Vavilov urges audiences to experience music live

Professor Toomas Vavilov says audiences gain more from experiencing music in person, telling ERR’s Vikerraadio radio station that concerts can leave people emotionally richer.

The Estonian Performers’ Week festival will run from November 9 to 15, bringing 10 concerts and more than 50 musicians to audiences in Tallinn and Narva. Its main aim is to showcase skilled Estonian performers, Vavilov said.

“We have to be close to the listener and play our way straight into their heart,” said Vavilov, a professor at the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre and a board member of the Estonian Performers’ Union.

He said direct contact with art was essential, adding that listening to music through streaming platforms could not match the experience of attending a concert. Being there and reflecting on it afterwards, he said, gives the experience meaning and can prompt people to think.

Vavilov said music can offer people a glimpse of a better world, take them away for a while and leave them with something to consider. He also said Estonia’s music scene was more diverse than ever, while performers had been strong across generations.