The Blue Bird Festival is the best example of how a simple idea can arise to become one of the most exciting events of the country. Organized by the Vienna Songwriting Association and the Porgy & Bess, the annual festival gathers top-class international and local representatives of the contemporary singer/songwriter scene. In addition to the musical delectations, the audience also gets a superior insight into the current trends of this multi-faceted music genre. The three-day festival starts on the 24th of November.
Seven years have passed since a small circle of music lovers gave birth to the idea of hosting a tribute evening on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of songwriter Nick Drake’s death. The lively interest of the musicians to participate on this event and a sold-out Porgy & Bess reaffirmed the organizers in their decision to turn the Blue Bird Festival into a yearly event. The rest is history. Ever since, the event has established itself as a true benchmark in the local concert calendar. As a consequence of the enormous success of the festival, the organizers also founded the Vienna Songwriting Association. The main aim of this association is to map out the singer/songwriter genre in all its facets.
Yet again, this is exactly what this year’s festival is going for. Fans of sophisticated pop music can look forward to a total of 15 outstanding and exciting acts, ranging from traditional approaches on nu-folk, lo-fi and noir rock to new innovative sophisticated sounds. As usual, the performing artists come from all over the globe, including Britain, the United States, Iceland, Israel, Canada, Germany, from the Faroe Islands and South Africa. Of course the program will not be missing representatives of the local scene.
Among others, artists such as Pascal Pinon, Rykarda Parasol, Dear Reader, Asaf Avidan, Carla Bozulich’s Evangelista, Mika Vember, Wendy McNeill, Rae Spoon, Erland & The Carnival, L/O/N/G, Tunng and Flotation Toy Warning will be giving us the honors. All in all, the organizers of the Blue Bird Festival have once again succeeded in setting up a program open to all directions and offers something for all music lovers.
Thursday, 11/24/11, 7:30 p.m.
L/O/N/G (A/US)
Erland & The Carnival (UK)
Pascal Pinon (IS)
Budam (FO)
Mika Vember (A)
Friday, 11/25/11, 7:30 p.m.
Carla Bozulich’s Evangelista (US)
Dear Reader (ZA)
Rykarda Parasol (US)
Wendy McNeill (CAN)
Norman Palm (DE)
Saturday, 11/26/11, 7:30 p.m.
Tunng (UK)
Flotation Toy Warning (UK)
Asaf Avidan (IL)
Rae Spoon (CAN)
Woodpigeon (CAN)
(Photo: Rykarda Parasol ©)