Project “Open Up” On The Street Musicians Festival
GET TO KNOW CONTEMPORARY ROMANI CULTURE
Social involvement on the Street Musicians Festival, which will be held for the 14th time in Novi Sad from the 4th to 6th September, will be represented through the special program “Open Up”, dedicated to contemporary culture of Romani peoples in Serbia and Europe. As part of the program will participate some of the most interesting names within the Romani art scene, primarily musicians, with a photography exhibition and a panel discussion on this topic, taking place on the last day of the Festival, in the afternoon and evening of Saturday 6th September, at different points across the centre of Novi Sad, announced the members of today’s media conference.
The program “Open Up” is a joint project of the Street Musicians Festival and the Fund For An Open Society from Budapest, with the support of the European Commission as a permanent partner of this event. The goal of the project is to present to the Festival’s audience the contemporary Romani culture in a creative and innovative way, without stress on language, cultural and ethnic differences, pointing out universal values, which are common for all citizens, emphasized the president of the Art Association “Inbox” from Novi Sad, who is the organizer of the Festival, Natali Beljanski Popović.
– In this way, the Street Musicians Festival will, in the most important segment of the 14th edition, promote young artists, contemporary creators of Romani descent in the fields of music, dance, theatre and modern circus. The Art Association “Inbox” thus wants to encourage intercultural dialogue and cooperation between Romani artists and all others, in an effort to open up the cultural scene in Novi Sad and spark mutual understanding of all 23 ethnic communities, that reside in this city – said Beljanski Popović.
The Fund For An Open Society from Budapest, and it’s branch in Serbia, are a non-political and non-profit organization which develops and supports projects and activities directed at the development of a democratic culture, openness, recognition of differences and full respect of human rights for all citizens, as goal for developing a democratic and open society in Serbia. Projects, as “Open Up”, with the help of this foundation, are organized in the entire world, emphasized the representative of the organization, Radomir Šovljanski.
– This part of the program of the Street Musicians Festival is realized through the program MTM (Making the most of EU funds for Roma), which gives support to state and other institutions which have access to European funds. The Fund For An Open Society is, and will be, ready to involve itself even more in programs like this, not just financially, but logistically as well – stressed Šovljanski.
The festival’s program “Open Up” is also supported by the Know How Center from Novi Sad, whose representative, Tatjana Lazor Obradović, at the conference, pointed out on the readiness of this organization to continue participating in the inclusion of Romani peoples into our society, as well as give necessary help to all who have such ambitions.
Similar goals unite the activities of the participants of the program “Open Up”. Therefore, the band Gipsy Groove from Priština, which plays authentic music of the Balkan Romani, enriched with modern genres, along with the musical satisfaction and invitation to dance, they also point out the problems of justice, discrimination, racism, human rights, peace and ethnic diversity. Hip-Hop group Roma Sijam from Belgrade promotes Romani culture through the most contemporary musical expression and specific poetry of the urban environment. Foundation Gypsy Roma Urban Balkan Beats (GRUBB) from Great Britain, with it’s branch in Serbia presents an artistic number of modern music and dance, with which the teenage artists discuss the topics of first love, friendship and everyday struggles against poverty and prejudice.
Chisinau Youth Orchestra from Moldavia is one of the exclusives on this years Street Musicians Festival. This choir and orchestra is made up of the most talented music students from Moldavia and Romania, who interpret classical composers, with social segments that indicate co-existence of micro-communities, bringing together members from different backgrounds, but with the same, common goal. The headliner of the “Open Up” program will be the Belgrade band Kal, well known and popular all over the world as the leading performer of urban Romani music in Serbia and the Balkans. The frontman of this ensemble, Dragan Ristić, beside working in the field of art, nourishes social activism as a representative of the Roma Culture Center from Belgrade.
– The Street Musicians Festival fully understands the idea of the Center, and I thank the organizers who feel the need to promote Romani culture. One of the main agendas for the European Union and countries that want to join it, such as Serbia, is the position of national minorities, so it is extremely important that the art and culture of the Romani people find their place on the Serbian, but the global map as well – pointed out Ristić, with an announcement of the exhibition dedicated to eminent artists and other public figures from all over the world of Romani descent, which will, as will the panel discussion on this topic, also be part of this years Street Musicians Festival.
Part of the project “Open Up” on the Street Musicians Festival will be the final performance of the international project “Circus As A Way Of Life”, realized in cooperation with he European Commission. Young artists from Novi Sad, Gračanica, Varaždin (Croatia) and Tirana (Albania) after a two-year preparation period and training under the guidance of top instructors of modern circus crafts and street theatre from France and Greece, formed an independent troupe, which will for the first time present itself to the audience in Novi Sad, and will later on continue with performances on similar events all over Europe.
The Street Musicians Festival is organized by the Art Association “Inbox” from Novi Sad, with the support of the City of Novi Sad and the Provincial Secretariat for Culture and Public Information, the embassy of the United States of America in Belgrade and the Serbian Petroleum Industry. The project “Open Up” is realized with the support of the Fund For An Open Society from Budapest and the European Commission.
