EFA General Assembly & Conference: 100 festivals commit to open doors to artists and audiences
During the official opening high-level representatives from the South Tyrolean cultural and political sectors welcomed the network of arts festivals to their region: Hermann Schnitzer, President Meraner Musikwochen, Dr. Herbert Dorfmann, Member of the European Parliament, Dr. Sabina Kasslatter Mur, District Administrator, and Dr. Günther Januth, Mayor of Merano.
Following their keynote addresses, the speakers Mr Sani and Mrs Pack engaged in a stimulating dialogue moderated by Simon Mundy, poet and novelist, festival director and cultural policy adviser. Stressing that “Europe is nothing without culture,” Doris Pack underlined the need for action from the political side – to support cultural practitioners, artists as well as new creative ideas: “Politicians should not just give speeches on Sunday but take action on Monday.” At the same time, it was agreed that cultural organisers need to dare to take risks and make use of the power of festivals to serve as a platform for arts that challenge citizens.
The conference on 9 April moderated by EFA Secretary General Kathrin Deventer included inspiring speakers such as Enrique Gámez (Festival Internacional de Música y Danza de Granada), Fabrizio Grifasi (Romaeuropa Festival), Martin Honzik (Festival Ars Electronica) and Helen Lloyd (BBC Proms). Professionals from different backgrounds moderated 4 thematic workshops: Jelle Dierickx, Yohann Floch, Valeria Marcolin and Salvatore Marra challenged participants on chosen topics related to access to culture.
The General Assembly and Conference is the most important moment for the European Festivals Associations and its members to meet, network, exchange and discuss the state of play of festival business today. Five new festivals were admitted as members of the Association: Beiteddine Festival (Lebanon), BELEF - Belgrade Summer Festival (Serbia), BOZAR Festival (Belgium), Culturescapes Festival (Switzerland) and Side International Culture and Art Festival (Turkey). “EFA demonstrates that it is more inclusive and allows for stronger participation and further outreach then ever,” underlines EFA President Darko Brlek.
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