Tallinn Music Week 2023 festival line-up revealed with 176 artists from 41 countries
The international new music festival Tallinn Music Week (TMW) is ready for the 15th edition, which will take place on 10th – 14th May. 175 artists from 41 countries are lined up to play in the capital of Estonia.
- TMW 2023 opens on Thursday, 11th May in the new pavilion of Tallinn Art Hall in Lasnamäe
- The music line-up features 176 artists from 41 countries
- Single tickets for the TMW 2023 showcase nights are on sale via Piletilevi
More info about artists and schedule.
TMW, the “festival for tomorrow’s music, arts and ideas” will celebrate its 15th edition from 10th to 14th May. The music festival starts on Thursday, 11th May in the new pavilion of Tallinn Art Hall in an actively developing district Lasnamäe near the Lennart Meri Tallinn Airport, opening the festival to new audiences and introducing the upcoming annual spring exhibition of the Estonian Artists’ Union.
The festival will then reach the picturesque Old Town, the hip Telliskivi Creative City and the Noblessner area, showcasing 176 artists of various genres from all over Europe, North and South America, Canada, Africa and the Middle East. The greatest share – 84 acts – is from Estonia, next up are Finland with 11, the United Kingdom with 9, Canada with 8, Latvia and Germany with 7, Ukraine with 6 and Lithuania, France and Sweden with 5 artists.
Some notable international acts in the line-up include Baltimore’s experimental producer Colloboh, young Swedish multi-talent Graham Lake, Berlin-based Finnish-Moldovan Personality Pop character PALMU, BBC Introducing’s inaugural ‘Scottish Act of the Year’ BEMZ, European talent festivals’ faves 52 Hertz Whale from Slovakia and K not K from Romania.
TMW is particularly thrilled to present Estonia’s versatile talent and the current state of its music industry. Among the 84 domestic artists are local favourites like Rita Ray and Karl Killing, Duo Ruut, Mart Avi, Shelton San and Kadri Voorand, all making waves also internationally, as well as new names poised to make an impact soon, such as Borm Bubu and Kitty Florentine.
Estonian record labels – Estonian Funk Embassy, Porridge Bullet and TIKS records –, festivals from Viljandi Folk to Intsikurmu Festival and Üle Heli, clubs from Sveta Baar to Club HALL, Philly Joe’s Jazz Club and brand new Paavli 7 are curating their TMW nights as well as organisations from Estonian Choir Association to Fenno-Ugria and Estonian Public Broadcaster Ráadio 2.
Celebrating its 30th birthday at TMW, Ráadio 2, aka “the voice of young Estonia”, presents their stellar range of acts at Vaba Lava in the Telliskivi Creative City – from Estonian alt-RnB star manna’s airy vocals and ever-changing beats to the synth-pop of Berliners Sweet Tempest and Lithuanian Ruta MUR.
“Booties shaken, souls stirred” is a proven formula for the Estonian Funk Embassy since 2016 and the line-up at the label’s TMW night follows this recipe to the teeth. On the soulful side is the local crown jewel Rita Ray and on the booty-shaking block are the Estonian pop-funk-disco combo Silky Steps and their counterpart from Ukraine Komisiia. Porridge Bullet label which has supplied record stores around the world with weird and wonderful electronic music releases since 2012 will present its best-in-show roster from the weird dance music masterclass of the label heads Ajukaja & Ats to the suave avant-pop of Mart Avi and the live debut by Estonian-Finnish producer duo LLL. TIKS rekords will also show off their top drawers – from RnB and neo-soul artist YASMYN to multi-talented singer-songwriter/producer Maris Pihlap.
The programme puts great emphasis on local manifestations of global music trends and traditional music both in its original form and modern remakes.
Dedicated to the International Decade of Indigenous Languages, the Fenno-Ugria night reveals the charm of the musical heritage of Finno-Ugric peoples. Rooted in tradition, these musicians, including Estonians Mari Kalkun and Duo Ruut create connections between the past and the present through vivid rhythms, captivating improvisations and diverse soundscapes. The folk and global music showcase co-curated by Viljandi Folk Music Festival unites Estonian folk surrealists Puuluup with guests from Cyprus to the Netherlands. Folktronica Stage, curated by Estonian collective OOPUS, showcases cross-genre and cross-medium artists who oscillate between pop, folk and electronica – from Estonian-Swiss Ingrid Lukas to Armenia’s armo-beat pioneers JINJ. Africa NOW! night shines a spotlight on the new diversity coming from Africa and its diaspora beyond folklore and roots music.
The slickest sounds and visions of the new glocal generation are presented at the Soda POP night in Uus Laine by the NME Award-winning Dystopian Pop visionary Pyra, genre-hopping Scottish rappers Bemz and Chef, and Estonia’s own San Hani whose hyper-hiphop transcends the pulse of modern Estonia.
One night in the Philly Joe’s Tallinn’s two-part programme is dedicated to women: “Jazz Is Her” showcase features, among others, Estonian composer and double bass player Mingo Rajandi and the Norwegian singer and composer Inger Nordvik. International gender equality initiative Keychange’s talent pool is represented by London’s Dystopian Pop producer Pyra, black-white binary-defying Italian R’n’B group Queen of Saba and Irish soul-pop artist Tolü Makay. Queer talent from around the world will be showcased at the KWEER AF night at Sveta Bar.
United By Noise night will present the cream of the Estonian noise rock scene from Zahir to Shelton San, who have recently recorded the BBC session. At the brand new venue Paavli 7, the Damn.Loud agency will join hands with the newly launched Estonian Heavy Music Association. In the heart of Estonian techno and electronic dance music, the infamous Club HALL club awaits tireless festival guests with parties curated by the club’s residents and the event series Dark Disko and Smoke Break.
TMW 2023 music programme curators are Estonian Public Broadcasting channel Raadio 2, Estonian record labels Estonian Funk Embassy, Porridge Bullet and TIKS rekords, music festivals Viljandi Folk Music Festival, Võnge Festival, Intsikurmu Festival, Üle Heli and Station Narva; clubs Sveta Baar, Philly Joe’s Jazz Club, Club HALL, Paavli 7, music organisations and companies Estonian Choral Association, Estonian Heavy Music Association, Fenno-Ugria, Smoke Break, World Clinic, OOPUS, Damn.Loud and Dark Disko. International curators are Latvian experimental music festival Skaņu mežs, the Canadian Estonian Music Week festival and music organisations The Women in Music Canada and Cindy & Kate.
Single tickets for TMW 2023 showcase nights at 15 – 25 euros are on sale via Piletilevi.
TMW 2023 Festival Pass at 70 euros (80 euros during the festival week) and PRO Pass at 175 euros (200 euros during the festival week), which grants access to both the music festival and the conference are on sale at the TMW webshop. The selection of passes also includes 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 festival is supported by Nordic Hotel Forum, the Ministry of Culture, the Cultural Endowment, the city of Tallinn, the UNESCO City of Music Tallinn, and Tallinn the Green Capital of Europe. The partners are Music Estonia, Fairmus, Viru Center, Telliskivi Creative City, Postimees, Öun Drinks, Go Travel, British Council Estonia, Nordic Council of Ministers’ Office in Estonia.
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.