The Making of a Dziesmu Svētki, Part 7: Crunch Time

Elga Ozols | 

Nineteen months ago, a small group of D.C. area Latvians nervously met up at Lost Dog Cafe, a local pizza and sandwich joint in northern Virginia, and listened to their friend Marisa Gudrā pitch a crazy idea; we should host dziesmu svētki.  One week ago, a similarly-sized group gathered around a table at Captain Larry’s, a Latvian-owned bar and restaurant in Baltimore’s Federal Hill neighborhood.  We were unwinding after what had been a particularly productive meeting focused on final gametime logistics.  It is amazing to think how much has happened in this short time.

 I view our journey thus far as being divided into three fuzzy, uneven sections: preliminary planning, initial public involvement, and crunch time.  The majority of this series has thus far addressed initial planning, with some forays into initial public involvement.  We worked hard to select a city, to find capable personnel to lead projects, to find venues and set a schedule and plan a budget.  This period lasted from roughly November through last summer.  Once the stars were aligned, we pushed our boulder off the cliff and watched what happened, and things became real as we opened the festival up to the public.  For the overall-logistics-based organizing committee, this meant opening up hotel blocks, ticket sales, and fundraising avenues to gauge interest and numbers.  For the music committee and folk dancing show organizers it meant opening up choir and dance troupe registration and sending out materials so that the performers could begin a year’s worth of preparations for the big shows.  Other organizers who we haven’t discussed yet in this series got their balls rolling, too.  Philadelphia’s Inta Grunde and llze Rēķis Bērziņa opened up registration and collected payments from Latvian craftspeople and vendors for the festival marketplace.  ALA Office of Cultural Affairs director Līga Ejupe sent out calls for submissions to the festival’s art exhibit. And Boston-based Karmena Ziediņa, director of the festival’s new choreography contest, sent out contest rules and deadlines and waited for the competitors to work on their creations.

 With the arrival of 2017, each project’s crunch times began.  Vendor sign-up ended for the marketplace, and Grunde and Rēķis Bērziņa turned to the complex tetris game of figuring out how to best pack in the large number of merchant tables.  Artist submissions came as a slow trickle for the first few months, then flooded in right before the springtime deadline, and Ejupe got to work planning out logistics of artwork spacing and transportation, and planning for an opening reception.  With the first couple months of early ticket sales complete, ticket coordinator Inga Bebris began the gargantuan and often thankless task of mailing paper tickets out to hundreds of individuals. She enlisted the help of her parents, Lolita and Jānis, and especially of their spacious dining room table, and every other weekend the family sat down together for an evening of family bonding and envelope stuffing.

January brought the deadline for new choreography contest submissions.  At that point submitted videos and apraksti (step by step dance instructions) were collected into a secret online location and then released back to the competing choreographers and dance troupes, who then were given a set amount of time in which to rate their competitors based on a handful of specific criteria.  This score, decided months before dancers step foot in Baltimore, makes up the majority of any dance’s score, with the live show’s small panel of expert judges (whose identity remains a well-kept secret until showtime to ensure no improper influence) only contributing a smaller percentage.  Here in these final days of crunch time, Ziediņa is focusing mainly on gametime logistics; meeting with Lyric Opera House staff, finalizing decorations (provided by Broadway set guru Andris Krūmkalns), and working out a detailed day-of rehearsal schedule that allows each dance exactly ten minutes onstage.

Crunch time is also an excellent time to test out our own resiliency.  Did early planning make us surefooted enough to roll with punches instead of crumbling?  The most dramatic and public test revolves around our theater production.  We were understandably nervous when, shortly after deciding to accept the Latvian National Theater with their dark comedy “Ceļā uz Mājām,” we heard news that a different Latvian theater had just had their performance visas denied and had to cancel a U.S. tour. With a determined gulp, Iveta Grava, Aivars Osvalds, and Dace Aperāne committed countless hours and cramped fingers to dotting every i and crossing every t on a mountain of visa application paperwork, yet after splurging on expedited shipping, we received the disappointing news that our actors’ visas were denied. Not giving up, Grava, our theater coordinator, set to work both preparing materials for an appeal, and searching for an emergency backup plan. She found one in Northern California, where the San Francisco Theater Workshop was in the midst of a well-received family-friendly musical “Emīls un Berlīnes Zēni.” When our appeal was denied in the spring, we hit the ground running and announced the program change, bracing for impact from any fallout from angry audience members.  No fallout came; most people chose to keep their tickets despite the wildly different shows, and some of the few who did return tickets even instructed us to keep their money instead of issuing a refund. Storm survived! Until we sailed right into a hurricane; the news media in Latvia had caught wind of the visa denial, and suddenly all eyes in Latvia were looking at us in Baltimore. Higher powers intervened, and suddenly the visa denial was reversed. We found ourselves with two separate theater shows in an already packed festival schedule.  I wish we could say that we never for a second considered dropping either show, because the more the merrier, but the truth is that we would be irresponsible organizers if we had not stopped to consider the impact of such a boomeranging change on our budget and/or credibility.  Still, after extensive group discussions and planning, we managed to keep both shows, and if ticket sales are any indicator, then it appears that our audiences are happy with our decision.

