Tag Archives: Mundial Montreal

Magazine #29 November’20 – Thrilling experience by Kajsa Bacos, festivals Kamičak Etno & Hillside, Mundial Montreal & before-Babel Music XP and +!

Summary ? 

  • A relevant date for our community (and a reason to be more than proud for me): before-Babel Music XP.
  • A thrilling experience facing the pandemic with live music, by Kajsa Bacos from Kulturverket Onsjö.
  • Mini interviews with festival manager: Anđela Galić from Kamičak Etno Festival and Samir Baijal from Hillside Festival (continuing the series of interviews about challenges for festivals and about MOST Music participants)
  • News from the charts and sister projects
  • What’s next? Mundial Montreal and before-Babel Med XP!
How are you? I hope well. I am not quite happy. My toilet has been flooded due to a breakdown, in a way that I thought that happened only in the films. I am soaked and I am waiting for the plumber… In the meantime, I got to close the water valve and I don’t have water in the house and, did you know? We are in the middle of a pandemic ?
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However, life goes on and during the rest of this month there are some exciting events to pay attention to and interesting colleagues to learn from.

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Do you want to share any useful experience you have had during this difficult time or another content relevant for our community of the global music?

Contact me. And if you find this interesting, share it with your friends. You can read the previous issues here. 

Thanks for your attention and remember that during the reading you can listen to some great music by our artists collaborators –>

Araceli Tzigane | info@mundimapa.com | +34 676 30 28 82 

Subscription is available here.

BRIEFTLY, A RELEVANT DATE FOR OUR COMMUNITY

In the latest editions the rebirth of Babel Med, now Babel Music XP, have had some place. I am happy to remind you once more that the before-Babel will take place online on 26 and 27 of November and I will happy particitipate in a round table: New collaborations and solidarity for professionals relaunching their careers. It will be moderated by Ludovic Tomas and I will share the table with Birgit Ellinghaus, Umair Jaffar, Emad Mabrouk and Amobé Mévégué. What a pleasure.


By the way, if you want to learn more about me, check the interview that Erick van Monckhoven made me for his World Music Lab Italia. Remember I made an interview with him in this previous edition. I am pleased that he found my insights interesting and I opened totally.

And the interview announced in the previous edition, with Noam Vazana in her project Why Do it Yourself Music, is available here. We talked more than one hour and it was really fantastic! I felt such an easy communication with this wise lady!

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THE EXPERIENCE OF KAJSA BACOS FROM KULTURVERKET ONSJÖ (HALMSTAD, SWEDEN)

In the latest edition I asked if any of the readers would like to share their experiences of the last months in dealing with the pandemic and the activity of live music and Kajsa Bacos (her portrait is from her profile at Womex website), from Kulturverket Onsjö, in Halmstad, in the province of Halland replied with this experience:

“From April to August we closed down completely. We planned Summer concerts in July but when the rain poured down for 2 weeks we gave that up. We can seldom trust the weather, so it is difficult to plan outside concerts.

In September we started with concerts. We have a small place and 50-60 persona are the maximum. 45 feels full. So we decided to use our funding thus: Instead of one concert with 2 sets (1,5 hour), we had two concerts with one set (60 minutes). The musicians had an hour to rest and eat in between.

“It was a success. People who have been isolated for long, who can’t even go shopping, came.” 

We told the audience that for the first concert only risk group persona were welcome. And only 15 people for each concert. That is 70 + or persons with an underlying condition. The response was big, so we ended up with two concerts for the risk group.It was a success. People who have been isolated for long, who can’t even go shopping, came. We can do this for our venue is not commercially driven, our funding pays for the music.

This way, we keep people happy, we use the funding that either could be paid without the musicians playing or we could pay it back to the government, the musicians are really happy to meet an audience, we show that we still do good work, and we keep our cooperations running, and our network intact. We can’t just give up while we wait for better times. 

“We have to work, musicians have to play. People who come here are really good at keeping a social distance. We just have to learn to adjust. And continue.” 

We have many times organized events for marginalized groups like children, immigrants etc. In Western Europe today we have more and more old people and because of the pandemic they are marginalized. We need to keep their spirits up also. They can’t see their families, go places, go to dinners. I planned carefully so they arrived in separate groups 10 minutes apart so there was no queue. They came in through one entrance and the musicians came in another. I desinfected all handles, put chairs 1,5 metres apart. And if I didn’t know somebody, I interviewed them on their lifestyle. If they had been at a social event recently they couldn’t come.

We have to work, musicians have to play. People who come here are really good at keeping a social distance. We just have to learn to adjust. And continue.

No musician has been indefinitely cancelled, we have just postponed ther concert. There is a life after corona.”

Thank you very much, Kajsa!!! 
This is the Kulturverket place, from Google Maps Street View:

 

CURRENT AND FUTURE CHALLENGES FOR FESTIVALS 

In this occasion, we have two interviews: about Kamičak Etno Festival, from Croatia (that continues the series of festivals included in project MOST) and about Hillside Festival, from Canada. I really hope they can retake their usual shape soon. To attend a concert or festival, gathering together with people you don’t know, but that are willing to share a emotional experience, is inimitable. It is a ritual, from the moment you chose the clothes you will wear. Or even from before. I am thanksful to Kajsa, Anđela and Samir and so many people that are keeping the flame alive in this time of added dificulties.


MINI INTERVIEW WITH ANĐELA GALIĆ FROM THE KAMIČAK ETHNO FESTIVAL (SINJ, CROATIA) 

 

The third edition was planned to be held on days day 21 and 22 of August at the 18th century fortress of Sinj, in Croatia. This edition included concerts by Croatian, Argentine, Serbian, Macedonian, Bosnian and Irish artists, traditional crafts made by local producers and gastronomic local specialties.

The edition of this year had to be cancelled and although some things will have to be rethought, the festival is included in MOST Project and planned to come back in 2021. Anđela Galić, organizer of the festival, shares their insights and vision.

Mapamundi Música – What do you search for in an artist when you program?

Anđela Galić –  We are looking for creative, talented, individuals or groups whose music grows out of a certain musical tradition but at the same moment brings contemporary approach to its interpretation. Kind of music that brings interesting fusion of styles and stays in your ears for a long time.

MM – Which are the global objectives of your festival?
AG – We want to profile our Festival as one of the best world music festivals in Croatia, but also in the wider Balkan region. Our goal is to make Sinj (Croatia) and Kamičak Ethno Festival a recognizable festival gem where you can hear great performers from all around the world.

MM – What are the most complicated or difficult issues to deal with in your festival?
AG – The most complicated and difficult part is to provide enough funds, which implies constant engagement on the application of the festival to various funding tenders. Also the hard part is the fact that if you want to orginaze good festival you need a lot of planning and organization, which means involvement of many people, in our case volunteers, without whom the realization of the Festival would not be possible.

MM – Which are currently the main challenges for this kind of cultural proposals like yours?
AG – Due to the epidemiological situation it is difficult and uncertain to plan ahead. Anything that involves complex organization and engagement of international artists is considerably aggravated at the moment. The whole situation is extremely unpredictable for all involved in music industry and requires quick adaptation to new circumstances.

MM – In one sentence, summarize the reason/s to go to your festival.
AG – Excellent music in beautiful ambience of historic fortress at the top of the city with a view of the entire Cetina region, are just some of the reasons to visit Kamičak Ethno Festival. Plus, great fun is guaranteed.

MM – What has happened with the edition of 2020 in the current situation of the pandemic?
AG – Sure, except from canceling the last edition, we have to think about alternatives for next edition, so we are considering limiting the number of visitors or organizing festival only with local performers.

Credits:

  • The portrait of Anđela is provided by herself.
  • The logo is from their facebook site
  • The aereal picture is from the website of the festival
  • The picture of the concert is from the facebook site (concert by Patrick Walker Trio at the edition of 2019)

MINI INTERVIEW WITH SAMIR BAIJAL FROM THE HILLSIDE FESTIVAL (GUELPH, CANADA)  

 

I am sure you will agree with me in the idea that it sounds like magic: to spend three days of Summer in an island in a lake in Canada, full of music, with a program in which diversity of culture, of musical heritage and style, of age, geography and influence is a guiding line. This is what the Hillside Festival state about itself on the website. It helds two editions, the Summer one and also another, in February.

