The Essence of the XXVII General Latvian Song and XVII Dance Festival: Celebrating Tradition and Cherishing the Good amidst Criticism

When asked by the interviewer if something irritated Gesti at some point, considering that this year’s Song Festival was highly criticized, he answers: “I try not to get attached to the things that irritate me, because we are used to noticing lice, but the good remains in the background. One , which I definitely want to say, –

you don’t have to judge a holiday just by a few top concerts, for which everyone tries to get tickets and which have become like bestsellers, because they are considered to go in style.

The festivities are not separate concerts, but everything that happened in Riga these days – ladies in folk costumes on bicycles and electric scooters, so many different events, packed trams, in which, by the way, they sang not only after the concerts, but throughout the week.”

He names a situation:

“When we had to make a scene about the dress rehearsal of the final concert, the overcrowded eating area and the crowd got a little angry, the important thing was to get the sausage, but the choir remained only in the background.

But when we went to the audience, my feelings changed. I saw a woman with a gorgeous crown sitting alone on the edge of a bench. When we sat down to talk, we found out that she is from a folklore group and admires how beautiful the choir sounds. Only one thing is missing – warm tea. However, she did not allow herself to go after it during the concert. The next day, cameraman Mārtiņš said: “Jani, we should have done one thing – take this woman tea!” And I’m going through it now that we didn’t imagine it then.”

It has already been reported that the XXVII General Latvian Song and XVII Dance Festival was held this year to mark the 150th anniversary of the Song Festival tradition.

Read the full interview with Jānis Gesti in the magazine “Eve” In the issue of July 19!

2023-07-19 08:20:32
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