Tallinn Music Week 2022 to take place in Tallinn and Narva

The international new music and city festival and music industry conference Tallinn Music Week (TMW) will take place in both the Estonian capital Tallinn and border city Narva. TMW 2022 will team up with the Station Narva festival for a unique cross-country experience. The joint event starts on 4 – 6 May in Tallinn and continues on 7 – 8 May in Narva. European Capital of Culture Tartu 2024 will also present a special programme at the upcoming festival. 

• TMW music programme presents 150 artists from around the world in two cities

• TMW conference hosts over 500 representatives of the international music industry 
• TMW 2022 is supported by the City of Narva, Culture & Sports Department – Tallinn, Ministry of Culture, Government Office and other partners
• Festival trains and shuttle schedules will take all guests from Tallinn and back

“On 24th February the world changed. And it concerns us all,“ comments Helen Sildna, the founder and director of both festivals. “TMW is taking place for the 14th time. Since 2018 we have also been organizing Station Narva in the easternmost border city of Estonia where the European Union starts from. TMW will take place in Tallinn and Narva as a statement of solidarity: each of us in Europe is as safe and strong as our border states and communities. We would like to invite you on a journey with us. We hope that it will be a unifying and insightful experience – proof of music and culture creating collaboration and solidarity. We are all connected. Unity is our defence.”

Sildna adds: “Our thoughts are with everyone in Ukraine, fighting for their lives in an unjust war by the Russian regime, as well as with artists and partners in Russia, many of them risking their livelihoods by protesting on the streets.”

“Music unites people, music is one of the best healers of political wounds,” says the Mayor of Narva Katri Raik. “That is why Tallinn Music Week is especially welcome in Narva. And it is also a time to say it out loud and proud that Narva, together with our good partners, will do everything to make Narva a European Capital of Culture in 2037.”

TMW is one of the most influential new music events in Europe that introduces music from Estonia and the entire Nordic-Baltic region. Estonia’s capital Tallinn which from this year bears the title of UNESCO City of Music will send a musical greeting to the eastern border of Estonia.

TMW 2022 starts on 4 – 6 May in Tallinn and continues on 7 – 8 May in Narva. The festival presents about 150 artists of various genres from all over Europe as well as from Canada, Africa and the Middle East. Concerts in Tallinn will take place from the picturesque Old Town to hip former industrial areas Telliskivi Creative City and Port Noblessner. A free concert by beloved Ukrainian artist Ivan Dorn, who will greet Ukrainian people who have fled the war, will open the music festival in Tallinn at Telliskivi Creative City.

In Narva, the music programme reaches from the beloved Art Club Ro-Ro and Culture House Rugodiv to the main stage presented by the Station Narva festival in the grand industrial complex of Kreenholm Manufactory, once home to the world’s largest cotton spinning mill. Saturday’s music programme in Narva will open in the Resurrection of Christ Orthodox Cathedral with the concert programme “Da pacem Domine” of Arvo Pärt’s compositions by the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, conducted by Tõnu Kaljuste. 

The music industry conference will take place on Friday, 6 May in Tallinn’s Nordic Hotel Forum and on Saturday, 7 May in Narva’s creative incubator OBJEKT and Vaba Lava centre at the LINDA 2 cultural complex. The main themes of the event range from the music and creative industries strategies to the sustainability of the music sector and the impact of music on social dialogue and human rights.

The city programme which takes place in both towns brings cultural experiences from art to public talks and kids & youth programme to a wide range of audiences. The joint festival will end in Narva on Sunday, 8 May with events in the community gardens and city parks – a long table brunch, music and planting.

TMW offers a 2-month sound residency for Ukrainian musicians that enables them to live with their families in Estonia, make music in the local sound studios and work in Tallinn’s Telliskivi Creative City. As part of the TMW kids’ and youth programme, co-creation workshops in both cities will welcome children and adolescents who have escaped the war. A free concert by the popular Ukrainian artist Ivan Dorn, who will greet his compatriots who have fled the war, will open the music festival in Tallinn at Telliskivi Creative City on Thursday, 5 May. More info on how to support Ukraine.

TMW 2022 schedule:

• Wednesday, 4 May: kids’ and youth programme and public talks in Tallinn
• Thursday, 5 May: TMW 2022 opening, music showcases and art gallery tour in Tallinn
•  Friday, 6 May: music industry conference in Nordic Hotel Forum and music showcases across Tallinn
• Saturday, 7 May: music industry conference in OBJEKT multimedia hub, free city festival events and music showcases across Narva, incl. Station Narva main stage in Kreenholm, a former textile factory from the 19th century.
• Sunday, 8 May: events in Narva’s community gardens and city parks

TMW 2022 music programme will be announced on Tuesday, 29 March. The full TMW 2022 programme for conference and city events in Tallinn and Narva will be revealed gradually during March and April.

The special night train will run from Narva to Tallinn after the festival on Saturday, 7 May.
Shuttles between cities will also be provided to festival visitors.

 Held annually since 2009, 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 since 2018, Station Narva festival presents a top-level international music programme and offers the first-hand experience of local life and culture in Estonia’s easternmost city Narva.

TMW and Station Narva festivals are founded and run by Shiftworks. TMW 2022 edition unites the teams, partners and funders of both festivals, The joint festival is supported by the cities of Tallinn and Narva, the Government Office, the Ministry of Culture, the Cultural Endowment, Integration Foundation, Nordic Hotel Forum and Visit Estonia.

TMW’s diversity partner is Telia Eesti, strategic partner in the field of music is Music Estonia, partners and supporters Telliskivi Creative City, Viru Center, Go Travel, Ida-Viru Tourism Cluster and British Council. Media partners are Postimees, Kanal 2, Põhjarannik and Estonian Public Broadcasting channels Raadio 2 and Raadio 4.

TMW 2022 passes are on sale at shop.tmw.ee. The PRO Pass, which grants access both to the music festival and the conference, is on sale for 175 euros. The selection of passes also includes Festival Pass, which provides access to the music festival events, and DigiPRO Pass, which provides online access to the conference. The music showcase single tickets will go on sale at Piletilevi from 28 March.