This year the Winter edition was normal but the Summer one had to take an alternative shape: Homeside 2020. Samir Baijal, the artistic director, explains more about the festival in general and about this special edition too.

Mapamundi Música – What do you search for in an artist when you program?
Samir Baijal –  Once I appreciate that they are a skilled and strong live artist, it is always about trying to picture them on one of our stages. We program all kinds of music and our audience is very open to new artists and form all around the world so I think of how they will respond. I look for performers who can have a strong connection to the audience and in most case willing to collaborate with other artists at the festival.

MM – What are the most complicated or difficult issues to deal with in your festival?
SB – Typically, it would be the weather gets harsh as we on an island outdoors.

MM – Which are currently the main challenges for this kind of cultural proposals like yours?
SB – Maintaining a festival that is non-commercial that has strong values and environmental/sustainable practices – hence also maintaining a unique identity in a very competitive market. But right now it is enduring the period of the pandemic when we are not able our regular event(s) and revenue is not possible.

MM – In one sentence, summarize the reason/s to go to your festival.
SB – A family friendly festival in a beautiful setting, that challenges the audience to check their tastes at the gate and with more than just music.

MM – What has happened with Hillside Festival 2020? I think you were able to make the February edition normally, but for the Summer edition, you reshaped it for an online format. How was it? 
SB – We called it Hillside Homeside 2020. It went better than we expected, the event was completely free to view and what we noticed the most is how much the audience appreciated us offering this presentation. It felt very personal and I think that it was a sense of connection between our patrons and our festival during a very challenging and unprecedented time.

MM – How did you shape the experience of the attendants?
SB – This was to be our 37th year, so we had a series called 37 songs where 37 artists offered a personalized recording of a song and monologue/message to the Hillside viewer. There were virtual workshops on everything from yoga to cooking and also links to our craft and food vendors – we had some archival footage with current day interviews (called Now and Then). We used the same different stage template as if it were on site.

MM – How did you get their engagement? 
SB – We had our mailing list, newsletter and media gave a lot of coverage that it was happening.

MM – Any positive insight of this reshaped edition, that you could even keep for future editions when the pandemic ended?
SB – I think we would put more attention on more specific archiving and look at showing these during the year.

Credits:

  • The portrait of Samir is from his profile at Womex
  • The logo is from their facebook site
  • The aereal picture and the picture of the workshop are from the website of the festival
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NEWS FROM THE CHARTS AND SISTER PROJECTS

  • In the previous edition I announced that Transglobal World Music Chart turned 5 years old. I am happy to announce now that the compilation album The Best of Transglobal World Music Chart 2020, will be released by ARC Music in January. Follow our Facebook and visit our website of News to be updated and learn more. And during the last weeks we have incorporated new panelists, from Brazil, UK, Cuba and India.
  • About Mundofonías, our monthly favourites are the last albums by Niqolah Seeva, Kaito Winse and The Rheingans Sisters. For some weeks now the radio show is been broadcasted in Ràdio Túria, in L’Eliana, Valencia, Spain. 

WHAT’S NEXT?

In spite of everything, we are still in the season of professional dates. 
  • Mundial Montreal. The professional’s platform will be working from tomorrow to day 28th. Yesterday I decided to sign up and the true is that I am quite excited! 
  • Before Babel Music XP. As announced above, it will take place on November 26-27.  I a proudly included in the program. Remember that there is an interview with Olivier Rey from Babel Music XP, here.

WHO WE ARE AND SISTER PROJECTS 

Mapamundi Música is an agency of management and booking. Learn more here. Check our proposals at our website.

We also offer you our Mundofonías radio show, probably the leader about world music in Spanish language (on 50 stations in 18 countries). We produce the Transglobal World Music Chart with our partner Ángel Romero from WorldMusicCentral.com. And we lead also the Asociación para la Difusión de los Estilos.

Feel free to request info if you wish. For further information about us, get in touch by email, telephone (+34 676 30 28 82), our website or at our Facebook. 

Do you like our newsletter? Tell us! Forward it to your friends! To sign up, click HERE.

This newsletter is open to sponsorship. Feel free to ask for details.

 

Magazine #21 March 2020. Coronavirus confinement time

Mini-interview with Marié Abe from Boston University Global Music Festival, open calls and coronavirus confinement won´t last forever!

Greetings from my house/office, that is the usual working place for Mapamundi Música. We are now in the third day of confinement that has been set all over Spain the last Sunday. You are probably confined too. All of us, the community of world musics, as well as most of the sectors of activity, are losing much. But other people are even suffering the disease and dying and you and I have hope in the future.

Just like you, the last days I have seen how the results of the work made during many months have just vanished. Not just mine, but of many friends too. In April I would have travelled to Lisbon for our first concert (postponed) of the series in the Museum of Orient in Lisbon, to Hamburg for the Silk Road Series by alba Kultur (cancelled) and to Warsaw for the Mazurkas of the World Festival (postponed without specified dates). What will happen in May, nobody knows…

But we all know this situation will end and our lifes and works will continue, enhanced after some rest and reflection. So in this magazine I send you again the Open Calls section, that has two new entries, and you’ll find also a new interview with a festival director, Marié Abé, from the BU Global Music Fest, to take place in Boston in September. It would be a pity if all this situation made even more difficult for the courageous people like them to give a place for foreign artists because of increased complications about visas to enter the USA.

Enjoy, I hope this words will give you some joy in this difficult time. Remember you can send any suggestion of contents for the next editions. And if you like this, share it and tell it to your friends. I share once more our playlist to accompany the reading –>.

Thanks for your attention.

Araceli Tzigane – info@mundimapa.com – +34 676 30 28 82 

Feel free to resend this newsletter to your friends if you like it. Subscription is available here.

Summary: 
· Mini interview with festival manager: Marié Abe from BU Global Music Festival (USA)
· Open calls not to miss
· Find me at… 
This newsletter is open to sponsorship. Feel free to ask for details.
**** Do you have a world music festival and you want to be included in our mini interviews? Contact us. ****
CURRENT AND FUTURE CHALLENGES FOR FESTIVALS 

MINI INTERVIEW WITH MARIE ABÉ FROM BOSTON UNIVERSITY GLOBAL MUSIC FESTIVAL

The BU Global Music Festival takes place in Boston, USA. It will be held this year for the third time, if the global catastrophes allow it, on days 25 and 26 of September. It is an annual celebration of musical cultures around the world. It is organized by the Department of Musicology and Ethnomusicology of Boston University in collaboration with the BU Arts Initiative. The program includes showcasing musicians and performing artists steeped in folkloric, vernacular, popular and traditional musics around the world, as well as workshops, panel discussions, lectures, and other educational offerings.

Marié Abe is the artistic director. She is an associate professor of music in the Department of Musicology and Ethnomusicology at Boston University, and an affiliated faculty at the BU Center for Studies of Asia, African Studies Center, and American and New England Studies Program. Marié is also a musician, an active performer and improviser of the accordion, collaborating with artists from the United States, Japan, and beyond, and currently member of the Boston-based Ethiopian groove collective Debo Band. She is answering our little interview in this occasion.

MM – What do you search in an artist when you create the programme? 
MA: I look for four things:
· artistically compelling, soul-grabbing, unique sounds in their music;
· badassery in their expression, whether that be in boundary-defying experimental sounds or maintaining and expanding a tradition they’re located within diversity across the artists,
· making sure to represent at least half but usually more than half being women, highlighting at least one indigenous group a year;
· artists who embody integrity between their musical sounds and their vision for the world.

