The Ultimate Music Festivals Quiz

Woodstock took place in 1969 and was a pivotal moment in the history of music festivals.

There is evidence of music festivals as early as the Pythian games in the sixth century B.C., where they had music and singing mixed in with the athletic events.

Music festivals have music going continuously for a period of days. This allows for known bands and for new bands to have their chance in the spotlight. To keep the line-up fresh the organizers usually limit the number of times a band is allowed to play during the festival.

The South by Southwest (SXSW) music festival runs for four days and hosts around 1,000 bands across the city of Austin, Texas. It is one of the largest music festivals in the U.S.

SXSW is a major boost for the economy of Austin. In 2008 it was expected to bring in $110 million. With tickets costing up to $700, this is not a surprise!

A film festival and an interactive festival are held simultaneously but separately to SXSW.

Web entrepreneurs have taken a huge interest in the interactive festival and Twitter was actually launched at SXSW in 2007.

The Montreux Jazz Festival is held on the banks of Lake Geneva, Switzerland, in early July.

The Montreux Jazz Festival was first held in the Montreux Casino. The Casino burnt down in 1971 but was rebuilt in 1975. However, the festival out-grew the small casino after a large music expansion in the 1980s and the festival was relocated to the local convention center.

The festival runs for 16 days and, although it is open to all types of music, it focuses on jazz, blues and reggae.

George Harrison started the benefit music festival trend in 1971 when he did a concert for UNICEF, where all proceeds went to help East Pakistanis who were forced out of their homes by war.

Sasquatch! was started in 2002 and features indie, experimental and alternative rock music with a focus on singer-songwriters and a stage dedicated to performers from the Pacific Northwest.

Sasquatch is held in George, Washington, by the Columbia River during the last week in May.

Horses usually roam the polo grounds which temporarily become the home of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.

October was too hot in the desert of Indio, California, so the festival was moved to April, which is much more bearable.

Bands including Jane's Addiction and Iggy Pop and The Stooges have reunited at Coachella, giving it the reputation of a cupid.

Continuous live music and a strong and varied line up, including alternative rock, hip-hop and electronic music are characteristics of Coachella.

If you feel like a different genre of music after Coachella, you may want to stick around for the Stagecoach country music festival.

Pilton, England is the home of the Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts, which showcases a variety of music styles including rock, dance, folk and punk. The event uses more than 80 stages on more than 900 acres of land.

Most of the festival staff are volunteers provided by OXFAM, which receives a nice donation from the festival profits in return.