WELCOME AND SUMMARY
Welcome to the new edition of this communication and outreach initiative of the EFN. Feel free to forward it to your friends and colleagues. Receiving this newsletter is open to anyone for free, here. Read to the end to find out how to submit content for future editions.
This is what you'll find below:
🔹News from EFN: more details about the 2024 EFN Annual Conference in Finland + European Folk Day
🔸EFN welcomes a new member: Olga Kovalevska, from Ukraine
🔹News from our members: the 27th Fira Mediterrània bolsters roots arts and puts the spotlight on dissidence; A European Folk Day/EFN Conference Bonus in Helsinki; La Croisere Folk
🔸Our next featured member is Jonathan Pearson, from Islander
🔹Our next featured artist is the Portuguese singer Mísia
🔸And special content on the spoken hymns of Wales
✍️ Do you want to participate? At the end of the newsletter you will find how you can contribute to future editions, whether you are an EFN member or not. And of course EFN is always looking for new members and at the end of this newsletter there is a note about how and why to join, with links to the membership pages of the website and the application form.
Thanks for your attention, have a fruitful reading and, please, forward this to any person who could be interested!
News from EFN
🔸2024 EFN Conference – 24 & 25 September – Kaustinen, Finland
“Kaustinen is special – don’t miss your chance to be there!”
In preparation for the September conference EFN Administrator Nod Knowles visited Kaustinen in July – and he reacted with delight and amazement. Nod told us “I already knew that Kaustinen was an interesting place for traditional arts – but being there blew my mind! It’s a very small town – 4,200 population – but it feels like the absolute heart, the capital of traditional music and dance – not just for Finland but maybe for the whole of Europe!!".
“The town of Kaustinen and the Finnish Folk Institute are the perfect locations for our EFN conference. We will be surrounded by music, dance, heritage and living traditions – in the beautiful Folk Institute building, the special high school for traditional music students and everywhere the spirit and reminders of the scintillating Kaustinen Folk Festival.”
“Just being in Kaustinen is an inspiration. And the inspiration will be even greater with the packed conference programme of sessions, speakers, discussions and brilliant performances from traditional artists of all ages. Kaustinen is special – don’t miss you chance to be there!”.
The 2024 conference is open to all – EFN members, non-members and students of traditional arts. The website https://www.europeanfolknetwork.com/conference-2024 has full information on the conference programme, speakers and sessions. There is also full information on the website about registration, travel and accommodation. Register directly on https://EuropeanFolkNetwork.eventbrite.com
🔸European Folk Day 2024: 23rd of September
Remember: the second European Folk Day will take place on Monday, 23rd September 2024. From grassroots communities to national organisations, and from individual musicians to companies involved in traditional arts at any level, anyone can get involved.Little by little, more events are been registered on the website www.europeanfolkday.com.
Right now there are 26 events registered in 8 countries, and there are many more to come! If you want to participate, if you have any idea... or even if you don't have any idea, check the webpage Participate, full of ideas! And we are building the Music Repository for this edition. We are collecting artists’ favourite songs and tunes from their repertoire in a public repository accesible to the general public and to the media. To submit your music, send us your song or tune in mp3 to media@europeanfolkday.eu. Tell us your name, where the piece is from and a statement that you have the rights and you allow us to share it on the website www.europeanfolkday.eu
European Folk Day is by you, for you, for us…
EFN WELCOMES A NEW MEMBER
By EFN editors
Another new member from Ukraine has joined EFN – Olga Kovalevska, who describes herself as “promoter, journalist, photographer, founder of the music agency Urban Lys, director of Aly Keita (German Jazz Prize winner 2022)." Since 2022 has been based in Potsdam, Germany.
Olga tells us that she can “offer photography, design and journalistic skills, many platforms for sharing information, connections in Ukraine, and general support of EFN activities.” Welcome Olga!
The picture is from her Facebook profile.
News from the members
🔹The 27th Fira Mediterrània bolsters roots arts and puts the spotlight on dissidence
By Anna Vilanova, Àrea Professional, Fira Mediterrània
The 27th Fira Mediterrània de Manresa, which will run from 10 to 13 October 2024, will further consolidate the key objective set out in 2019 of promoting traditional roots arts.
