Three months to the Song Festival: on the budget, broadcast screens and additional tickets for one event | Culture

Although most of the events are free, tickets for four paid ones are practically already sold out. According to the organizers of the week-long Song Festival, this only shows the enthusiasm with which Lithuania awaits this historic cultural event that will take place in the summer.

in Vingios Park, where on July 6 the main event of the Song Festival will take place, the day of songs “That the forest is green”, on Monday the organizers presented the most important works, plans and moods they live in while actively waiting for the upcoming centenary celebration.

Pauliaus Peleckis/BNS photo/Song Festival press conference

Something that will never happen once more

The Minister of Culture Simonas Kairys, who participated in the event, said that when you come to Vingios Park today, you already feel and imagine what will happen here on July 6.

“We can only imagine now, but I believe we will broadcast a sense of peace through our songs and unity, and it will be a once-in-a-lifetime event for us.” Therefore, I invite you to dive right now into the anticipation of the Song Festival, into that mood”, said S. Kairys, urging to leave all economic and practical issues to the Lithuanian National Cultural Center and the Vilnius City Municipality, which solve them.

He also emphasized that the Song Festival is not just a week-long event – it is the growth of tradition and a process that lasts several years.

“During that time, we had a pandemic that affected this preparation, but the number of participants is the size of Marijampolė – that’s a huge amount of people. This is a good proof that what we feared did not happen,” said the Minister of Culture.

Pauliaus Peleckios / BNS photo./ Minister of Culture Simonas Kairys

He also emphasized that it is usually desired to compare the Lithuanian Song Festival with Latvian and Estonian festivals, however, S. Kairys invited to compare following the festival is over.

Meanwhile, Vilnius City Mayor Valdas Benkunskas emphasized that when the capital city celebrated its 700th anniversary last year, it was emphasized that the Song Festival would be the icing on the anniversary cake.

According to the mayor, the capital is preparing to receive 37 thousand people. participants, who, as before, will be accommodated in Municipal educational institutions, and during the week of events they will be guaranteed free travel by public transport.

The Vilnius municipality contributes 650 thousand to the preparation of the Song Festival. amount of euros. Funding is also intended for organizations and choir leaders who prepare people for the Song Festival programs.

Photo by Pauliaus Peleckis/BNS/Vilnius City Mayor Valdas Benkunskas

V. Benkunskas emphasized that the possibility of setting up screens in the city during the event, which would broadcast the most important events of the Song Festival, is under consideration. If such a decision were to be adopted, then additional funds would be sought to implement it.

According to him, the Vingis Park stage is ready for the event and there are no problems here. Meanwhile, the Directorate of the State Cultural Reserve of Vilnius Castles is responsible for the works of the Kalnai Park stage, where the evening of ensembles will take place, but according to V.Benkunskas, everything is going according to the planned plan there as well.

Record number of participants and additional tickets

According to Saulius Liausa, director of the National Cultural Center of Lithuania, which organizes the Song Festival, the Song Festival writes a glorious history of the festival itself, and at the same time of the State, so it is important that everyone here can feel who we are, what our State and its culture are like.

According to him, this year’s Song Festival will have a record number of participants in several decades, and when traveling around Lithuania and meeting singers and dancers preparing for the festival, one can feel a huge emotional uplift.

Photo by Pauliaus Peleckis/BNS/Song festival director Saulius Liausa

S. Liausa noted that for the first time a joint children’s choir is being created – children who never had the opportunity to sing in their towns or schools.

“When we invited those children who do not have the opportunity to attend a choir in their school or smaller town to participate in the Song Festival, 800 children responded – they come to Vilnius once a month, the teachers receive qualification courses and will sing for the first time on the stage of Vingios Park”, said S. It’s a break.

According to the director, almost all tickets for the four paid events of the Song Festival have already been sold out, although tickets for the brass band concert and the main concert in Vingios Park can still be purchased.

He also noted that it is planned to distribute additional tickets for the general evening rehearsal of the ensembles in Kalnai Park. According to the director, the information will be published in May.

When asked if this time the finances are sufficient for the celebration, S. Liusia said that the budget is sufficient to organize the kind of celebration that is planned.

Pauliaus Peleckis/BNS photo/Song Days in Kaunas directed by Viktorija Streiča

On June 29, just like a century ago, the first event of the Song Festival will take place in Kaunas. According to the director of the Days of Songs in Kaunas, Viktorija Streiča, regarding 4,000 people are waiting here. participants, and the main highlight of the festival will be the reconstructed Dainų slėni.

“A year ago, we were not sure whether the festival would be able to take place in this place, but now we can confirm that the opening of the Song Festival will take place in the Valley of Songs, which will not only be beautiful, but also practically adapted for future generations and city concerts,” V. Streiča said.

She wished all the viewers of the upcoming Song Festival to look forward to this festival as Latvians look forward to it – like Christmas.

Pauliaus Peleckios/BNS photo/Folklore Days creative group head Vida Šatkauskienė

Meanwhile, the head of the folklore day creative group Vida Šatkauskienė said that on July 2 the whole of Lithuania will come to Vilnius and this will allow all spectators and participants to feel how wide is the diversity of our culture, its expressions and forms.

V. Šatkauskienė stressed that critics often criticize the Song Festival for being outdated and unmodern, but according to her, preserving nature, not destroying the forest floor with huge machinery, respecting life and every person – this is very traditional and at the same time modern, which is exactly why not only the Day of Folklore, but also the entire Song Festival will be broadcast to the themes of life.

in 2024 June 29 The song festival will be opened by the Jubilee Song Day in the Kaunas Song Valley on June 30. the action will move to Vilnius, where the Day of World Lithuanians and Lithuanian National Communities “Let’s Unite Lithuania!” and the Centenary Evening will take place. July 1 the town of traditional crafts for children and the folk art exhibition “From the Core” are opened. July 2 Kanklių concert and Folklore Day will be held on July 3. – Theater Day and Ensemble Evening “Tree of Life”, July 4 – concerts of vocal ensembles and wind instrument orchestras, and July 5 will be Dance Day.

The program of the event will be crowned on July 6. the procession of the participants of the festival moving from Vilnius Cathedral Square to Vingis Park and the Day of Songs “Let the forest grow green”.

Most of the events will be free. Four are paid – the evening of ensembles “The Tree of Life”, the concert of vocal ensembles “Zeme kas tu esi?”, the concert of wind instruments orchestras “Vario audra” and the dance day “Bridges of Ages”.