Dispersed music festival unites Vilnius residents

"Vilnius - Open Music Hall" has been spread out for three days on 7 stages across the city

The innovative concept of “Vilnius - Open Music Hall” has paid off. The final tally shows that the unique music festival organized by AGATA association, Go Vilnius agency and Vilnius City Municipality which rocked Vilnius last weekend has attracted more than one thousand listeners.

The organizers state that the idea of ​​inviting people to listen to live music in seven unexpected places of the capital instead of coming to a single mass event allowed not only to better ensure the safety of listeners, but also to acquaint residents and guests with lesser-known Vilnius districts.

Dedicated to the 700^th anniversary of Vilnius

The music festival was dedicated to the upcoming 700^th anniversary of Vilnius, which Lithuanians will celebrate in 2023. On this occasion, it was decided to transfer the Vilnius Book Fair Music Hall programme to different districts of Vilnius, where more than 50 different performances were given on 7 stages during the three days of the festival. Concerts featured popular hits and new music created during quarantine by Monika Marija, "Colours of Bubbles", Viktoras Diawara with the audiovisual project "Electronic Contracts", "White Gull", "Biplan", Rūta Loop, Giedrius Nakas, "Polarized Glass" , The Schwings Band, Strings Of Earth Orchestra and others. At the invitation of the organizers, amateur musical groups of community members played alongside the star performers, to the applause of their neighbours.

“We started celebrating the 700th birthday of Vilnius this year and we have already offered various initiatives to the residents of the city. This cycle of events responded to the main goal of festivities - not to be a formal celebration of the anniversary, but a real feast close to the residents of the city. "Vilnius – Open Music Hall" has shown that residents need such events closer to their homes," said Inga Romanovskienė, head of Go Vilnius, as quoted by vilnius.lt.

Restoring the performer-audience connection

According to Domantas Razauskas, Chairman of the AGATA Council, such events help the music industry, which has been hit hard by the pandemic, to recover. "In these difficult times, it is very important for the performers to play live, to establish direct contact with their audience again, as it happens every year in the Book Fair Music Hall. This is part of the life of the city, of its diverse and colourful culture,” said Razauskas.

No wonder that musicians responded enthusiastically. "For many performers, this was the first opportunity to present their new programmes and collaborations. We are glad that we managed to maintain the diversity of musical genres,” said Agnė Begetė, director of the AGATA association.

Closer to home

One of the performers, Vaidas Baumila, who was making waves with his summer hit "Kunigunda", gave an extra concert in the yard of an apartment building in Žirmūnai district. The musician said he was happy to play for people who rarely have the opportunity to listen to live performances. 

Having grown up in Šeškinė district, he paid frequent visits to Žirmūnai and revisiting the neighbourhoods of his childhood rekindled dear memories. “This festival seems insanely important and joining it is a great honour for me, as a true Vilnius resident. I believe that this concert has also encouraged my listeners to discover new urban spaces,” said Baumila. 

The organizers of "Vilnius - Open Music Hall" promise to surprise the city residents and guests with more non-traditional events in the build-up to the Vilnius 2023 anniversary.