12 photos from Decibel Open Air 2022, a colourful celebration of dance music

What do you get when you cross raging pyrotechnics, pummelling techno, and beautiful, historic architecture? No, there’s no punchline – but the answer lies deep in the Italian region of Tuscany. Across September 10 to 11 in Florence’s panoramic Parco delle Cascine, Decibel Open Air welcomed in 50,000 punters – 15,000 of whom came from overseas – to experience this year’s spectacular techno and house celebration.

Featuring a phenomenal bill, which this year included the likes of Amelie Lens, Caribou, Elkka, Peggy Gou, Richie Hawtin, Overmono, and Paul Kalkbrenner, Decibel’s biggest edition to date saw out festival season in pure groove-laden style.

Dance music’s finest took to three colossal stages over the two-day event, and as the sun beamed down all weekend, festival-goers basked in the vibrant atmosphere. Over at the amphitheatre, Guilia Tess, Cosmo, 2manyDJs, and plenty more, gave stellar evening performances to warm up the crowds for heavyweight acts including Reinier Zonneveld, Michael Bibi, and techno all-stars Nina Kraviz, I Hate Models, and Amelie Lens.

Meanwhile, Elrow made a typically colourful appearance this year with its own stage across both days, bringing high production levels to Decibel, and Scottish festival Terminal V also set up shop for its first overseas appearance, recreating its notoriously rowdy energy to the Tuscan capital.

Check out all the best shots from Decibel Open Air 2022.