written by Anders Melts
photographed by Kadri Sammel
When Anders aka 4-got-10 alongside Kadri aka Dirt Vessel arrived in Viljandi, Folk had already begun - revisit the legendary Viljandi Folk Music Festival through the lenses of two pairs of sunglasses.
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Although I generally have nothing against folk music, Viljandi Folk has seemed to me like a celebration for a completely different target audience. Even the parts on the spectrum of folk and ethnic music that speak to me haven’t been represented by a single artist. But why not go somewhere and experience something new.
Viljandi itself is already wonderful in every season, you just have to find a reason to go. This time the reason was illustrious. I was a little scared, because even though I’m very open-minded about music, I didn’t feel that good ahead of time. What if all this folk ends up being horrible filth, and you wouldn’t want to publish a bad review. Upon arrival in Viljandi, the weather was great and even before reaching the festival area, we passed through Vabarna street, suggesting that we were on the right track. The welcome at the gates was very pleasant and we could easily move on to get into the folk swing. There were children playing everywhere, not with each other, but with instruments. Some had a violin, others a zither, or some more unknown instrument. Very cute. Some succeeded, some didn’t and some preferred to shun it, because it was probably their parents or teacher that had sent them there, and they would much rather have been playing football somewhere instead of the flute. Most of course also had a box for earnings placed in front of them. We joked between ourselves that at least for now they’re getting coins, some day they’ll have to start performing for a beer, like adult musicians.
Among the first visitors we noticed as soon as we entered were some full-on goths. We were surprised, because there weren’t exactly that many people who would’ve dressed in black on a sunny day. Altogether, of course a lot of people from all age groups and different styles had come together and it was actually an extremely lovely sight. They were all feeling good and just enjoying being. As were we. Whether any of the performances would leave an impression on us was kind of secondary. There were many stages, even outside of the festival area people were playing instruments, singing, and selling thematic merchandise. I bought myself a crocheted finger mouse, for example. A very cute one, at that. As I was picking and considering which one to buy, the seller said that well, she couldn’t say which one the child would like more. I then specified that I wanted it for myself.
The music was pretty much as I assumed. Mostly a popular selection of artists. Singer Vinger was surprising in the sense that when I saw them written on the programme, I wondered how on earth they would fit into this context, but damn – they fit perfectly. Of course, they had backing singers and did a performance that was a bit more folk-like and with a selection that especially suited that moment. All the songs I was expecting were played as well. By the way, they were the first band in my life who I already went to see knowingly and of my own free will. That was a mere 37 years ago and they haven’t changed much. I remember when Raud wasn’t 30 yet and said that he would stop performing soon, because he doesn’t want to be an old man in his thirties on stage, because he himself doesn’t like them. Either way, Mihkel was on stage, with “beast” on the collar of his shirt, rocking away. And I’ve never seen anything wrong with a group of silghtly more advanced age still wanting to perform and appreciating the craft. A+.
Native performers were generally of the ordinary kind. They mostly did the exact thing that’s the reason for me not wanting to go to the festival before. True, there were exceptions. Duo Ruut was nice, perhaps the stage was left a bit empty, but the way they managed to play such convincing songs with such minimalist instrumentation was wonderful. The Baltic Sisters were also convincing, although musically, the best parts of their performance were either Lithuanian or Latvian. Unfortunately we didn’t catch Puuluup, but we saw them a few weeks later at a festival in Lithuania, where they were super awesome. I’m sure they weren’t any weaker in front of the home crowd, and it’s all the more unfortunate that we didn’t see them in Viljandi. The thing totally questionable for me was Untsakad and why people like them. Some random pub band and a terribly long performance as well, with the masses listening to them and enjoying it. Some kind of phenomenon that I, being unqualified in the field of pub music, cannot appreciate.
From the foreign artists, I would highlight Maqamat Ensemble & Nissim Lugasi from Israel. I would even say that if I had to point out just one name from the whole festival line-up, it would be them. There was real spirit and depth in their performance. Soulful singing and playing. Convincing, very convincing. They introduced the members and the instruments they were playing that were unfamiliar to Estonians, and you could just feel that they wanted to channel something or share something from heart to heart. It was amusing how they drew the listeners along and at the end of the performance, also invited people on stage to sing along. A kind of ritualistic trance-inducing repetition, which all the people then sang with the band, largely unaware of what they were actually repeating. It was a bit odd, but then, people often repeat what’s said without thinking about the content.
The Swedish duo Symbio was also good. A bit like a folk version of the late Avicii. They skillfully used loopers and effects, and as songwriters they also seemed exactly like typically good Swedes. They don’t know how to write a bad pop song there. They did lose a certain charm when they played on the same stage again on the second day, because it was just a copy of the exact same show, even with the same stories and speeches. This kind of rehearsed communication with the crowd is terribly annoying. It could have been different for the same crowd on the second day at least, or not been at all.
All in all, we were very pleased with the visit. Even the heavy rain and flood came right after we had left. For the future, I would recommend throwing in a bit of neo-folk, tribal, and ritual performers – this is the realm that’s missing at Viljandi Folk. I believe they would win plenty more hearts if they enriched their programme with even a couple of such artists. We can be of assistance if needed :)
Heia heia!
The XXXI Viljandi Folk Music Festival took place on July 25-28, 2024.
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