Pictures: The Tallinn Music Week 2023

The Tallinn Music Week, a new music festival that took place from 10 to 14 May in the Estonian capital, hosted almost 190 performers from 41 countries and attracted over 18,000 visitors; Andrea Forlani captured some of the moments for Estonian World.

The annual new music festival and conference, running since 2009, this time hosted 188 artists from 41 countries and over 1,200 music and culture industry professionals from all over the world. The event’s team underlined also that “51 per cent of the acts on the music festival line-up had women or queer representation”.

In addition to showcasing new music, the festival featured art exhibitions, public discussions and a bike tour.

Among the festival’s guests was Radiohead’s guitarist Ed O’Brien, who said in an Instagram post that he had had “an incredible few days in Tallinn at the wonderful Tallinn Music Week festival”.

“Met some very cool people, saw some great live music, experienced art and sound installations. I’d never been to Estonia but so blown away by this vibrant country. They understand the importance of culture and its part in a vibrant society. When one visits a place that truly appreciates contemporary art, music and literature it feels well, for want of a better word, beautiful,” he said. “The odd and different things are cherished too, not gauged by how much something is worth or how many it has sold. It’s all about connecting emotionally, spiritually and physically with something beautiful – my favourite and most used word at the moment.”

Another guest, Radio Helsinki’s presenter Jukka Hätinen, said “this year’s Tallinn Music Week was hands down the liveliest and most exciting edition of the festival” he had attended. “Be it trailblazing pop or innovative avant-garde, interesting artists were around each corner to be found. I also loved how the city’s creative force is taking over new areas in Tallinn – for example, the Art Pavilion at Lasnamäe and what’s bubbling at Kopli.”