 

MM – Which are the global objectives of your festival?
MA: For me, global doesn’t mean “abroad” or “international”—Boston is an inherently global city with vibrant immigrant histories and immigrant communities, and it’s about highlight that as much as bringing international artists whose music people may never had exposure to before.
The BU Global Music Festival is an annual celebration of musical cultures around the world featuring high-caliber, international artists as well as vibrant local musical communities, bringing the wider musical world to the doorstep of thousands of students, adults, young people, and families throughout the Boston area.Through exploration of diverse musical cultures, BU Global Music Festival offers a chance for the audience—and this means not only the university community but the city and beyond, which is why we make this festival free and open to the public—to experience and understand human sameness and differences across cultures, and aspires to develop interest, respect, and engagement with our neighbors, near and far, through musical performance and education.

 

 

MM – What are the most complicated or difficult issues to deal with in your festival? 
MA: Artist visas in the age of anti-immigrant policies, and securing funds to keep the festival free and open to the public.

 

MM – Which are currently the main challenges for this kind of cultural proposals like yours?
MA: Same as above! Visas for artists, and funding for the arts. Also, I wish media would honor and highlight the arts more. It’s hard to spread the word to the wider world, and strong media support would be helpful.

 

MM – In one sentence, summarise the reason/s to go to your festival. 
MA:  In one weekend, you’ll get to have your soul and body shaken by powerful music by world-class high-caliber musicians from around the globe that you may never have had a chance to listen to before, and personally interact with them and learn more about their music and where they’re from at workshops—all for FREE!

 

Thanks to Marié Abe and Ty Furman (producer of the festival, who also supported me to create this content). I really with you a super successful third edition.

 

Pictures’ credits:
  • Marié Abe portrait, provided by herself
  • Banner of the festival, from its website
If you haven´t read them, you can find the previous interviews clicking on the names: Michal Schmidt (Folk Holidays, CZ) – Jun-Lin Yeoh (Rainforest WMF, MY) – Luis Lles (Pirineos Sur, ES) – Amitava Bhattacharya (Sur Jahan, IN) – Nicolas Ribalet (Sukiyaki Meets the World, JP) – Sergio Zaera (Poborina Folk, ES) – Per Idar Almås (Førdefestivalen, NO) – Bożena Szota (EthnoPort, PL) – Ken Day (Urkult, SE) – Mads Olesen (5 Continents, CH) – Karolina Waszczuk & Bartek Drozd (Jagiellonian Fair, PL) – Alkis Zopoglou (Mediterranean Music Festival, GR/CH) – Tom Frouge (Globalquerque, US) – Braulio Pérez (Música en el Parque, ES) – Bojan Djordjevic (Todo Mundo, RS) – Park Jechun (Jeonju Int’s Sori Festival) –  Jarmila Vlčková (World Music Festival Bratislava – SK) – Leo Ličof (Okarina – SI) – Georgia Dötzer (Rialto World Music Festival – CY)
OPEN CALLS

Transglobal World Music Chart Festival Awards. This is open all the year but note that some time in advance of your festival is needed to find the evaluator. This award’s proceduce needs the attendance of a person in your event: one of the panelists or an independent journalist or person of culture. Check the link and send any questions, also in answer to this email as I am the coordinator of this award.

Mundial Montreal (Canada). Open until 1st April. Its 10th edition will take place from 17th to 20th of November. The official selection includes around 30 artists to play in showcases of 25 minutes. Delegates from all the continents use to attend. 

 

Mobility program of grants by AC/E. Open until 31st March. This grant is made to provide finantial support for logistics when booking a Spanish artists. I talked deeper about this and about our offer or Spanish artists, here.

 

Mercat de Música Viva de Vic. Open until 31st March. Its edition 32 will take place from 16th to 19th of September in the Catalan city of Vic. It includes around 60 showcases and a bunch of concerts are selected for the “festival” format (the rest are fair showcases for professionals).

 

Visa for Music. Open until 31st of March (note there are announced two dates in different places, inside the application web is says day 15th but right now it is open and in the announcement at Facebok it says it is until day 31st). The 7th edition of Visa For Music, professional music market and festival for African and Middle-Eastern music, will be held from November 18th to 21st, 2020 in Rabat, Morocco. 30 artists or groups will be selected.
OUR LATEST ACHIEVEMENT, POSTPONED TO STILL DON’T KNOW… 

In the previous newsletter I talked about our Silk Road series of concerts in Museum of Orient, Lisbon.

The concert by Sahib Pashasade and Kamram Karimov will be postponed and we don’t have a new date yet. The second concert would be on 8th of May by Nouruz Ensemble (in the picture). If we can keep this date, it will be good news for everybody.

 

This newsletter is open to sponsorship. Feel free to ask for details. 

FIND ME AT…
Who knows. So many plans were done and cancelled. Let’s hope these two dates will still be possible:
  • From 13 to 16 of May, Ljubljana & Maribor, for Druga Godba. I still have hope that this will be possible.
  • From 3-6 June, in Poland with Gulaza in Wroclaw and with Monsieur Doumani in Katowice. I hope this all about the virus will be just a dark memory at this time.
  • For later, I am or was suppossed to travel for instance to Kavala for Kosmopolis Festival (still set in the same dates in July), to Malaysia for Rainforest World Music Festival (postponed without specified dates) and others, let’s see.

Do you like our newsletter? Tell us! Resend it to your friends! To sign up, click HERE.

WHO WE ARE AND SISTER PROJECTS 

Mapamundi Música is an agency of management and booking. Learn more here. Check our proposals at our website.

We also offer you our Mundofonías radio show, probably the leader about world music in Spanish language (on 46 stations in 17 countries). We produce the Transglobal World Music Chart with our partner Ángel Romero from WorldMusicCentral.com. And we lead also the Asociación para la Difusión de los Estilos.

Feel free to request info if you wish. For further information about us, get in touch by email, telephone (+34 676 30 28 82), our website or at our Facebook. 

Magazine #20 February 2020

Mini-interview with Georgia Dötzer from Rialto WM Festival, Birgit Ellinghaus, open calls and +

 

What to do now better than listening great music while reading this magazine, made by us and for us, the community of world / folk / traditional music all over the world? I am Araceli Tzigane. Accompany your reading with our playlist! You know: just click the logo –>.

So, welcome to Mapamundi Música‘s magazine, issue #20! I will not enlarge any further this intro, as the content below is gold.

Just remember: any suggestion of contents for the next editions? Let us know. And if you like this, share it and tell it to your friends! 

Thanks for your attention.

Araceli Tzigane – info@mundimapa.com – +34 676 30 28 82 

Feel free to resend this newsletter to your friends if you like it. Subscription is available here.

Summary: 

· Job announcement from Global Fest
· Open calls not to miss
· Mini interview with festival manager: Georgia Dötzer from Rialto World Music Festival (Cyprus)
· In deep with Birgit Ellinghaus from alba KULTUR
· Don’t miss our Spanish acts recommended by AECID
· One of our latests achievements, I have to share this ?
· Find me at…
This newsletter is open to sponsorship. Feel free to ask for details.

GLOBAL FEST SEARCHES FOR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Global Fest is a music platform with many activities. One of them is the festival they hold in New York in January.

There want to fill a job vacancy that is a new position for their organization. A full-time position to start in April 2020. Its responsibilities include fundraising, development and expansion of the board of directors, developing and renewing relationships with prospective funders and sponsors, etc. To learn more and to apply, click here.

OPEN CALLS

Transglobal World Music Chart Festival Awards. This is open all the year but note that some time in advance of your festival is needed to find the evaluator. This award’s proceduce needs the attendance of a person in your event: one of the panelists or an independent journalist or person of culture. Check the link and send any questions, also in answer to this email as I am the coordinator of this award.

 

Mundial Montreal (Canada). Open until 1st April. Its 10th edition will take place from 17th to 20th of November. The official selection includes around 30 artists to play in showcases of 25 minutes. Delegates from all the continents use to attend. 

 

Mercat de Música Viva de Vic. Open until 31st March. Its edition 32 will take place from 16th to 19th of September in the Catalan city of Vic. It includes around 60 showcases and a bunch of concerts are selected for the “festival” format (the rest are fair showcases for professionals).

 

WOMEX (this year, in Budapest). Open until 13th March. This is the referential fair for world music, with around 3 thousand delegates every year. I think Womex is really known by the 99,99 %.

