From castle to barn - Swedens wild grown festival flora
One factor is always needed for a festival to gain vitality: a burning soul, a spark. Such a person existed already 1946 when Church musician Nilsson in Väsby started Musik i Kullabygden - it is considered the starting point for Swedish music festivals and has been celebrated annually. Nilsson is gone but the support organization Kullabygden's musikfrämjande lives and works.
Much later, but with great scope, it happened that the oboist Helen Jahren found the sparkling sparkle of Båstad Chamber Music Festival, which has often been mentioned as a top performance in the genre for many years. Here, artistic quality, program ideas and an appropriate local collaboration have so far collaborated into a complete whole. The new artistic director, Roland Pöntinen, has a valuable legacy to manage.
In Sweden, one organization holds an umbrella throughout the festival flora, its timely (English) name is Sweden Festivals. The purpose is to professionally coordinate and promote Swedish festivals. Corresponding associations are also found in Finland and Norway.
Carlhåkan Larsén takes us on a cruise through Sweden's wild grown festival flora. Published in OPUS June 1, 2018. Read the article (in Swedish) HÄR