Alverno Presents director David Ravel says he knew last year's Global Union music festival was a success when he saw two African-American women dancing to a Serbian punk metal band.

This year's lineup offers further proof: Haale is a New York singer who grew up listening to her Persian parents' native music and Jimi Hendrix. Roberto Rodriguez and Maurice El Médioni are an alliance of Algerian and Cuban musicians.

This weekend, Global Union will return with two days of free music at the Humboldt Park band shell near E. Oklahoma and S. Howell avenues. The music will run from noon to 7 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

Milwaukee has lots of music festivals, most of them designed to entertain and lubricate beer sales. There's obviously an educational component in Alverno's festival that's bolstered by the accessibility of a free event. But Ravel doesn't want things to sound too academic.

"First and foremost, it's great music," he says. "It's fun. We want to have a good time with the music of cultures outside our own."

Global Union originally came about because of a chance meeting backstage that led to an invitation to coordinate events with the World Music Festival in Chicago and the University of Wisconsin-Madison World Music Festival.

It was an opportunity that Ravel jumped at. Having three regional festivals running concurrently meant that routing would be financially feasible, and a focus on world music is part of the stated mission of Alverno Presents.

Ravel says last year's event drew a diverse crowd of 6,000. Food vendors at this year's event include Outpost Foods, Debby Jo's Ribs, World on a Plate, West Bank Café and All Fruit Smoothies.

Here's a look at this year's Global Union lineup.

17 Hippies: This German ensemble practices polka music on steroids, although if it's got an accordion in it, it's fair game, which leads to an occasional zydeco experiment or even a cover of Los Lobos. If you like Brave Combo or the Klezmatics, check them out.

By: Dave Tianen