 

**** Do you have a world music festival and you want to be included in our mini interviews? Contact us. ****

 CURRENT AND FUTURE CHALLENGES FOR FESTIVALS 

MINI INTERVIEW WITH GEORGIA DÖTZER FROM RIALTO WORLD MUSIC FESTIVAL

Limassol, at the South of the island of Cyprus, and July… The idea that comes to the mind is hot Sun, beach, roasted halloumi cheese with frozen white wine… and, for the past 14 years, also world music! Yes, because Rialto World Music Festival in been held in Limassol since 2006.

It started as a series of events dedicated to diversity and tolerance and now, in 2020, it will become 15! I want to congratulate Ms. Georgia Dötzer, the “mastermind behind the success of Rialto World Music Festival” in words of her compatriot Antonis Antoniou, from Monsieur Doumani, and the team. Many more to come, Ms. Dötzer! In the meantime, let me share some of your insights.

MM – What do you search in an artist when you create the programme? 
GD: The quality, the different sound, the uniqueness and the attractive stage performance.

 

MM – Which are the global objectives of your festival?
GD: To highlight the diverse and rich universe of the world music. To promote the common elements and the differences in music, as a universal language connecting people. In this framework also to promote Cyprus and our festival as a bridge between them.

 

MM – What are the most complicated or difficult issues to deal with in your festival? 
GD: The promotion and the right communication of the ensembles and their music, especially when they are not quite known.

 

MM – Which are currently the main challenges for this kind of cultural proposals like yours?
GD: Of course the high flight cost of the groups from abroad. Also to attract young audiences and to broaden the existing one. To make the festival more attractive for the tourists and visitors of Cyprus.

 

MM – In one sentence, summarise the reason/s to go to your festival. 
GD:  To listen, meet and get to know groups and musicians who share a rich cultural past and also develop a contemporary musical present, with common origins and influences, organizing a series of events, mostly music, which draw their inspiration from the tradition of each country around the Mediterranean.
Pictures’ credits:
  • One of Georgia’s Facebook profile pictures
  • Cover of the festival’s Facebook page
If you haven´t read them, you can find the previous interviews clicking on the names: Michal Schmidt (Folk Holidays, CZ) – Jun-Lin Yeoh (Rainforest WMF, MY) – Luis Lles (Pirineos Sur, ES) – Amitava Bhattacharya (Sur Jahan, IN) – Nicolas Ribalet (Sukiyaki Meets the World, JP) – Sergio Zaera (Poborina Folk, ES) – Per Idar Almås (Førdefestivalen, NO) – Bożena Szota (EthnoPort, PL) – Ken Day (Urkult, SE) – Mads Olesen (5 Continents, CH) – Karolina Waszczuk & Bartek Drozd (Jagiellonian Fair, PL) – Alkis Zopoglou (Mediterranean Music Festival, GR/CH) – Tom Frouge (Globalquerque, US) – Braulio Pérez (Música en el Parque, ES) – Bojan Djordjevic (Todo Mundo, RS) – Park Jechun (Jeonju Int’s Sori Festival) –  Jarmila Vlčková (World Music Festival Bratislava – SK) – Leo Ličof (Okarina – SI)

IN DEEP WITH… 

Birgit Ellinghaus from alba KULTUR

I like this picture of Birgit. I like it because I feel it shows how I perceive her: talking with a combination of pedagogy, strenght and conviction, attentively to the other’s understanding and reaction.

Since 1989 she directs the arts management agency alba Kultur, settled in Cologne, Germany, with which she has developed hundreds of projects, building bridges between cultures. She is also advisor of many international organizations focused on culture and diversity and an inspiration for me and probably for many others.

MM – In these 30 years, alba Kultur has took traditional music to high culture frames, has participated in strategic projects with many international organizations, has developed a network of partners in your region that allows to organice long tours of bands from many places and backgrounds, most of them far away from the mainstream styles… just to name a few of the dreams achieved. What is the next challenge? 

Birgit Ellinghaus – For all projects I followed the understanding, that there is a dual nature of culture: musical works, concerts and artistic programms standing for cultural identities and are expressions of traditions and life plans, which are not possible to be mesured in terms of money or market values. Nevertheless there are elements in our field of work, which touch the economical aspects, e.g. tickets, CDs or digital music is sold and artists earn their life with music and need reasonable fees. But my priorities of work were always to support and promote strongly of the non economical aspects and expressions in the music field.

  • The advanced globalization and the actual priority of European culture policy for creative industries with the economic streamlining of the music sector has effects in all european countries. For my personal work see a challenge to work on the opening of the uge public financed music sector for more diversity of local-global musics expressing identity on all levels: commissioning of new works, programming of contemporary and trad music from all arround the world, strengthening of intangible cultural heritage, support of democratic organisation and participartion of migrant musicians in the cultural-political cultural dialogue in Germany and Europe.
  • Another challenge is the cultural exchange through music with artists from developping countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America: how could we give access to Europe, if the boarders are more and more closed (all questions of artist mobility and visa). How could we organize carbon neutral tours and concerts not only within Europe, but as well with artists from other continents?
  • And another challenge is about the role of the artist/musician as a critical soul of society in times of racism, anti semitism and islamophobia. How to protect the freedom of artistic expression and how to use the knowledge and potential of artists for reconciliation and peace building?

MM – I have the idea that you were a pioneer when you started with alba Kultur, so you might have had to face a big lack of knowledge about the music you work with, in the people who made decisions of programming. In my experience, Germany is now much open, both the public and the culture workers, to this contents than, for instance, in my country, Spain, where we have little knowledge and also many prejudices about what is world music. Could you give any advice on how to make the decision makers interested in this? 

BE – I don’t want to give any advise, because each country, each activists and professional and artists has to developpe his/her own suitable views and strategies. We are all specialists and knowledge keepers of our own culture!

What I could, is to share my experience: when I started to work many years ago, it was very helpful to know about other models of work, other’s cultural expressions, to learn from others and to consider myself as a permanent student. In my personal work, I found a lot of inspiration, e.g. from the music scene in France and from the Oriental philosophies, but as well through my travels and the rich exchange with collegues and artists all around the world.

And over the years I understand, that cultural change never goes straight ahead. It’s a ongoing process. Sometimes I felt hopeless and thought the things wouldn’t turn ever for the better and/ or I had to face a lot of ignorance or resistance from stakeholder in venues and festivals, funding bodies, by politicians, media and artists. And than suddenly I saw new doors opening… I always tried to keep my curiosity and my flexibility within my agenda and my convictions. Change and development are questions of generations and need patience. These questions go much further as the individual contribution and capacity and life.

MM – I know that you work with the same strength and passion than when we met, around 11 or 12 years ago. And I think you feel that your kind of vision and what alba Kultur provides to the society is still as essential as it was at that moment and, probably, as it was when alba Kultur started. I think that 30 years ago, the world music was quite unknown for the public and for the cultural agents. Some years after, it became a boom about it. And in the last times it seems we are lossing spots for the visibility in the media and that some relevant agents, like big festivals, have been abandoning this kind of music and moving to more commercial programs. I have some questions about this:
Are your objectives now the same as they were when you started? I believe that your objectives are totally related to the service that you consider the society needs.
BE – Yes !

MM – Is the situation now, better or worse than when you started?
BE – It’s different. E.g. just reminding about communication and means of media production: I started before there was the FAX technology existing. Communication in general and specially with artists from other continents was very slow and often related to personal traveling – by myself or by friends, who served as couriers to spred the news and brought material about an artist or a festival, etc. The recording of music was very complicated, because the digital CDs and video technology just started. Communication and travel was very expensive and a privilege for only few people too.Now we have access to all and everything world wide (or nearly). Today with internet, messengers and global mobility we receive so much and so speed information, that we are lost to make the use of it. And sometimes we forget, that still there are parts and cultures of the world which are not connected to this digitalized and globalized streams, because of censorship and missing respect to human rights, because of technology, economy or education gaps or nature disasters.

