EMW is bringing the best of the best Estonian and Canadian artists across the board with its triumphant return to a full-fledged festival format, taking place from May 24-28th. This year’s festival focuses on bringing the new nordic sound: artists inspired by tradition and not bound by genres. From indie to traditional folk, electronic to improvisation and experimental music; it’s got a little bit of everything in store for you all. But that’s not even the half of it. EMW is turning five this year and to celebrate, is throwing the biggest party to date — concerts not only across Toronto but also spanning Hamilton; a jam-packed musical event you won’t want to miss out on. Plus an art party, panel discussions, exhibits and even a rumoured sauna on wheels… come and immerse yourself in this one-of-a-kind cultural experience!
So what exactly is the focus of this year’s festival and what are some of the ins and outs? EMW Artistic and Executive director Sebastian Buccioni gives us a sneak peek into the upcoming festival…
The latest festival is coming up soon now, which is super exciting. Which artists can we look forward to seeing perform live this year? And what kind of music does each artist create?
Sebastian Buccioni (SB): There's lots to look forward to, if I may say so myself! We’ll get into some of the main artists coming from Estonia, the first being Mari Kalkun. I think you know her brand of folk music, this really strong southern Estonian influence, but also just her treatment of it. A really great performer with a lot of layers. There are a few different chances to catch her in different settings as well, which I think is fun. That's one of the things with this year's festival: a lot of these artists are multifaceted so you'll get a chance to see different sides of them.
Kirke Karja is this incredible jazz pianist that's coming out of Estonia. She's the next big thing in jazz right now and has incredible proficiency but is also really creative. Sort of on the avant garde side of jazz. A lot of people get scared off by that term, but it just means that it's maybe not as traditional.
We have Triskele who are exploring some really interesting historical periods. For example, “folkified” church hymns of the middle ages. They're also performing regilaul, which I think will be an interesting parallel to what Mari Kalkun is doing.
And then there's Kara-Lis Coverdale. She is developing an international reputation and is super creative. She makes these ambient soundscapes that are really rich. Kara-Lis is known as a composer, not just an electronic artist. We've commissioned a piece from her, and that piece is going to be brand new, written for Triskele and parts of the Hamilton Philharmonic together. She's also going to perform solo piano, an electronic set, as people are maybe more familiar with, and a DJ set as well. I would highly recommend catching all of them.
There's a festival event happening in Hamilton. Can you tell us more about that?
SB: We've done programming in Hamilton before and we had such great experiences with the communities in Hamilton that we wanted to dedicate a full festival day. We're in Collective Arts Brewery, which has a gorgeous space. There's a conference part of it in the morning; if you want to dive deeper into the music, it's open to everybody and totally free. There's a stage with up and coming artists from the diaspora community that you'll be able to see and also the full performance with the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra.
What have you heard from artists about what they're seeking from the festival?
SB: I think a lot of the artists are really excited to get in touch with the diaspora community. They love to meet this other Estonia that exists across the ocean. But they're also seeking opportunities to meet industry people. It's a building block. We had some great experiences last year with Lexsoul Dancemachine. We put them on top of the bus! They had this hero's welcome when they came to Toronto, they couldn't believe it. That feeling of being brought into the musical community, so that you're not just this alien, going around and playing these shows. Maybe there's some creative thing that comes out of it. It's all those things that they're looking for.
Is there anything else you'd like to highlight about this year's festival or Estonian Music Week in general?
SB: We have formed great partnerships like Wavelength, guest-curator Patrick O'Reilly and BLOK who have brought some really exciting Canadians to the table.
***
So now that you’ve gotten a little teaser of this year’s festival and the artists and they're showcasing, what are you waiting for? Festival passes and single concert tickets are now on sale, grab them before the prices go up on May 1.
Catch the full interview with Sebastian in this week’s EstoCast episode:
The festival will be announcing the full lineup of artists very soon, stay tuned to their socials Facebook and Instagram page!
Estonian Music Week wants to say thanks to our major funder Estonian Foundation of Canada; presenting partners Wavelength Music Series, the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra and BLOK Slavic Music Meet; supporter Lloyd Carr-Harris Foundation; and sponsor Northern Birch Credit Union.
EMW is a project by VEMU/Estonian Museum Canada.