The vast majority of credit involved in navigating this revolving theater situation goes to Grava, but the ripple effect impacted several other aspects of the festival and its organizers. Bebris has had to be extra diligent in working out ticket calculations, and the same goes for treasurer Juris Mohseni (who amazingly happened to be on an off-the-grid vacation in Africa when these events unfolded and returned to find that all hell had broken loose). Marketing team members agonized over how to most clearly present this complicated situation to the public.  And other festival events had to be altered, none more so than the Children’s Activities.  Originally intended to be three days worth of free drop-in activities for youngsters, the addition of kid-friendly “Emīls un Berlīnes Zēni,” combined with a kid-friendly musical presentation by Latvian folk group Iļģi, cut our three days of playtime to one.  Jolanta Stoops, our children’s program director, shows no sign of being bothered, beginning her updates at each committee meeting with, “I’m ready for anything, even if that anything ends up being nothing!”

In case you think Stoops is bored now that her kids’ program has been slimmed down, have no fear.  Stoops is also in charge of both Thursday evening’s Pub Night with AKRA, and recently also took on leadership of the PRINTFUL Stage program.  In these final weeks leading up to Baltimore, Stoops is busy recruiting performers to sign up for the informal open mic style performances which will take place in the Renaissance hotel’s atrium. Also still recruiting in these final weeks is Volunteer coordinator Aija Moeller.  During Phase One Moeller worked out a plan and timeline.  During Phase Two all other organizers were instructed to figure out the exact number of volunteers that they might need for each of their events, a number that in many cases keeps fluctuating based on evolving circumstances.  Now in crunch time, Moeller has opened up a fantastic online tool, SignUp Genius, and is inviting everyone to donate a couple hours to help make everything run smoothly.

One of the most unfortunately crunched Crunch Time tasks is finalizing the Vadonis (official festival guidebook).  During Phase Two, requests went out to hundreds of individuals requesting information for the guidebook in both Latvian and English. These requests included bios and descriptions for festival participants (including not just dance troupes and choirs, but also choreographers, composers, and others), finalized programs for every festival show, formal letters from various community leaders, and various informative articles, not to mention administrative information such as festival schedules, lists of donors and organizers, and a hearty selection of advertisements.  Each word of this material needs to be proofread, and while efforts were made to get as much information as early as possible, the reality is that for many folks this information either hasn’t been fully known until recently, or it is frankly the sort of task that falls through the cracks. For weeks, content editor Aija Celms-Evans and layout editor Silvija Ozols have been poring over every page and word to prepare the 170-page long booklet in time for publication. In addition to the Vadonis, organizers are also preparing a Pavadonis (brochure-sized mini guidebook), as well as concert programs, all of which are now due for printing.

It seems impossible to count the remaining odds and ends of tasks that creep up in these final weeks and days. There are final arrangements with hotels, attempts to nail down final participant lists for various venues and events, final details being etched out regarding potential transportation, final organizer schedules to work out, final- well- final “everything,” really. But the amazing thing that it is difficult to wrap our brains around is the fact that these things we are still working on, they are actually the final things, the things that are supposed to be happening at this point, and while we are as busy as ever, we are by no means scrambling. And in just three weeks, we will be past final. We will be done.  Seeya in Baltimore.

“The Making of a Dziesmu Svētki” is an ongoing series documenting the behind-the-scenes process of organizing a Latvian song and dance festival.

 The XIV Latvian-American Song and Dance Festival will take place in Baltimore, Maryland, from June 29 to July 3, 2017. For more information, please visit www.latviansongfest2017.com or write to info@latviansongfest2017.com.

