Celebration of South Caucasian music in Tbilisi
By Christina Tashkevich
The Messenger, Georgia
June 14 2005
Last weekend musicians from the South Caucasus gathered in Tbilisi to
participate in an event organized by the British Council, the aim of
which was to build closer ties by sharing their experience and talent
and at the same time gaining contacts for the future.
Explaining the importance of the event the organizers of the conference
said there was previously “little history of local co-operation,”
despite the strong musical traditions and a great wealth of gifted
artists in the region.
At the conference participants discussed a variety of issues such as
independence from the government and surviving in a global market as
an artist, producer, or label company.
“If it’s a business, we need to earn money,” the Armenian delegate
Nika Babayan said at the conference session.
However, for many what is most important is the love of art and
entertainment; money comes second. Laurence Ball, CEO of Domino
Records, one of Britain’s leading independent labels and home to the
Scottish sensation Franz Ferdinand, says he established his independent
label because of his “love of music” and not because he saw it as a
business opportunity.
Domino Records, a company with a 10-year history has already sold
about 150 albums and 150 singles and has offices in the United States.
Other key conference speakers included Gavin Robertson, an expert in
rights issues with a special interest in the digital domain, Lucy Bird,
marketing manager of The Sage in Gateshead, which is Britain’s newest
large-scale music venue; and Nicola Curic from Serbia’s EXIT festival,
which has become a major European music event since its introduction
in 2000..
This year’s EXIT festival will feature Fatboy Slim and The White
Stripes. According to Curic, the festival has a certain social message,
every year using music to make people think about some of the most
acute problems in the country.
The first EXIT festival featured a campaign motivating people to
go and vote in elections against Slobodan Milosevic’s regime. Last
year’s message was to highlight the fight against human trafficking
and exploitation. “EXIT has contributed to changing the negative
image of Serbia and Montenegro,” Curic said at the conference.
Several local bands and musicians attended the conference, including
“Georgian Lemon Juice” and “Nikakoi,” who performed at the Noa Noa
club on Saturday.