 

MM – How much do you think that the political situation affects our community of the world music?
BE – The world music community globally is facing the general conditions of life today. But for me the question is rather: does the world music community stands maybe (at least partly) for ethics and elements of identity, who might give some interesting answers for the future ? E.g. see some texts by Doc Kasimir Bisou (Jean-Michel Lucas).If the answer to the previous question is that it affects us strongly, what can we, the people like us, working on this from different roles, do to, somehow, protect us? We have not to protect us as community. I believe this community should stand actively for human rights, for the role of culture in the Sustainable Development Goals, for cultural diversity world wide, for freedom of expression, for the rights of indiginous people and other minorities, for the protection of identity, etc. This could guide us in the cultural exchange and a real dialogue eye level through music.

 

MM – You have had to deal with complications about visas and probably also with misunderstandings and even “not understandings” on purpose. Do you have any advice for our colleagues to deal with these not so funny cultural shocks? 
BE – The questions of visa I do not see in the context of cultural misunderstandings. Visa are part of international politics and an intended diplomatic tool to keep certain people out of a territory, e.g. certain nationalities from the US and other countries. The formal and soft restrictions and obstacles are intended.In my eyes, the best way to avoid cultural shocks on a personal level, is to learn more about the culture of the other on as many ways as possible (reading, internet, personal encounters, learning the language and the music etc.), to expand the respectfull understanding through cultural exchange from early childhood.

 

MM – What are the plans for 2020? The ones that you can share with us, of course. BE – Hopefully we could realized the actual projects sucessfully:
  • 20. Jubilee Saison of Klangkosmos NRW (January – June 2020). Website, here. PDF download, here.
  • Silk Road Easter Festival – A Musical Journey from Venice to China at Elbphilharmonie (April 2020). Website, here.
  • Music Summit “Migrants Music Manifesto” with residency, laboratory, concerts and international conference in September 2020 in Cologne. Website, here. (Programm is coming soon).
Credits:

OUR SPANISH ACTS RECOMMENDED BY AECID

Recently we have received the first request to book Entavía through the catalogue by AECID of the recommended artists for the Spanish embassies all over the world. We have two artists in that catalogue. The Spanish embassies have to chose artists from that catalogue when they want to book or support Spanish artists for any event.
The AECID Music Catalog is the main tool for promotion, dissemination and cultural programming outside Spain, of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation. The Catalog is prepared by a committee of experts and includes a selection of proposals of quality from all musical genres.

OUR LATEST ACHIEVEMENT

Silk Road series of concerts in Museum of Orient, Lisbon. The true is that this was born as a attempt to extend alba Kultur’s program at the Iberian peninsule. It was not possible to do it like that because of the format (intensive program in some days vs. extended in some months) but that put the seed for another series with similar topic, to be hold in Lisbon with one concert in April, another in May and another in June.

This nice man of the picture is Sahib Pashazade and he is an amazing soloist of tar from Azerbaijan. I had the joy of attending his concert with Kamram Karimov at the contest Sharq Taronalari in 2017, where they won the Grand Prix. They will play in this series at the beginning of April. It is such a joy to collaborate with these outstanding artists! Further details will follow in the next issue of this newsletter.

This newsletter is open to sponsorship. Feel free to ask for details.

FIND ME AT…

Some interesting dates for the community (and where you can find me if you happened to be there, just let me know):
  • Iberian Festival Awards. At this event I will go accompanying Juan Antonio Vázquez, who is jury. 14th March. Lisbon.
  • Mid of April. Hamburg. Silk Road Easter Festival
  • From 3-6 June, in Poland with Gulaza in Wroclaw and with Monsieur Doumani in Katowice.

Do you like our newsletter? Tell us! Resend it to your friends! To sign up, click HERE.

This newsletter is open to sponsorship. Feel free to ask for details.

WHO WE ARE AND SISTER PROJECTS 

Mapamundi Música is an agency of management and booking. Learn more here. Check our proposals at our website.

We also offer you our Mundofonías radio show, probably the leader about world music in Spanish language (on 46 stations in 17 countries). We produce the Transglobal World Music Chart with our partner Ángel Romero from WorldMusicCentral.com. And we lead also the Asociación para la Difusión de los Estilos.

Feel free to request info if you wish. For further information about us, get in touch by email, telephone (+34 676 30 28 82), our website or at our Facebook. 

Newsletter #17 November 2019

Mini-interview with Park Jechun, from Sori Festival, congratulations, resurrections and much +

I am Araceli Tzigane. Welcome to Mapamundi Música‘s November’s newsletter, with exciting news for us, the community of world / folk / traditional music all over the world.

I write you from the office. A few days after a enjoyable edition of WOMEX, after the trip to Portugal for the Harmonia Polska magic concert at Acordeões do Mundo Festival, by Janusz Prusinowski Kompania (check here and here) and before leaving to Folkelarm in Oslo next Thursday.

Some relevant dates for our community, before the Christmas break, that I am missing and that take place this month are Visa for Music 6th edition and Mundial Montreal 9th edition. And the last days it took place the first edition of Musafir Ethnic music forum in Ufa, Russia. Wishing all of them fruitful results, I invite you to check the contents below. Ah, what is the resurrection of the subject? Discover it, below. 😉

And, remember: if you have any suggestion of contents for the next editions, let us know. And if you like it, share it!

Thanks for your attention.

Araceli Tzigane – info@mundimapa.com – +34 676 30 28 82 

Subscription is available here.

Summary:

· Mini interview with festival manager: Park Jechun from Jeonju Int’l Sori Festival (South Korea)
· Signing announced for Cosmopolis Festival direction: Alkis Zopoglou
· Welcome to a new magazine: Berlin Bazzar, by Robert Rigney
· Resurrection of what? Yes! Babel Med. Viva!
· News of our signings after WOMEX.
· Find me at…

**** Do you have a world music festival and you want to be included in our mini interviews? Contact us. ****
This newsletter is open to sponsorship. Feel free to ask for details.

CURRENT AND FUTURE CHALLENGES FOR FESTIVALS 

If you haven´t read them, you can find the previous interviews clicking on the names: Michal Schmidt (Folk Holidays, CZ) – Jun-Lin Yeoh (Rainforest WMF, MY) – Luis Lles (Pirineos Sur, ES) – Amitava Bhattacharya (Sur Jahan, IN) – Nicolas Ribalet (Sukiyaki Meets the World, JP) – Sergio Zaera (Poborina Folk, ES) – Per Idar Almås (Førdefestivalen, NO) – Bożena Szota (EthnoPort, PL) – Ken Day (Urkult, SE) – Mads Olesen (5 Continents, CH) – Karolina Waszczuk & Bartek Drozd(Jagiellonian Fair, PL) – Alkis Zopoglou (Mediterranean Music Festival, GR/CH) – Tom Frouge(Globalquerque, US) – Braulio Pérez (Música en el Parque, ES) – Bojan Djordjevic (Todo Mundo, RS)
MINI INTERVIEW WITH PARK JECHUN FROM JEONJU INT’L SORI FESTIVAL

Park Jechun is the artistic director of the festival since 2014. He is also percussionist and he has a duo with his wife, the pianist Miyeon. This interview was possible thanks to other of the hearts of the festival, Ji-Young Han, known by many people of our community of world music around the world, as she is usually the one present in the fairs and other professional meetings.

The festival combines perfectly in its program the ancestral and unique Sori repertoire, performed by old and by young artists, the new trends from Korean music and a bunch of high quality international proposals, including also activities for kids. Apart of hosting the festival, Jeonju is the paradigm city about Korean traditional cooking. If you still don´t find reasons enough to wish to visit the festival, Park will give you one more at the end of the interview.

Thank you, Park and Ji-Young!

MM – What do you search in an artist when you create the programme? 

PJ: In externally way, we have set the subject (the topic) of the year in order of drum, dance, wind instrument, string instrument and vocal music. It was wind instrumentS this year and string instrument Snext year. It will be vocal music in 2021, the 20th anniversary of the festival. And, on the other side, we see the “attitude” of an artist doing his/her art. It is very important whether they are young musicians or masters.

MM – Which are the global objectives of your festival?

PJ: I’ve never thought of the word ‘global goal’. Our goal is the happiness of artists and audiences who participate in the festival through a legacy given to us in the areas leading to the world – Asia – Korea – Jeonju. I am grateful for this cultural environment.

