From October 18-20 the 2022 edition of Göteborg Art Sounds will be host to the Fenoba conference, gathering festival promoters and organizers from Denmark, Norway, FInland, Iceland, Estonia and Sweden. The conference itself is not open to the public, so we thought it would be a good idea to invite some of the conference participants to be part of an open panel discussion, reflecting on some of the topics from the conference:

• Can we see the festival regarded as a cultural event where opportunities are given for manifestations of freedom of speech, clear statements and political engagement through artistic expression?
• How can we expand and defend the festival’s significance and place, where we as individuals as well as members of society can be given a space to think and feel freely together?
• Could the festival of the future be a place for resistance and confrontation, while at the same time a place for contemplation and reflection?

About Fenoba
Fenoba is a Nordic Baltic Network for music festivals, initiated by the GAS-festival. The idea behind the network is to create an exchange of artists and collaborations between countries and create an openness between festivals. The network is also meant to be a tool for its members and their ideas, and a platform to enable learning between Nordic and Baltic music festivals and organizers.

The Fenoba network consist of Spor (DK), G((o))ng Tomorrow (DK), Klang-festival (DK), Estonian Music Days (EE), Baltic Music Days (EE/LV/LT), Musica nova Helsinki (FI), Dark Music Days (IS), Cycle Music and Art Festival (IS), Ultima (NO), Punkt (NO), Göteborg Art Sounds (SE) and concert organisers Lithuanian Composers’ Union (LT), Latvian Composers’ Union (LV).

Read more here.