BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

22/08/2007

Be2Gether festival bridges borders

By Kimberly Kweder

VILNIUS - Be2Gether, a one-of-akind open-air music festival taking place near the Belarusian border Aug. 24 - 26, is setting out to connect various cultures through music, dance and art. To achieve that noble goal it'll bring in some bigname bands from around the world including The Bloodhound Gang and The New York Ska Band Ensemble along with U.K. artists The Young Knives and Morcheeba. More than 30 popular bands and well-known DJs will hit center stage in the fields outside of Norviliskes Castle, 80 kilometers from Vilnius.

They'll be joined by well-known artists from around Lithuania as well as from Iceland, Finland, Belarus, Latvia and Poland. The festival's motto, "Music Opens Borders," celebrates the different tastes in music everyone has, the show's manager, Giedrius Klimkevicius, stated in a press release. The theme also fits in with the 50th Anniversary celebration of the European Union and the Vilnius Capital of Culture 2009, according to press representative Rytis Sabas. "The basic idea is to bring the cultural event together for people from different countries. We need to show this through communicating with music," Sabas said. Klimkevicius, the mastermind behind the Be2Gether project, is known for opening up Lithuania's first independent record company, "Zona Records" and for taking an active role in the tourism industry. He spearheaded the renovation of the 16th century castle and has been planning this outdoor event since last November.

The line-up includes musicians from all three Baltic countries : Lithuanian artists Andrius Mamontovas, Skamp, G&G Sindikatas, Pieno Iazeriai and Metal on Metal; Tribes of the City from Latvia; and Estonia's Tanel Pader and the Sun, which is fronted by the winner of the 2001 Eurovision Song Contest. Much of the music combines rock, hip hop, postpunk and electro. Northern Ireland's band Therapy? use drums and bass instruments in their performances, while showing metal, jazz, new age and trance influences. Belarusian rock bands Lyapis Trubetskoy and IQ48, the Norwegian trio Datarock, Leaves from Iceland, Poets of the Fall from Finland and the Bloodhoung Gang from the U.S. are also scheduled to rock the night away on the two stages.

Organizers are preparing a dance nightclub that will feature world-class DJs. DJ Food and DK, Alex Gopher, and Boogaloo will spin electro, funky tunes. Games, art and food shows will take place on the festival grounds too. "The expectations are very big. We want this to be a tradition for Lithuania," Sabas said. The best part of the festival, he said, is the fact that people will be coming across borders to be active participants. Sabas said several buses have been arranged to bring in over 60 journalists from Belarus and Kaliningrad for the show.

Source:

http://www.baltictimes.com/news/articles/18596/