Ravello Festival

Also known as the Wagner Festival (the German composer was inspired to write parts of his Parsifal during an 1880s sojourn to Ravello), the four-month festival features an impressive lineup of cultural events, including readings, dance and opera performances, as well as the anticipated concerts in the magical setting of the Villa Rufolo. A beloved tradition is the annual Concerto all’Alba; its name translates to “dawn concert,” and the concert starts at 4:30 A.M. to coincide with sunrise. The Nuova Orchestra Scarlatti performs on a precarious-looking stage that juts out over the Bay of Salerno so that the musicians seem to float above the water.