Estonia rejects tax cut sought by concert organisers

Estonia’s Ministry of Culture does not plan to seek a lower value-added tax rate for cultural event tickets, despite concert and festival organisers warning that even well-attended events can end in losses, ERR reported.

Several internationally known artists have performed in Estonia this summer, with more concerts still scheduled. The country is also hosting numerous music festivals aimed at different audiences, featuring both local and international performers.

However, some well-publicised festivals have struggled to attract audiences. Several organisers have decided to refund ticket buyers and cancel their events.

Music agency Estonian Funk Embassy cancelled EFEFEST, which was due to take place for the first time in August. Only a few dozen people had bought tickets several months before the event. The programme was to include Lexsoul Dancemachine, EiK and RETI, while Culture Minister Heidy Purga was also scheduled to perform as a DJ.

“Interest in tickets has been lower than expected and the risk of jeopardising the embassy’s future is too high. The main reason is probably that we were late in announcing and marketing the event,” the agency said on social media.

The Suvealguse festival, scheduled for June in Elva, and the Samura festival, planned for early August, were also cancelled because of low ticket sales.

The cancellations do not indicate that interest in hearing Estonian and international artists is low, said Silvia Käsk, head of the live-music branch of Music Estonia.

According to Statistics Estonia data from 2023, 79 percent of residents took part in cultural life and 47.4 percent attended at least one concert, Käsk said. She said the figures showed that interest in culture remained high.

At the same time, the large number of events has created intense competition for audiences, she said. Concerts and festivals compete with one another as well as with other cultural and sporting events.

“Not all projects can be equally successful, and organisers must invest increasingly in high-quality programmes, targeted marketing and creating a good visitor experience,” Käsk said.

She said the Estonian market had not exhausted its potential, but identified high ticket prices and a difficult economic environment as problems.

A recent Culture Ministry survey of people who do not visit cultural institutions found that many would like to participate more in cultural life. For concertgoers, the main barriers included high prices, additional costs such as transport and accommodation, lack of time or interest, difficult transport and the availability of alternative activities, Käsk said.

She said this showed that organisers had not yet reached all potential domestic audiences. In addition to attracting foreign visitors, it was important to reduce the barriers keeping Estonian residents away from cultural events.

“The question is therefore not so much whether too many concerts are taking place in Estonia, but whether a sustainable economic environment has been created for organising them and whether people can afford to take part in culture,” Käsk said.

Maria Leis, communications director of Eesti Kontsert, an organisation focused on classical music, said the latest Eurostat data pointed to overproduction in the creative sector, particularly when the population’s purchasing power is below the European Union average.