“<a href="https://www.world-today-news.com/kriss-noa-will-perform-at-cesis-phonoclub-this-weekend/" title="Kriss Noa will perform at Cēsis 'Phonoclub' this weekend”>Fonoklubs” is the favorite place for concerts and entertainment in Cēsis, founded and still managed by the three Sildniki brothers – Marts, Lauris and Jānis. They themselves admit that it is a matter of their heart, because it would hardly be a very good rational result to transfer their work to numbers. They are motivated not to stop and continue to develop “Fonokluba” with their love for music and their desire to work properly in their town of Cēsis.
This fall marks the 16th anniversary of “Fonoklub”, which will be celebrated with several events at the end of November.
Baiba Kušķe asked Jānis Sildnik what it means to work in the music industry now, what are the trends at festivals and concerts, what are the wishes of the public and why that big music stars do not choose Latvia as a concert venue in recent years.
Soon “Fonoklubs” in Cēsis will celebrate its 16th birthday. This really seems very important in the context of our volatile music market. You have survived both the 2008 crisis and the pandemic. How has it worked out for you and what does it need from you?
Janis Sildniks: At the beginning of the crisis, we often laughed because we opened during a crisis, in other words, we didn’t know what it was like without a crisis. It gave us a good foundation for the first act to look forward to. Then, of course, there were other hard times, the pandemic and the like. It’s not an easy time right now either, but somehow we’re pushing forward. Going even further back, “Fono” started holding its first concerts around 2002-2003. Then in 2005 came another ‘Fonofest’, and the club became one of the last big things we still do. So – 16 years – it’s interesting. Especially when a bartender comes to work with us and says – when you opened, I was four years old at the time.
You are the three main hosts – the three brothers…
Janis Sildniks: Yes, me and my two brothers – Marts and Lauris. Each of us has our own place, which we deal with and somehow we try to find a balance – we argue, we fight, we laugh. Everything according to standards.
When we celebrate birthdays, we do not count the first year, because we opened in 2007 in the current building of the Vidzeme concert hall. After a year, we changed the location to the existing building. We started with just one floor, a small barn, then came the second floor, now we have an outdoor terrace. We have such a wide format now that we are trying to adapt to the situation. During the winter, we work more with the second floor, more sitting room where there are comfortable chairs and where acoustic performances are more suitable. In the summer, we put more emphasis on the terrace. Sometimes there are big events where we run everything in and see what happens.
Do you usually work on Fridays and Saturdays?
Janis Sildniks: Yes, our normal business hours are Friday and Saturday from 10am to 4am. There have been exceptions over time when we also work on weekdays. For example, if a group we want to invite passes through Cesis on Wednesday. But these are only exceptions.
Does it mean always following new trends, changes in people’s habits?
Jānis Sildniks: Of course! Especially in 16 years, his movements have changed a lot and varied. Basically we started as another heavy music club, then we started to make friends with the radio “101” which was popular at the time, which directed us more in terms of indie music, pop music, we started to to be afraid of other subjects. We are always looking for ways to stay ahead, so we are not afraid to host different types of events.
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2024-10-20 00:55:00
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