This year, the programme will be focused on two areas. On the one hand, at an international level, the spotlight will be cast on the southern shore of the Mediterranean, specifically the Mediterranean Maghreb, a rich and diverse region for traditional arts from which young artists are emerging who work with tradition and new languages, although often far from their homelands. This cultural diaspora is linked to the other focus of the programme, dissidence, in relation to origins, the body, gender and other issues, as well as the creative process of the artists and their projects. This concept of dissident identities will be a theme that takes centre stage at both the artistic and professional levels during the upcoming Fira.
Members invitation: Fira is pleased to welcome you and covers airport transfers, accommodation for three nights and the professional registration. Please, contact Anna Vilanova at pro@firamediterrania.cat before August 3 if you're interested in.
🔹A European Folk Day/EFN Conference Bonus in Helsinki
By Nod Knowles, with information provided by Johanna Sauramaki
Are you travelling via Helsinki to the 2024 EFN Conference in Kaustinen?
If so, why not take another couple of days and enjoy a weekend in Helsinki – and enjoy a special European Folk Day Celebration concert promoted at the Savoy Theatre by EFN member Johanna Sauramaki?
Johanna invites you to experience a captivating evening of cinematic and epic fantasy folk on Saturday 21 September, as Finland's foremost contemporary folk musicians unveil their new multi-format repertoires. Johanna is offering EFN members and conference delegates FREE tickets to A Night of FANTASY FOLK featuring leading Finnish artists Maija Kauhanen with his new show ‘Ignes Fatui’ and Venla Ilona Blom’s ‘NEVRAK’ (in a special show to launch her new album). Find out full info about the artists and the show here.
Johanna can help you to find reasonably priced accommodation in Helsinki for the weekend and help with info on travel and the other attractions of Finland’s capital city.
To get your FREE tickets and ask for information, just email johanna@saurabooking.com – and enjoy Helsinki!
🔹La Croisere Folk
By Eric Cooper
Every week I produce and present the radio show LA CROSIERE FOLK which is broadcast on 8 radio stations (Belgium, France and Quebec). As part of the 2nd European Folk Day (27/09/2024), I know that many of you will be organising activities, concerts, etc. Would it be possible for you to keep me informed so that I can share the information (for free) with my listeners? Thanks in advance.
I'm also looking for information on Russian folk groups and artists (Otava Yo, Beloe Zlato...).
Contact me here: lacroisierefolk@yahoo.com
What's more, if you're organising activities in Belgium, I have quite a few contacts with Belgian media and journalists (especially in the French-speaking part of the country). If I can be of any help to you, please don't hesitate to contact me at cooper.eric.21@gmail.com.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Lacroisierefolk
Featured Member: Jonathan Pearson, from Islander
When he became a member in 2019, Jonathan Pearson explained that:
"Through my work at Islander, of which I am the founder, I manage some of the best known folk acts in Ireland and also am director of Quiet Lights, a folk festival in Cork, Ireland. I have produced and programmed events for the National Concert Hall in Dublin, Cork Opera House and most of the other large concert houses in Ireland. Aside from this, I work extensively in Iceland and manage two Icelandic groups."
For more information, check their website.
Erratum: in the previous edition we announced Márta Sebestyén as "Featured member". We meant "Featured artist". Nevertheless, Ms. Sebestyén will be welcome as a member at any moment!
Featured Artist: Mísia
By Araceli Tzigane
Last Saturday, the news of the passing of Susana Aguiar, known by her stage name Mísia, was published. After years of suffering from cancer, this tragic end came for an icon of Portuguese culture.
There are artists who expand the reach of music, creating a recognizable and unique image, as well as keeping a consistent vision throughout their career. Mísia was one of those artists. Another example in Portugal could be Vitorino, who produced her second album, Fado, in 1993.
Mísia was a star and her biography is easily findable. With this small tribute, we bid farewell to Mísia with all our respect. This below is a brief summary of the Bio on her official website.
