Festival in Focus 2019
This new series of "Festival in Focus" highlights the core element without which a festival would mean nothing: the artists and a festivals' artistic choices. EFA members share a sneak peek of what makes them unique, of their relation with artists, of how they programme, how far do they contribute to the artistic development opportunities of creators, how far do they offer the conditions for the development of a free pursuit of artistic freedom. Check out all interviews by Simon Mundy.
Music Biennale Zagreb
In 2021 Music Biennale Zagreb will celebrate its 60th anniversary and the composer recently appointed to guide the programme, Margareta Ferek-Petric, has been contemplating how to recognise it. 'Of course we need to pay attention to the history but I think the most important thing is the contrast between old and new.'
Malta International Arts Festival
Maltese composer Ruben Zahra has only just finished his first as Artistic Director of the Malta International Arts Festival (MIAF) but already he is very clear about how he wants MIAF (in the first half of July) to progress. 'Malta missed out on almost 100 years of music,' he says, because of its isolated position, lack of professional arts institutions and the effects of World War II.
Culturescapes
Culturescapes is one of those portmanteau words that on the surface seems like just a clever label but turns out to encapsulate what it describes accurately. In this case this established Swiss festival treats cultures as if they were landscapes, viewing them from a distance but also examining them in detail. Each year an external country or city is picked and examined through a full range of artistic lenses. Artistic Director Jurriaan Cooiman explains how he has approached the task of depicting Poland through theatre, food and debate – as well as the usual arts genres.