Pavisam drīz sāksies Dziesmu svētki Eslingenā

Latvians Online | 

Pēc 6 dienām, laikā no 16. līdz 18. jūnijam Vācijas pilsētiņas Eslingenas ielas būs pilnas ar latviešu tautastērpos tērptām latvju zeltenēm un vīriem, pasākuma “Eslingenas Dziesmu svētkiem 70” dalībniekiem. Ja tikko mūsu hokeja fani pārsteidza Vācijas iedzīvotājus, parādot savu vienotību, gara spēku un mīlestību pret Latviju, tad pēc pavisam neilga laika varēsim parādīt vāciešiem sevi no vēl vienas puses – mīlestības pret dziesmu, deju, tautas kultūru, tradīcijām. Kaut arī esam skaitliski maza tauta, tomēr šādā veidā varam parādīt Eiropai, cik mēs visi kopā tomēr esam lieli!

Tiek plānots, ka Eslingenā ar savām dziesmām, dejām un rotaļām ieradīsies aptuveni 600 dalībnieki – dziedātāji, dejotāji un folkloristi no 11 valstīm, gan tepat no Eiropas – Vācijas, Šveices, Zviedrijas, Francijas, Norvēģijas, Īrijas, Anglijas, Dānijas un citām valstīm, gan arī no Kanādas, Austrālijas un protams arī Latvijas. Šajos svētkos iecerēts tuvināt un vienot gan trimdas jeb vecās paaudzes latviešus, gan diasporu jeb tautiešus, kas uz ārzemēm pārcēlušies salīdzinoši nesen.

Savu dalību apstiprinājusi arī svētku patronese, bijusī valsts prezidente Vaira Vīķe – Freiberga, Kultūras ministre Dace Melbārde,  Ārlietu ministrijas Speciālo uzdevumu vēstnieks diasporas jautājumos Atis Sjanīts un Latvijas vēstniece Vācijā Elita Kuzma. No vācu puses svētku dalībniekus sveiks viens no pilsētas mēriem Dr. Markuss Rābs (Markus Raab), Kultūras nodaļas vadītājs Benedikts Stegmaijers (Benedikt Stegmayer) un Bādenes-Virtembergas federālās zemes parlamenta deputāts Volfgangs Drekslers (Wolfgang Drexler).
“Esmu pateicīga tautiešiem, kuri, sākot no Otrā pasaules kara beigām, rīko nozīmīgus pasākumus ārpus Latvijas. Tas ļāvis nepazaudēt piederības sajūtu Latvijai un nodot mūsu īpašās vērtības nākamajām paaudzēm. Arī pirms 70 gadiem Eslingenas Dziesmu svētki bija apliecinājums latvietībai un brīvas Latvijas vērtībām. Savukārt šogad, kad sākam atzīmēt Latvijas valsts simtgadi, Eslingenā svētkus ieskandinās tautieši, kuri šobrīd dzīvo vairāk nekā desmit valstīs. Prieks, ka šim nozīmīgajam notikumam gatavojas arī tie latvieši, kuri ārzemēs dzīvo salīdzinoši nesen,” akcentē kultūras ministre Dace Melbārde.

Svētki izvērtīsies trīs dienu garumā. Tie sāksies piektdien, 16. jūnijā desmitos no rīta, ar atklāšanas dievkalpojumu Eslingenas Dienvidu baznīcā – baznīcā, kur dievu lūguši gan tie latvieši, kas patvērumu no 2. Pasaules kara rada sev Eslingenā, gan tie, kas Eslingenā un tās apkārtnē dzīvo vēl šodien. Plkst. 11:15 tiek plānots svētku gājiens cauri pilsētai. Pateicoties ciešai sadarbībai ar Eslingenas pašvaldību, pasākuma organizatoriem ir izdevies panākt, ka gājiena dalībnieki izies tās pašas ielas un pagalmus, kuros mitinājās latviešu ģimenes pirms 70 gadiem, kur atradās pamatskola, vietējais ķinītis, piena māja un citas latviešiem toreiz nozīmīgas vietas.

Svinīgā svētku atklāšana paredzēta pusvienos dienā pilsētas tirgus laukumā, bet jau divos visi aicināti uz uzvedumu “Tikšanās ar Jāzepu Vītolu”. Laikā starp 15:00 un 18:00 tirgus laukumā, stacijas laukumā un citviet pilsētā ar saviem priekšnesumiem pilsētas iedzīvotājus un viesus priecēs dažādi latviešu kolektīvi. Bet vakarā paredzēta ilgi gaidītā un astoņu latviešu kopienu pārstāvju apvienotā aktieru un dziedātāju ansambļa iestudētā dziesmu spēles “Eslingena” izrāde, kas būs latviešu valodā, taču ar vācu subtitriem, lai būtu saprotama un saistoša arī vācu publikai.