Born in Porto, Portugal, Mísia represented the third generation of artists in her family. After moving to Barcelona and later Madrid, she engaged in various artistic productions but found her true calling in fado when she returned to Portugal in 1991. Determined to create her own repertoire, she collaborated with renowned poets and musicians, contributing to what is known as "New Fado".
Mísia performed on prestigious stages worldwide, including Lisbon’s Teatro Nacional de São Carlos and New York’s Town Hall. Her innovative approach to fado garnered acclaim from major publications and led to numerous awards, such as the Medalha de Mérito in Portugal and the Officier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in France.
I chose this song, Garras dos Sentidos, because it has the most views on YouTube and it is also the one that I have in mind the most from the artist's work.
The song "Garras dos Sentidos" (Claws of the Senses) speaks about the complexities and transient nature of love. The lyrics poetically describe love as "stray steps," "cold rays of sunlight," and "green claws of the senses." It portrays love as fleeting and sometimes painful, likened to racehorses with iron and lead wings falling into the deep sea. The song reflects on the contradictions and challenges of love, moving away from idealized portrayals to acknowledge its more challenging aspects.
Special content:
Tafod Arian (silver tongue), by Lleuwen: bringing Welsh spoken hymns alive through music
This content was suggested by Elen Elis, Cyfarwyddwr Artistig (Artistic Director) of our member the Eisteddfod Genedlaethol Cymru (National Eisteddfod of Wales), which is an annual Welsh festival that celebrates the culture, language, and traditions of Wales. It is one of the oldest and largest cultural festivals in Europe, featuring a wide range of competitions in music, literature, dance, visual arts, and performance. Participants compete in events such as poetry, singing, instrumental music, and drama. The festival also includes ceremonies, such as the crowning of the Bard and the Chairing of the Bard, which honor the best poets and writers. Learn more about this event, on their website.
Contents provided by Elen Elis, edition by Araceli Tzigane.
This year, the Eisteddfor Genedlaethol Cymry will host the premier of the performance of the artist Lleuwen Steffan with band, of the project Tafod Arian.
It is an archive project bringing hidden voices from the past out to a new audience through music – with Lleuwen and band performing with the archive voices – folk hymns from the past.
Elen explained for your newsletter that "The project is important for Wales as the hymns had been lost for such a long time before we rediscovered them. Through Tafod Arian we are reintroducing them to a public who is fascinated by how current the hymns are. Yes, they are old but the messages and emotions behind them are ageless."
To collect the repertoire for this project, Lleuwen and the National Eisteddfod of Wales delved into the depths of St Fagan’s Museum and National Library’s sound archives as well as hymns picked up and recorded by Lleuwen in her tour of 50 Welsh chapels.
We wish much success to the project!
The picture of Lleuwen is from her official website.
Learn more about this project on the website of the Eisteddfod Genedlaethol Cymru.
Before the premiere of the concert with band at the Eisteddfor Genedlaethol Cymry, Lleuwen has performed this repertoire in solo concerts. This is her concert at Celtic Connections 2024:
HOW TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS NEWSLETTER
Are you already a member? Then, remember that you can submit contents for this monthly newsletter. Email your content to efneditors@gmail.com, for these sections:
· News from EFN Members. Brief announcements – of around 100 words and a link.
· Featured artist. - It will be present again in the next edition - A profile with around 200 words, an embedded video and one link. Members are invited to submit profiles, considering solo and ensemble living or not living artists who have achieved lifelong artistic and technical quality or historical significance in the field of folk art from or developed in or settled in Europe. If you have any artists in mind that you'd like to feature, please ask in advance, just to be sure there is no other member already doing it.
And whether you are a member or not, you can participate in this section:
· Special sections. For instance, an interview with someone from an institution that is not a member or a thematic article by a guest writer or anything that can appear and be considered as interesting. This section can also host guest writers that are not members.
If you'd like to share any content, contact us in advance to schedule it by emailing efneditors@gmail.com
Of course, self promotional articles lacking interest won't be accepted. In case of doubt, the EFN board will be consulted and will decide.
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