Abu Dhabi: The 14th edition of Abu Dhabi festival will be headlined by American jazz icon Wynton Marsalis, popular fado singer Mariza, five-time Grammy Award winner Tomatiti, Saudi singer Mohammad Abdo, and Chinese-American cellist Yo-Yo Ma, the organising committee announced today.

The festival, which will commence on March 1, 2017 and run for a month, will be spread over 30 venues with 16 productions, and will host over 70 events.

The festival’s 2017 Country of Honour is Saudi Arabia, and the event will highlight the lifetime contribution and achievements that intellectual and poet Prince Badr Bin Abdul Mohsen Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud and iconic singer Mohammad Abdo made to arts and culture.

Organised by the Abu Dhabi Music and Arts Foundation (ADMAF), the line-up was announced at a press conference in the capital on Thursda.

ADMAF announced that the festival theme will be Culture and Tolerance and will present the cultural excellence of eight countries and the creativity of over 160 Emiratis alongside around 200 international artists.

Other programmes’ acts include Mozart and Son, China’s National Centre for the Performing Arts Orchestra, The Festival Recital Series, Mohammad Fairouz and Germany and Belgium: The Syrian Expat Philharmonic Orchestra.