Sestdiena tiek plānota ar diviem lielkoncertiem – plkst. 12:00 – koru kopkoncerts, bet plkst. 15:00 uz koncertu aicinās visi dejotāji. Sestdienas vakaru, kā jau tas latviešiem pieņemts, paredzēts noslēgt ar svētku balli, kurā dalībniekus priecēs grupas “Dzelzs Vilks”, “Liepupes vīru ansamblis Vēja muzikanti” un “Austrumkalns”. Īpašs notikums sestdienas pievakarē plkst. septiņos būs tikšanās ar bijušajiem Eslingeniešiem un citiem Dieva Putniņiem, lai klausītos to atmiņstāstos. Vienlaicīgi notiks arī grāmatas “Atmiņas par Eslingenu” atklāšana.

Savukārt, svētdien plkst. 12:00 visi mīļi aicināti uz vēl vienu kopkoncertu, šoreiz piedāvājot iepazīties ar latviešu folkloru, bet svētku noslēgumā – plkst. 14:00 – Mārtiņa Brauna mesa “Daugava” LU vīru kora “Dziedonis” un RTU vīru kora “Gaudeamus” izpildījumā ar pašu M. Braunu pie klavierēm.

Paralēli gan dalībnieki, gan pasākuma viesi varēs iegādāties arī dažādus latviešu amatnieku, rotkaļu un izstrādātāju darbus amatnieku tirdziņā, kas darbosies visu trīs dienu garumā. Bet jau no 13. jūnija līdz pat mēneša beigām pilsētas muzejā Gelbes Haus būs aplūkojama izstāde par četrdesmito gadu latviešu nometni Eslingenā, tā laika sabiedrisko un kultūras dzīvi.

Svētkus ieskandinot, jau ceturtdienas vakarā tiks demonstrēta latviešu spēlfilma “Dieva Putniņi” (oriģinālvalodā ar vācu subtitriem), kā arī ceturtdienas un piektdienas vakaros darbosies latviešu bārs “Rīgas Runcis”, kurā skanēs latviešu mūzika un būs iespējams baudīt latviešu gardumus.

Precīzāka informācija par pasākumu norises vietām un laikiem, pieejama svētku oficiālajā mājas lapā.

Lai svētki noritētu veiksmīgi, pasākuma organizatori aicina pieteikties brīvprātīgos, piedāvājot sajust svētku burvību ne tikai kā apmeklētājam, bet arī būt pasākumā un baudīt to no aizkulisēm. Brīvprātīgie tiek aicināti pieteikties palīdzēt reģistrēt dalībniekus, sniegt informāciju dalībniekiem un viesiem par pasākumu, norises vietām, laikiem, kontrolēt ieejas biļetes pasākumos, kā arī tirgot svētku suvenīrus, biļetes un citus informācijas materiālus. Kā pateicību par palīdzību organizatori sola morālo gandarījumu par paveikto, jaunu pieredzi Vācijā vēl nebijuša pasākuma organizēšanā, kā arī brīvbiļeti uz vienu no svētku pasākumiem. Informācija par pieteikšanos un nosacījumiem arī pieejama mājas lapā.

Kopumā pasākumam ir pieteikušās 32 mākslinieciskās grupas, tajā skaitā 18 kori, 10 tautisko deju un četras folkloras kopas. Visplašāk pārstāvēti kolektīvi no Anglijas un Vācijas.

Pasākuma organizatori ir Latviešu kultūras biedrība „Saime“ un tās vadība izsaka lielu pateicību par izveidojušos sadarbību un atbalstu tādām organizācijām un institūcijām kā Ārlietu ministrija, Kultūras ministrija, Eiropas Latviešu apvienība, Latviešu Kopība Vācijā, kā arī Eslingenas pašvaldībai.

Uz tikšanos Eslingenā!

Laura Putāne,
pasākuma koordinatore,
Latviešu kultūras biedrības “Saime” valdes priekšsēdētaja

Flutist Balčus releases first full length album Conarium

Egils Kaljo | 

Singer, songwriter and flutist Elizabete Balčus has, in a short while, become a notable and creative voice in Latvian pop music. Initially performing with Latvian ‘indie pop fairy’ group Sus Dungo, Balčus shortly thereafter began her solo career. Her debut EP – Wooden Horse – won the Latvian Music Recording award for best debut in 2011.