MM – What are the most complicated or difficult issues to deal with in your festival? 

PJ: It is difficult to distinguish between tradition and modern, classic and contemporary. Is it really tradition that is being passed down from the past? Is evolution novel? It is difficult to judge such a thing.

MM – Which are currently the main challenges for this kind of cultural proposals like yours?

PJ: As we prepare for the big festival, there are growing concerns about the environment every year. I tried to run an environment-friendly festival this year, but it was not easy. We will make continuous efforts.
And with the changing tendency of leisure life and culture, I always think about what the role of festival is in this era.
We consider the consideration and cultural heritage for the next generation a priority.

MM – In one sentence, summarise the reason/s to go to your festival. 

PJ: If you want to see how the old customs of East Asia exist in modern society, come to the Sori Festival!

Pictures’ credits:
  • Logo of the festival at their Facebook
  • Mr. Park playing, from the website of the festival
  • Ms. Ji-Young Han and Mr. Park with Juan Antonio Vázquez (from Juan Antonio’s archive)

CONGRATULATIONS TO… 

Alkis Zopoglou! He is the new director of Cosmopolis Festival, in his home town, Kavala, in Greece. His achievement was a super happy news for me, as it is the result of a life working with devotion and wisdom by a friend and collaborator that I admire.We had an interview with him in a previous issue of the newsletter, about the Mediterranean Music Festival he directs in Zurich. Check it here.

Apart of all this, he is musician at Rodopi Ensemble and teacher of traditional dances.

 

 

WELCOME TO… 

Berlin Bazzar. I knew about this surprising initiative by Yuri, flautist of Hudaki Village Band. What he explained seemed a bit weird so I requested the man, Robert Rigney, as friend at Facebook (this picture is his profile picture), in order to ask him a few questions.So, what is Berlin Bazzar? It is a paper magazine, exclusively in paper, focused on music from Eastern Europe, Turkey and the Middle East, distributed in bars in Berlin. The cover of the first edition is here at the right. It will be sold for 3€ in alternative bookshops and record shops in Berlin.

According to Robert, some of the objectives are:

  • to reflect multicultural reality of Berlin and other cities like it,
  • to provide a forum and a platform for so-called “world music”,
  • to publish stories about world music that wouldn’t have a chance of being realized in the mainstream media.

Robert searchs for writers who can write about these kinds music, concert reviews and profiles. At the moment the project can’t afford to pay contributors.

I wanted to share this initiative, as we are losing presence in the media for our music and this quixotic project that starts now is, in all senses, contrary to the trends 🙂

AND WELCOME BACK, BABEL MED  

After checking with Sami Sadak, we are allowed to announce that Babel Med will return in 2020! Congratulations, Sami and team, for gathering of supports that allow you to come back with the fair.

Great news indeed. We’ll keep an eye on this waiting for more news to share.

 

MAPAMUNDI’S NEW ARTISTS SIGNINGS AND SERVICES

After some conversations at WOMEX, we have included some outstanding artists in our catalogue, with which we will work for different terrories, like Hudaki Village Band or Svetlana Spajic Group, and with the collaboration of colleagues from many places. We are thrilled of the tons of talent we have available.

Apart of these, we are making occasional bookings for specific programs.Clic the picture to learn more.

And as we have so many artists, we can´t take more stable commitments but we can be of help for many unsigned artists who needs to deal with their self management. Check Araceli Tzigane’s website and feel free to address your friend artists there.

 

 

FIND ME AT…

Some interesting dates for the community (and where you can find me if you happened to be there, just let me know):

Oslo (Norway). 14th-17th November, for Folkelarm. Check the list of delegates here. On Saturday I will participate in a seminar about exporting the Nordic folk music, with a bunch of experts, starting with the master Birgit Ellinghaus from albaKultur, Germany. Check the program of the seminar, here.

 

Israel Showcase for Jazz and Worldwide Music. 20th-23th November. I will be in Tel Aviv and available for meetings on days 18-20, before the festival. The other time I was there I started to collaborate with Gulaza and we are still. Check the program here. Check the list of delegates, here and click Jazz & World.

 


Brussels (Belgium). 28th-29th November, for the first meeting of the European Folk Network. Check the interview with Nod Knowles, administrator of the network, in the previous issue of this newsletter.

 

Mediterranean Music Festival (Zurich, Switzerland). 18th January. After the Christmas break, I will travel again: to the festival lead by Alkis Zopoglou, who is mentioned below. I will travel there with Josep Aparicio “Apa”, the Valencian superb singer of cant d’estil, and with his musicians Eduard Navarro and Toni Porcar.

This newsletter is open to sponsorship. Feel free to ask for details.

WHO WE ARE AND SISTER PROJECTS

Mapamundi Música is an agency of management and booking. Learn more here. Check our proposals at our website.

We also offer you our Mundofonías radio show, probably the leader about world music in Spanish language (on 46 stations in 17 countries). We produce the Transglobal World Music Chart with our partner Ángel Romero from WorldMusicCentral.com. And we lead also the Asociación para la Difusión de los Estilos.

Feel free to request info if you wish. For further information about us, get in touch by email, telephone (+34 676 30 28 82), our website or at our Facebook. 

Newsletter #9 March 2019

I am Araceli Tzigane. Welcome to Mapamundi Música’s March’s monthly newsletter. Before going into detail, some brief notes:
  • The period of application for grants by AC/E, for the logistic expenses of having a Spanish artists in your festival or program, ends on 31st March. Check details below and discover a new proposal.
  • The new artistic director of Fira Mediterrània is Jordi Fosas. Find below his profile and an interview with him. 
  • Visa for Music opens the application period for artists. Check below for more open calls.

And, as usual, we continue the series of little interviews with festival directors, in this case with Bożena Szota from Ethno Port Poznań, and with many more useful infos for the community.

If you have any suggestion of contents for the next editions, let us know. Thanks for your attention.

Araceli Tzigane – info@mundimapa.com +34 676 30 28 82 

Do you like our newsletter? Tell us! To sign up, click HERE.

Summary:  Jordi Fosas, new artistic director of Fira Mediterrània de Manresa – AC/E´s application for support is open – Mapamundi Música introduces… Entavía – Mini interview with festival director: Bożena Szota from Ethno Port Poznań (Poland) – New (and still) open calls – On tour

FLASH NEWS: DON KIPPER AND MELECH MECHAYA, 14TH APRIL IN COSLADA

Last WOMEX we have a super nice moment with Josh and Tim from the band from London Don Kipper. We are happy to bring them for our first collaboration, next April, on Sunday 14th, at the event Música en Primavera, by the city council of Coslada. They will play in a double program with our Portuguese combo Melech Mechaya. Details, here.

 

WELCOME JORDI FOSAS, NEW ARTISTIC DIRECTOR OF FIRA MEDITERRÀNIA DE MANRESA 

In the words of the Fira, “Jordi Fosas has a long track record in traditional and folk culture, through his involvement with the Cercle de Cultura Tradicional i Popular (Marboleny Traditional and Folk Culture Circle) and Festival Ésdansa de Les Preses (Ésdansa de Les Preses Festival). Fosas was selected from seven candidates, and he will direct the artistic line-up for Fira’s programme over the next three years. Not only was Fosas selected for his connections with traditional and folk culture but also for the artistic project he presented and his relevant experience.”

Mapamundi is happy to share with you his answers and reflections in this little interview.

We wish you the best, Jordi. Thanks for the enlightening statements! 
MM – Congratulations on your designation to this exciting position. What made you interested in it? 
JF – Thank you! I come from the world of popular culture and I have been working for many years on traditional dance. For example, directing the ÉSdansa Festival (ESdanza) and developing in it this “ES” (that means “is”) in the present indicative, encouraging the public to dance traditional dance today and promoting the realization of contemporary proposals based on traditional language.

