President Alar Karis announced the collection of stories ‘Vanavanema hääl’ as part of the Tartu 2024 Song and Dance Celebration
Tartu City Government Press Release
/ Today, President Alar Karis presented the Folklore Awards at the Estonian Literary Museum and announced ‘Vanavanema hääl’ – the call to collect ancestral stories – started by the Tartu 2024 Song and Dance Celebration. The purpose of the call is to invite Estonians to engage in more meaningful conversations with their ancestors in the title year of the Capital of Culture.
Tartu Dance Celebration is guided by the idea of ‘Juure juures’, which grew out of conversations between a granddaughter and her grandmother. ‘It is extremely important that different generations come together and talk to each other. The purpose of our call is to bring greater togetherness and more heart-to-heart conversations to Estonian families. Maintaining close relationships is one of the arts of survival for us to persevere,’ pointed out Kristel Maruste, artistic director of the dance celebration.
Participating is easy. For example, the conversation with the ancestor should be recorded on a phone in a noise-free environment and submitted using the participation form on kratt.folklore.ee/vanavanem. The content of the conversation is up to each family to decide for themselves. The audio clips presented during March may also be played at the Tartu Dance Celebration on 16 June. In this case, the submitter will be contacted beforehand.
The recordings will be stored in the Estonian Folklore Archive of the Estonian Literary Museum, where future generations will be able to listen to them. ‘We hope that the idea of being able to still hear the voice of our ancestors in fifty and one hundred years, and preserve family heritage, will inspire Estonians to join in the call and record their stories,’ Maruste added.
The call is being led by the Tartu 2024 Song and Dance Celebration, the European Capital of Culture Tartu 2024, and the Estonian Folklore Archive of the Estonian Literary Museum.
Read about participation: kratt.folklore.ee/vanavanem
Additional information: Tartu Dance Festival Project Manager Ave Rosenberg, [email protected], +372 5667 6882, tartulaulupidu.ee
Last changed 04.03.2024