Balčus has now followed up that effort with her first full length album entitled Conarium. Released in 2016 by the indie UK label Liminal Noise Tapes, it provides a showcase for Balčus’ creativity and musical versatility, with its collection of quirky and cheerfully odd songs.

Balčus’ music has been described as avant garde pop, neo-psychadelia, dream pop, among many other descriptions, but it is difficult to find an accurate label for it. Though quite often displaying refined pop sensibilities, the music can often still surprise, but can also be jarring and opaque, and might occasionally remind the listener of the Icelandic singer Bjork. It is music that does require active listening, as Balčus’ arrangements are carefully and intricately woven, providing an appropriately dreamy and ethereal listening experience.

The album’s title – Conarium ­– has two meanings. One refers to the pineal gland in the brain, that produces both melatonin during sleep and serotonin during the day, and, as per the notes in the CD booklet, this keeps us ‘happy and buoyant’. The word can also mean ‘the earliest larval state of the Velella velella’, a type of jellyfish that floats upside-down. Though those are two radically different definitions of the word, both seem quite appropriate for this collection of songs.

The songs, all but two of which are in English, evoke a child-like, yet mature approach. The song “Out”, begins with the sound of a small woodwind ensemble, then Balčus sings with a dreamy naiveté lyrics like ‘butterflies in the winter – I see – they are alive’, as the song then progresses into an atmospheric vocalize that is complemented by Balčus’ flute performance.

The lullaby “Negribas iet gulēt” (lyrics by poet Ojārs Vācietis), is a tender and beautiful ode about a child that is reluctant to go to sleep. Balčus melds the words of Vācietis with a lush musical tapestry, revealing the effective simplicity of the text and resulting in one of the most memorable songs on the album. One does wish that the artist had recorded a few more songs in her native language though, as this song and “Vienīgais ceļš” (with lyrics by Aspazija) are two of the strongest tracks on the record.

Balčus’ lyrics often have a stream of consciousness feel to them, adding even further to the dreamlike atmosphere, such as “Behind the Castle”, where she sings ‘in this city pure desert dimness fills all the shapes’, then repeatedly singing ‘is the castle real?’ as the song fades out. Though her usage of vocal effects is very effective throughout the album, the vocal echo does seem to be occasionally overused – though it does enhance the etherealness of the album, there could be more of a balance with the singer’s natural voice without effects.

One of the truly avant garde (or perhaps just odd) songs is “Jellyfish”, which is an occasionally discordant collection of sounds and somewhat nonsensical lyrics like “sneaky creepy royal harlot tangle jangle is your knowledge”, and then becomes less of a song and more a sonic experiment with non-sequiturs like Balčus declaring “I’m a vegetarian” as well as “eat a jellyfish!”, making for a rather tangled, but intriguing performance.

Balčus’ talents are not limited to music – her design for the CD booklet is one of the most intricate and beautiful booklet designs in recent memory. Filled with photographs, drawings, translucent pages, and the song lyrics in various forms, it is clear that much preparation was put into this artistic presentation. The booklet provides a visual representation for many of the songs, and is appropriately whimsical and esoteric.

Conarium is an accomplished album from the young Latvian talent, engaging and involving the listener from its opening to its conclusion. The songs, though often eclectic and diverse, flow together to provide a thoroughly satisfying listening experience. Ranging from curious experiments to more traditional melodic and vocal approaches, Elizabete Balčus displays an extensive creativity throughout the album, not just in the vocals and lyrics, but in the album booklet as well.

For further information, please visit Elizabete Balčus’ website.

Elizabete Balčus

Conarium
Liminal Noise Tapes, 2016

Track listing:

      1. Out
      2. Tourist
      3. Behind the Castle
      4. Negribas iet gulēt
      5. They’re coming
      6. Jellyfish
      7. The Moon Asked the Crow
      8. Monument
      9. Purple & Gold
      10. Dusk & Recession
      11. Vienīgais ceļš
      12. Luna City
      13. The Hanging Garden

Egils Kaljo is an American-born Latvian from the New York area . Kaljo began listening to Latvian music as soon as he was able to put a record on a record player, and still has old Bellacord 78 rpm records lying around somewhere.