I have known the Fira Mediterrània from some of its possible viewpoints, as an artist, as a programmer and also as a collaborator. These last three years we have collaborated with the Fira in the development of the Premi Delfí Colomé, an initiative that we have promoted from the ÉSdansa Festival to promote new dance projects created from the traditional roots.
I thought that I could contribute my experience to the artistic direction of the Fira and for that reason I presented myself to the call.

MM – The Fira Mediterrània has an international recognition as a fair where exciting proposals in the different disciplines that it includes are always discovered. How are you guys going to face this stage with you in the direction? Are you going to change something, are you going to give more weight to any subjects, any change of format, locations…?

JF – The Fira Mediterrània has done a good work in these more than twenty years of trajectory. For this reason, we will continue building from the bridges already drawn by the previous directors. I believe that the projects are enriched and strengthened when a new director contributes from the experience of the previous directors.

In the next years we will try to reinforce our brand positioning to help us articulate a circuit and generate discourse, essential elements to achieve our goal: market for proposals with traditional roots. We want to normalize that proposals that work from the traditional root are programmed.

The basic principles or strategic lines that we will develop have the objective of achieving a creative, reflective, complicit, committed and unique Fira, and we will do it in a 360 approach, that is to say, all the time and looking for complicities. We will work from three keys:
• weaving, that is, promoting and helping new creations and productions and making intersections and pairings between creators and popular culture;
• drawing packages of meaning that help the public and professionals to visualize creative realities,
• and getting a Fira in first person from the formats that generate new forms of participation and educational projects.

MM – Which will be at this phase the evaluation criteria to select the artistic proposals?

JF – At Fira Mediterrània we want to show a tradition with no complexes, that works in the present and in excellence and this will be our criterion to draw the Fira’s programming. We conceive a Fira that works intersections with the 360 degrees of the tradition, from the heritage and all that corpus of testimonies that form the cultural heritage of society, passing through the entities of popular culture that connect this heritage with their society, until reaching the professional sector that creates from this tradition. We are especially interested in the intersections, relationships and exchanges between all these agents, especially, how artists and professional companies drink from heritage, tradition and popular culture.

MM – What will be the balance in number of shows, in terms of concerts and other traditional culture shows?

JF – We will continue backing an interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary Fira that gathers proposals from all the performing arts, from theater, dance, circus, visual arts, music … whether they are indoors or outdoors and in any of their formats. Our axis of programming is the traditional Mediterranean tradition in any discipline and format and we do not set a percentage for each of them. We will follow approximately the criteria that have been considered in recent editions.

MM – In recent years, the Fira has included proposals from outside the cultural field of the Mediterranean. Will this line be maintained?

JF – Yes, we will continue to program exceptional international proposals that stimulate the work of our artists and help us articulate discourse. We will focus on concrete proposals, but also on cities, territories, cultures … to see how the dialogue between tradition and contemporaneity works. We will work on it within the Fira’s State and International Action Plan. We will show and see other ecosystems, to see how a territory a structure, a project… is organized, works and creates.

Pictures: Jordi Fosas’s Facebook profile; Llotja profesional, by Anna Brugués.

 

DO YOU WANT A SPANISH ARTIST IN YOUR PROGRAM? AC/E’S CALL FOR SUPPORT IS OPEN DURING MARCH

Acción Cultural Española (AC/E) is a public entity dedicated to promoting the culture and heritage of Spain. In March they open the call to request support for the logistic expensesrelated to Spanish artists and experts in cultural issues, for events abroad taking place in the second half of the year.

The application must be done by the foreign institution/programmer and Mapamundi Música has supported some clients in previous editions to fullfill the procedure, that in fact is not difficult. The results are usually published quite soon (around the 3rd week of April).
We can offer you our band Vigüela (in the picture) and Entavía. Check the next news, at the Mapamundi Música introduces….

MAPAMUNDI MÚSICA INTRODUCES…

Entavía, from Salamanca province, in Castilla y León community 
As a proffesional working with folk music since 2002, I think I am very discriminating about the proposals, even more if they come from my own country. We have had great experiences with Spanish bands, like El Naán, with whom we are not working now but we keep a deep friendship and mutual admiration. Apart of them and our beloved Vigüela and associated acts, I don’t use to get often excited enough to start a collaboration to promote a Spanish folk band. It has to be very very special.

And… I first payed attention to this band, Entavía, in this videoclip for a panaderas style song with a poem written in 1931 by Miguel de Unamuno. It was like a premonition to a catastrophe that would happen some years after: the breaking down of the dam of Ribadelago, in 1959, that killed 144 of the villagers, of which only 28 bodies where found.

Entavía puts music to this thrilling poem in a tribute to the victims and a claim for the unfair treatment that Franco’s government gave to the survivors.

Last Saturday I attended their concert in Madrid. It was in a little classroom in the downtown. Copla, ajechao, son jarocho, panaderas… in a concert full of freshness and fun made the evening unforgettable. You’ll hear more about them. In the meantime, check some snippets in these videos: 

 Ajechao – Panaderas – Copla – Panaderas – Bulerías del Tío Vicente – Martinete blues

Any question about Entavía? Tell me!

CALLS FOR APPLICATIONS
These professional fairs and festivals have applications open right now:
· Visa por Music, Rabat, Morocco. Apply here. Until 15th of May.
· Cyprus Rialto World Music Festival, Limassol, Cyprus. Apply here. Until 23th of March.
· WOMEX. Still open until next Friday! Apply here.
· Mercat de Música Viva de Vic. Open call for the 31st edition, until 29th of March. Apply here.
· Mundial Montreal. Open call for the 9th edition, until 1st of April. Apply here.
**** Do you have a world music festival and you want to be included in our mini interviews? Contact us. ****

 

CURRENT AND FUTURE CHALLENGES FOR FESTIVALS 

 

MINI INTERVIEW WITH BOŻENA SZOTA FROM ETHNO PORT POZNAŃ
Over the four days of the festival, in the Polish city of Poznań hosts concerts, dance parties, performances, interdisciplinary actions, workshops, film screenings and meetings for analysis and reflection about the current and future challenges in our societies. 

 

MM – What do you search in an artist when you program? 
BS – We are searching authenticity and emotional truth, high artistic quality, original or masterful approach to traditional music

MM – Which are the global objectives of your festival?
BS – We invite artists from all, even the most distant parts of the world. And during the events accompanying the festival (films, discussions, lectures) we focus on the global issues such as migration, cultural exchange or problems with building a sense of identity in a world of global exchange

MM – What are the most complicated or difficult issues to deal with in your festival? 
BS – Modern forms of communication make it more easier to overcome organizational and logistic barriers. Differences in visas and tax regulations may be a problem.

MM – Which are currently the main challenges for this kind of cultural proposals like yours? 
BS – Negating the need for intercultural exchange related to the increase of xenophobic attitudes, lack of support from the Ministry of Culture and weak interest of potential sponsors of the event.

MM – In one sentence, summarize the reason/s to go to your festival. 
BS – High quality of program proposals and their diversity as well as unique atmosphere built by the community festival audience.

Picture: one of Bożena’s Facebook profile pictures

ON TOUR. TAKE ADVANTAGE OF OUR ARTISTS TOURING IN YOUR AREA NEXT SUMMER
· Vigüela will be in Germany in the 3rd week of July and in UK at the end of August and we are working on more dates and countries. Remember you can request support from AC/E for the logistic needs. In any case, if you are interested in them, just ask and we’ll make our best to reach an agreement. Remember we can offer the band alone and also the Polish-Spanish collaboration with Janusz Prusinowski Kompania and Maria Siwiec.
· Monsieur Doumani will be in Germany in the 3rd week of July and they have confirmed many other dates in Europe for next Summer and Autumn. Ask us. And we get them in Spain again, very soon: 2nd of April. Yeah!
· Rodopi Ensemble‘s first concert in Spain is confirmed: 18th July, in Palma de Mallorca. They are settled in Thessaloniki and available all year.
· Gulaza are constantly touring. Ask us for the date of your interest. Their showcase at WOMEX was “the most extraordinary and talked about concert in WOMEX 2018” according to BBC Sounds.
We work with more artists and special concerts and collaborations. Check them at our website.

Do you like our newsletter? Tell us! To sign up, click HERE.

