Back in 2002, when the organizers of the new music festival Jauna muzika (Young Music) decided to change its mission and make it a forum for electronic, electro-acoustic music and multimedia, it was the first of its kind in Lithuania. Since then, the Lithuanian electronic scene has diversified in a host of events and festivals ("Baltas triukšmas", "Garso zona", "Elektrodienos", etc), covering both experimental sound art and more dance-oriented varieties of e-music. The "Jauna muzika" festival still preserves its leadership in presenting electronic and electro-acoustic works by composers of academic background, but also explores many other domains of electronic arts – from improvisational/intuitive music to sound and video installations to noise and experimental DJ'ing.
One can hear all that diversity in this year's festival on April 15-20, including the classics of Lithuanian post-minimalism (Ričardas Kabelis and Rytis Mažulis), the heroes of Lithuanian post-experimental jazz (Juozas Milašius and Liudas Mockūnas), the forefront explorers of algorithmic sound programming (Vytautas V. Jurgutis and Luca Pavan), the brave nomads migrating between the academic composition and underground clubbing (Antanas Jasenka and Gintaras Sodeika), and the internationally most-wanted Lithuanian IDM/experimental electronica artists (Skardas and Atrac). Many of the festival's activities will extend beyond its main venues, embracing club performances, multimedia installations and objects, lectures and meetings.
Among the international artists, the festival's highlights will include the multimedia wizards Phill Niblock from the USA and Edwin van der Heide from The Netherlands, the pathfinders of networked improvisation and interactive web-art Farmersmanual from Austria, and the noise legend Merzbow from Japan.
© Linas Paulauskis
Lithuanian Music Link No. 8
