25.08.2017
Text: Cem Kayıran
As the Akbank Sanat Nordic Film Days approaches, we are taking a look at the Scandinavian festivals, which present a showcase of various cultures. From theatre, music and photography to science, make sure to keep in mind our 10 festival suggestions for your next trip to Scandinavia.
Gothenburg Culture Festival
Gothenburg Culture Festival, one of the most important city festivals of Sweden, fills the streets of the fourth biggest city of Sweden, Gothenburg, with works from various disciplines of art and host over one million of guests over a five day period. Taking place between 14th and 19th August this year, the festival’s program includes everything that comes to mind when we hear the word festival: opera, visual arts, theatre, local food and much more.
Pstereo
Taking place in a coastal town of Norway, Trondheim, Pstereo is a three-day music festival. The festival presents the best reason to visit this town - also known as the Town of Viking Kingdom – with a two hundred thousand population and its line-up is shaped by the suggestions and wishes of the locals. To experience a local festival with an unmatched atmosphere, make sure to mark Pstereo, which has exciting names such as Tom Odell, Sepultura, Mount Kimbie and Kraftwerk, on your calendar.
Folk Festival
Iceland’s most culturally advanced and touristic city Reykjavík is also the city that hosts the majority of the country’s festivals. Folk Festival, which takes places in the small fisher town of Siglufjörður, however; offers an extensive look at the rural life and culture of the country. Concerts, panels and talks that spread all over the town, together with various examples of local handmade crafts and arts are expecting the visitors at Folk Festival, which is organized for the 19th time.
Gladmat
Meet the biggest food festival of Scandinavia: Gladmat. The festival, taking place in the southwest town of Normay, Stavanger; offers various dishes from all over the world. We cannot think of a more delicious reason to visit Norway! We should not that Gladmat means ‘‘happy meal’’ in Norwegian. Gladmat is a festival where you can take walks around 19th Century wooden houses and taste food from various cuisines.
Flow Festival
Flow Festival, which takes place in Finnish city Helsinki, comes forward among this summer’s European festivals with its impressive line-up. Receiving high acclaim from various music media, the festival spreads over tens of venues all over the city. One of Flow’s most characteristic features is the award winning Balloon 360 stage, which was built in 2012 and offers a spectacular view of the city. We hear you asking about this year’s line up… Just to name a few: Patti Smith, Bonobo, Kendrick Lamar, St. Vincent, Fever Ray, Kamasi Washington and more!
Parkteatern
With a history dating back to 1940’s, Parkteatern is an open-air theatre festival that spreads all over the parks of Sweden’s capital, Stockholm. The festival takes place during three summer months with classic and modern plays from various theatre companies, including many English language ones. While Parkteatern started off with theatre as its main focus, over the years it expanded into other performance arts, like circus acts and traditional Swedish dances.
Copenhagen Photo Festival
Exhibitions, workshops, special tours and panels… Copenhagen Photo Festival takes place in Danish capital Copenhagen and offers tens of interesting photography activities as well as many spots to visit. Festival spans over ten days with exhibitions at various galleries and venues, exposing works from over three thousand artists to the festival audience. The biggest photography event of Scandinavia, Copenhagen Photo Festival will take place between 7th and 17th June this year.
Melafestivalen
A three-day free of charge festival at the heart of Oslo, Melafestivalen was founded to celebrate the cultural diversity of the city. Highlighting the cultural richness that comes with migration, the festival employs music to bring people together. While a special line-up called Melahuset provides a platform for the music bands and musicians of the city’s immigrants, the wide selection of performances from various music genres makes Melafestivalen one of the most fun festivals of the region.
Bloom Festival
Bloom Festival, another festival from Copenhagen, focuses on a different subject and brings nature and science together. Inspired by and organized as a tribute to Danish scientists Niels Bohr and Tycho Brahe, the festival takes place at the Søndermarken Park in Frederiksberg. Bringing science out of laboratories and into the nature, the festival touches upon the relationships between science and different fields like art, food or philosophy. In the past years, Bloom hosted many important guests from various prestigious institutes and showcased innovative projects.
The Peer Gynt Festival
One of the most interesting festivals of the Scandinavians, who are very attached to their traditions and past, is definitely The Peer Gynt Festival. The festival, which includes theatre, music and nature experiences, is a celebration of Norwegian writer Henrik Ibsen’s 1867 five-act play in verse, Peer Gynt. Taking place in Gudbrandsalen Valley, where the protagonist of the play, Peer Gynt lived during 27th century, The Peer Gynt Festival offers a dreamlike experience in the memory of a local legend.