witnessed firsthand the explosion of punk and the rise of the Ramones. In 1974, after working for Malcolm McLaren and Vivienne Westwood at their Let It Rock shop in London, Beyley arrived in New York, the city where punk history was being made. In July of that year she met the musician and poet Richard Hell, and a few months later she began working as a door attendant at CBGB, at the request of Terry Ork, the manager of Hell’s band, Television. CBGB – acronym Country, Bluegrass, Blues – was actually the crossroads where the whole New York downtown scene was formed: Patti Smith, Talking Heads, Blondie, Television, and of course the Ramones. Tickets for the exhibition hosted by MArTA are on sale for 10 euros on the museum’s website, but for children aged between 18 and 25, entry costs only 2 euros. However, it is free for children under 18.
“The Roads of the Mediterranean” curated by Antonio Diodato are back
“Le Strade del Mediterraneo” returns among the most anticipated special projects, an exhibition curated by Antonio Diodatoartistic consultant of Medimex free of charge since last year. The initiative was born with the aim of creating musical and cultural connections between the different shores of the Mediterranean, exploring sounds that mix tradition, electronic, folk and contemporary contaminations: «I like to imagine this journey through the streets of the Mediterranean, city streets, imaginary streets, routes traced by cultures that have crossed and mixed over the millennia», says Diodato, presenting the new edition of the project. The appointments will take place in the suggestive courtyard of the Aragonese Castle of Taranto, overlooking the sea, from 18 to 20 June at 7.30 pm with free entry while places last. Among the expected artists are Sara Gioielli (Thursday 18 June – the young Neapolitan singer-songwriter and producer has made herself noticed in the Campania scene in recent years thanks to collaborations with La Niña and Liberato), the Calabrian singer-songwriter Davide Ambrogio (Friday 19 June) and Sam Galbi (Saturday 20 June – Swiss-Moroccan artist who combines raï, chaâbi, electronic music and urban sounds in a performance with a strong rhythmic and electronic impact).
Taranto capital of music for five days
With its mix of exclusive concerts, original productions, training and cultural contaminations, Medimex 2026 confirms itself as one of the most important musical events on the Italian and European scene. Medimex, International Festival & Music Conference is promoted by the Puglia Region and Puglia Culture as part of the project for the development of the regional music system Puglia Sounds, an intervention financed with resources from the POC 2021-2027 Rotation Fund in the framework of the agreement between Puglia Culture and the Puglia Region Tourism Section, an event organized in collaboration with the Ministry of Tourism – National Single Tourism Fund, with the support of SIAE – Italian Society of Authors and Publishers, with the patronage Rai media partner Radio Rai.
