The capital of Estonia's Northeast once again became a capital of Slavic culture with the holding of the 7th International Market-Festival "Slavonic World". The slogan prepared for the festival was visible from a height of several kilometres.
The "Slavonic World" Festival, held in Ida-Viru county every summer since 2009, features performances by folk collectives, concerts by famous and professional musicians, master-classes in traditional arts and crafts and a crafts market. This family-focused day attracts numerous guests from around the county and from other regions of Estonia.
Following a tradition established last year, this year the "Slavonic World" Festival took place not in the city park but on the central streets of Johvi. This year, however, the scale of the festival was grander; artists performed not on one stage, but on two, and the number of craft stalls together with the range of goods on offer recorded a significant increase from previous years. Master-classes included interactive demonstrations not only from traditional guests from the Russian folk-art collective "Ladnaya Polyana", but also from artists and craftsmen from across the Ida-Viru country.
This year's headliners performed an interesting variety of music, from the 100-year-old Finish balalaika orchestra Gelsingforssky, to the Belorussian choir and devotees of high-quality ensemble singing Chisty Golos. Russian guests included the stylish performance of chanson and romantic songs Ksyusha Arseneva and the Soviet-era band Poyuschiye Gitary.
Speakers at the festival included the Russian Consul to Narva Lyubov Zabinyak, Rossotrudnichestvo representative Maria Kalashnikova, Belarussian Ambassador to Estonia Svetlana Karpushina, together with Orthodox and Lutheran priests and elected representatives from the city council. Their speeches focused on the importance of preserving one's own cultural roots while respecting the traditions of others. Artists also engraved the words "Culture Unites" in huge letters into the moat surrounding the medieval church in the centre of the city.
In total, 500 performers from 39 folk-art and folk-music collectives from Estonia, Russia, Finland and Belarus took part in the "Slavonic World" Festival. Around 10,500 spectators came to the event, from young children to pensioners.
The "Slavonic World" Festival was organised by the Inforing Publishing House and the NGO Unifest. Sponsorship was provided by Rossotrudnichestvo, the Russkiy Mir Foundation, the embassies of Russia, Belarus and Estonia, the Johvi city council and many local private sponsors.