WHO WE ARE AND SISTER PROJECTS 

Mapamundi Música is an agency of management and booking. Learn more here. Check our proposals at our website.

We also offer you our Mundofonías radio show, probably the leader about world music in Spanish language (on 46 stations in 17 countries). We produce the Transglobal World Music Chart with our partner Ángel Romero from WorldMusicCentral.com. And we lead also the Asociación para la Difusión de los Estilos.

Feel free to request info if you wish. For further information about us, get in touch by email, telephone (+34 676 30 28 82), our website or at our Facebook. 

Newsletter #8 February 2019

I am Araceli Tzigane. Welcome to Mapamundi Música’s February monthly newsletter.

In the last edition we announced the leaving of David Ibañez from the artistic direction of the Fira Mediterrània and still today the new director is not published. We will share the news at our Facebook and our Instagram as soon as we know, so you can follow us there. The Fira is nowadays the most important fair of world music in the South of Europe, specially since Babel Med stopped after 2017’s edition. It is also a superb festival. Did you know they got the 4th position at TWMC Festival Awards? Yes, you know: we announced it in February newsletter. Application for the procedure of the Festival Awards is open.

Below, we continue the series of little interviews with festival directors and with many more useful infos for the community.

And, before, this last month many things have happened here:
· We have had the announcement of early general elections in Spain in April that, added to the local elections in May, have the country in a very volatile situation, with all the impact this has in the not-mass culture…
· We also have had back in Spain the Janusz Prusinowski Kompania, with a thrilling concert last Friday and they return next Sunday. Their 4th album, Po śladach, is haunting.
· I travelled to Switzerland for the premiere of the Mediterranean Odyssey concert, of which we’ll share videos soon. I had the luck of listening by my side one of the best singers of the world, Drosos Koutsokostas, from Rodopi Ensemble (better videos, soon).
· We’ve been also working with Spain is Music, of which you have more info below. 

If you have any suggestion of contents for the next editions, let us know. Thanks for your attention.

Araceli Tzigane – info@mundimapa.com +34 676 30 28 82

Summary: AC/E´s application for support opens in March. New (and still) open calls. Mapamundi introduces… On tour. Mini interview with festival director: Per Idar Almås, from Førdefestivalen (Norway)

Do you like our newsletter? To sign up, click HERE.

DO YOU WANT A SPANISH ARTISTS IN YOUR PROGRAM? AC/E’S CALL FOR SUPPORT WILL BE OPEN DURING MARCH

Acción Cultural Española (AC/E) is a public entity dedicated to promoting the culture and heritage of Spain. In March they open the call to request support for the logistic expenses related to Spanish artists and experts in cultural issues, for events abroad taking place in the second half of the year.

The application must be done by the foreign institution/programmer and Mapamundi Música has supported some clients in previous editions to fullfill the procedure, that in fact is not difficult. The results are usually published quite soon (around the 3rd week of April).
We can offer you our band Vigüela (in the picture) and we can help you also if you need any other artist profile.
CALLS FOR APPLICATIONS
These professional fairs have applications open right now:
· IX Targowisko Instrumentów, Warsaw. FOR INSTRUMENTS MAKERS. The call for proposals is open until 22th of February, next Friday. Apply here.
· WOMEX. The call for proposals is open until 22th of March. Apply here.
· Fira Mediterrània de Manresa. We are still anxiously waiting for knowing who is the new artistic director. The application is open now, until 4th of March at 15h local time. Apply here.
· Mercat de Música Viva de Vic. Open call for the 31st edition, until 29th of March. Apply here.
· Mundial Montreal. Open call for the 9th edition, until 1st of April. Apply here.
MAPAMUNDI MÚSICA INTRODUCES… 

Spain is Music. A new thrilling collaboration between us and this travel agency and consultancy firm is just starting. Their approach to travel design is boutique-like, totally personalized and result of a deep investigation of the most authentic experiences.

We proudly colaborate next month with them, providing a workshop of music and cooking by Vigüela for a group of Canadian travellers. In the meantime we are designing new initiatives and now I want to invite you to subscribe to their mailing list, here. You’ll get interesting tips about Spain’s music, gastronomy, rituals, festivities…

Picture: Pablo Camino, director of Spain is Music.

ON TOUR. TAKE ADVANTAGE OF OUR ARTISTS TOURING IN YOUR AREA NEXT SUMMER
· Vigüela will be in Germany in the 3rd week of July and in UK at the end of August and we are working on more dates and countries. Remember you can request support from AC/E for the logistic needs. In any case, if you are interested in them, just ask and we’ll make our best to reach an agreement. Remember we can offer the band alone and also the Polish-Spanish collaboration with Janusz Prusinowski Kompania and Maria Siwiec.
· Monsieur Doumani will be in Germany in the 3rd week of July and they have confirmed many other dates in Europe for next Summer and Autumn. Ask us. And we get them in Spain again, very soon: 2nd of April. Yeah!
· Rodopi Ensemble‘s first concert in Spain is confirmed: 18th July, in Palma de Mallorca. They are settled in Thessaloniki and available all year.
· Gulaza are constantly touring. Ask us for the date of your interest. Their showcase at WOMEX was “the most extraordinary and talked about concert in WOMEX 2018” according to BBC Sounds.
We work with more artists and special concerts and collaborations. Check them at our website.
**** Do you have a world music festival and you want to be included in our mini interviews? Contact us. ****

 

CURRENT AND FUTURE CHALLENGES FOR FESTIVALS 

 

MINI INTERVIEW WITH PER IDAR ALMÅS FROM FØRDEFESTIVALEN

Førde Traditional and World Music Festival takes place in Norway at the beginning of July in many different and beautiful locations that combine nature with traditional and modern architecture. The program is a chant for understanding and always includes a huge variety of proposals. The festival has had Hilde Bjørkum as artistic director until the edition of 2019, that happens to be the 30th anniversary of the festival. Congratulations, team! The artistic director now is Per Idar Almås, who has been working at the Bergen International Festival and as artistic director in a chamber music festival near Førde. We wish him a super nice experience and joys in this important position. Hilde continues supporting the festival in special projects. Both of them are in the picture, taken from her facebook profile. The answers to the questions are by Per.

Thank you, Per, for your answers, thank you, Hilde, for your vision along these years.

MM – What do you search in an artist when you program? 
PIA –  We are searching for quality and uniqueness for all artists coming to our festival. Also, each year we are having a festival theme, and it’s a goal to have artists connected to that as well.

MM – Which are the global objectives of your festival?
PIA – Førdefestivalen wants to have artists from all over the world represented at our festival. It’s a very important thing for us to present international traditional music to our audience as well as our own traditonal music. It is getting more and more important with cultural understanding and exchange in this world, to break down boundaries and walls (our theme this year is “30 years without borders”).

MM – What are the most complicated or difficult issues to deal with in your festival? 
PIA – For the programming it is always a challenge to find the right mix of artists on the program, as there is so many good artists out there that we would love to present. We have so many artists who would like to come that we can`t even answer them all, unfortunately.MM – Which are currently the main challenges for this kind of cultural proposals like yours? 
PIA – One thing that we have done in Førde in the past and that has become a bit more difficult in Norway now, is to get funding for youth exchange programs for Norwegian and international young musicians, which is sad because I really believe in the value of this concept. We are working on finding ways to do it, and I hope we soon can do this again.MM – In one sentence, summarize the reason/s to go to your festival. 
PIA – For one week in July the small city of Førde invites the world to town, with the best artists, the best music, the most beutiful nature and we’ll do our best to be the best hosts possible. Welcome!

WHO WE ARE AND SISTER PROJECTS 

Mapamundi Música is an agency of management and booking. Learn more here. Check our proposals at our website.

We also offer you our Mundofonías radio show, probably the leader about world music in Spanish language (on 46 stations in 17 countries). We produce the Transglobal World Music Chart with our partner Ángel Romero from WorldMusicCentral.com. And we lead also the Asociación para la Difusión de los Estilos.

Feel free to request info if you wish. For further information about us, get in touch by email, telephone (+34 676 30 28 82), our website or at our Facebook.