EtnoKraków / Crossroads 2017 coming soon!

We invite you to Krakow for the next round of EtnoKraków – the leading ethno-scene festival in this part of Europe. More than 100 musicians representing 4 continents will perform from the 5th to the 8th of July at nearly 20 concerts to prove that artistic ideas rooted in cultural traditions are still topical. The revisiting the roots of music will be enriched by a huge number of accompanying events: dace parties, music workshops and traditional crafts shows. All that in parallel with the session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee which will be held in Krakow at that time. The festival organisers are: the City of Krakow, the Krakow Festival Office and the Crossroads of Culture and Tradition Association.

Festival artists will appear at nearly 20 concerts at extraordinary special venues, including the Church of St. Catherine of Alexandria, the Galicia Jewish Museum, the Ethnographic Museum, Krakow clubs (Alchemia, Strefa) and the open-air stage on Wolnica Square.

”The artistic activity of many of our guests is inextricably connected with elements of traditional music, involving the aspects of world cultural heritage at focus of the UNESCO” – ensures us Jan Słowiński, EtnoKraków/Crossroads Festival Director. “Kayhan Kalhor, a world-famous virtuoso of the kamancheh – a traditional Persian stringed instrument which was entered on the UNESCO Intangible Heritage List – will perform in Krakow, among other guests. Sanaa songs (Yemen), which inspired Gulaza group’s repertoire, are also on that list. Georgian polyphonic singing practiced by Urmuli quintet under The Spirit of the Mountains project, as is the duduk, a wooden double-reed instrument also used by that group”, adds Słowiński.

The festival will show its two faces presenting two complementary stories, i.e. two closely related festival stages : In crudo, paying tribute to old, source folk and traditional music of the roots, and Inspirations stage which will prove that one can pursue one’s own voice, one’s own world outlook, still being captivated by traditional music, while at the same time reaching for modern or contemporary means of artistic expression.

The very essence of the artists’ meeting with the audience at EtnoKraków/Crossroads will be pursuing authenticity. Something different from pop clichés and plastic music. Every journey, even that around the world of music, starts at home, so this year we will focus on the author’s interpretations of music from the nearest neighbourhood. Ania Broda will present the charming songs from Warmia and Masuria. Sutari will draw inspiration from Polish folk music from various regions, e.g. Kujawy, Radom and Lublin and around. Karolina Cicha and Bart Pałyga will try to revive Podlasie Tatar music. There will also be fascinating international projects in store, for example Joanna Słowińska’s Polish-Scandinavian Archipelag_2 project, as well as Kayhan Kalhor’s and Maria Pomianowska’s joint artistic project. Our guests from abroad will also lead us to the roots. Homayoon group will present mystical music, based of Sufi traditions and poetry of the greatest poet of their region --the mystic, known to the world as Rumi (Jalal ad-Din Muhammad ar-Rumi). Debashish Bhattacharya, an outstanding guitarist from India, will present his breathtaking vision of Hindu music with the sound of Hawaii guitar in the background (his recent record subtitled A Tribute to Tau Moe – is dedicated to the artist who has made Hawaii guitar popular in India).

Tickets and passes for festival concerts are on sale from Monday (22 May) from 12.00, via www.eventim.pl portal and seven InfoKraków city information centres: at the following addresses: ul. św. Jana 2, ul. Szpitalna 25, ul. Józefa 7, Pawilonie Wyspiańskiego (pl. Wszystkich Świętych 2), the Cloth Hall (Rynek Główny 1/3), Tourist Services Centre (ul. Powiśle 11) and ICE Kraków Congress Centre (ul. Marii Konopnickiej 17).

Let’s meet at the Crossroads! At EtnoKrakow

More on: www.etnokrakow.pl