Radiohead’s Ed O’Brien joins the line-up of speakers for the Tallinn Music Week conference
Ed O’Brien. Photo: Getty
Radiohead’s guitarist Ed O’Brien is revealed as the speaker for the Tallinn Music Week (TMW) conference, scheduled to take place in Nordic Hotel Forum, Tallinn on 12th – 13th May.
As guitarist and backing vocalist for Radiohead, Ed O’Brien developed a distinctive textural style that served as a sonic cornerstone of the group’s influential albums OK Computer (1997) and Kid A (2000). In 2020 Ed released his first solo album Earth which fused together elements of folk, electronica, and indie rock with his signature atmospheric guitar.
O’Brien has contributed to the soundtrack for the BBC drama series Eureka Street and toured with Neil Finn as part of the 7 Worlds Collide project. He is a founding director of the Featured Artists Coalition, a nonprofit organisation that protects the rights of artists in the digital age and has contributed to Ear Opener, an online course aimed at helping young people to write music. He has worked with Fender to design a signature model guitar, the EOB Stratocaster. In 2010, Rolling Stone named O’Brien the 59th greatest guitarist of all time. Along with the other members of Radiohead, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2019.
At the TMW conference, O’Brien will talk about Radiohead’s pioneering carbon-neutral agenda and “pick your own price” strategy, as well as the importance of civic engagement and mental health for musicians.
Ed O’Brien will join the impressive line-up of the TMW 2023 conference that includes Grammy-winning producer and arranger Jason Miles, CEO of the world-famous Wisseloord Studios Malik Berrabah, CEO of In Place of War Ruth Daniel, Programming Director of Ukrainian Atlas Festival Vlad Yaremchuk, Director of the Swedish Center for Digital Innovation Johan Magnusson, CEO of Estonian fair trade streaming platform Fairmus Reigo Ahven and many others. More info
The TMW 2023 conference focuses on current breakthroughs and future scenarios in music and culture through three main thematic tracks: Co-creation, Connected World and Sustainable Future. Among the topics to be addressed are human and AI relations, digital literacy, the future of radio, music education trends, the new solutions for live touring, and the role of curators as cultural mediators. A closer look will be taken at the Baltic region and Poland, and local interpretations of global trends. More info
TMW will host the first dialogue in a series of Music Moves Europe meetings at major music conferences in Europe to strengthen the exchange on EU-related matters within the music sector and with its professionals.
The full programme and speakers’ line-up for the TMW 2023 conference will be published gradually from February to April.
TMW 2023 passes are on sale at the TMW webshhop.
The PRO Pass, which grants access to both the music festival and the conference, is available for 175 euros, raising to 200 euros during the festival week. The TMW PRO programme offers inspiration, practical activities and networking opportunities to over 1000 international music industry professionals, artists, entrepreneurs and policymakers.
The selection of passes also includes Festival Pass which grants access to the music festival events, and DigiPRO Pass, which provides online access to the conference.
About Tallinn Music Week
Tallinn Music Week (TMW) is one of the most acclaimed new music and city culture festivals and key networking events for music and creative industry professionals across Europe, held annually in the capital of Estonia, Tallinn since 2009. The festival consists of three main programme elements: music festival, conference and city festival.
TMW 2023 is organised by Shiftworks with various partners and co-organisers. The conference programme is completed in collaboration with the national music industry development centre and export office Music Estonia.
The festival is supported by Nordic Hotel Forum, the Ministry of Culture, the Cultural Endowment, the city of Tallinn, and UNESCO City of Music Tallinn.
TMW is a co-founder of The Federation of International Music Conferences (FoMC), and a member of the European talent exchange programme ESNS Exchange, the global gender equality network Keychange and the European showcase platform for world music UPBEAT.