FAQ

The first step in securing a slot at TMW begins with registering your interest. TMW2018 application round starts on TMW website on September 1st, 2016. The programme jury, made up of leading promoters, festival organisers and music organisations in Estonia, representing virtually every genre and scene, from avant-garde to pop and from folk to classical music, select the artists from the long list of applications. We also gather suggestions from a wide variety of people, and, like any festival, we also book some carefully selected acts in addition to ones who apply, to ensure a program of the highest and most current grade.

Selection / programming starts right after the application deadline of November 1st 2017 and we will contact you in January 2018 by e-mail to let you know whether your act has been confirmed to the festival line-up. Those acts that are not selected will also receive notification by e-mail. Some acts will be on a reserve list until all the slots are filled.

Generally speaking – there are over 1000 applications for around 200 slots. There is always a fierce debate amongst the demo jury as to which acts are picked and often tough choices have to be made. Factors that come into play include: live experience, artistic development, genre represented by an act etc. The reason you were not picked, doesn’t necessarily come down to taste – more likely the jury had to make other choices this time around. Unsuccessful applicants are welcome to reapply next year as the jury often takes note of acts to check out next time around and sometimes a band is booked to TMW only after their third or even fourth application.

No, TMW is for acts from all around the world. As one of the missions of TMW is to promote and introduce new and promising Estonian music, majority of the acts performing at TMW are Estonian, but we have plenty of bands from the neighbouring countries, Scandinavia and elsewhere. At least 30 per cent of the final festival line up comprises of international acts.

It has never been the plan to put on only unsigned and unestablished acts, although over the years we have put on a fair few of them. Our main priority is to put on acts that are interesting and relevant, both for the Estonian and Baltic industry / media / general public and for our international delegates and visitors.

We will announce the Tallinn Music Week 2018 programme at the beginning of February 2018.

No. TMW does not pay performance fees or cover travel costs to any of the local or foreign acts. TMW has no headliners, but attempts to create equal opportunities to around 200 acts in lineup therefore we believe that the same rules and conditions have to apply to absolutely everyone. If we paid to any act, we should pay exactly the same amount to every single act in the programme and this would instantly mean we could not afford to make the festival happen. All ticket income (that forms around 10 per cent of the festival’s funding) and other private and public resources are needed to cover the costs of: venues, sound & light, conference, invited delegates’ travel and hotels, marketing, production and team.

This festival was founded with an aim to help artists to develop their careers and to introduce good music to new audiences. As long as there will be acts who think TMW could be useful to them, we’ll be happy to make it happen.

TMW works in cooperation with the clubs, bars and promoters of Tallinn. Like all other local promoters, we have to follow the Estonian law. The vast majority of the venues serve alcohol, and as such are not able to admit under-age customers. General rule is that venues and programmes that run after 23:00 have age limits of 18 yrs.

However, we have a City Stage programme, taking place during daytime in various venues all over the city (cafes, shopping malls, galleries, music & book shops etc), free of charge and accessible to everyone.

A list and map of TMW 2018 venues can be found on our website starting from February.

There are three types of passes available for the festival.

• Festival pass – the most affordable option to attend the city festival. Grants access to all the programme but conference.
• Priority pass – priority access to the shows.
• Delegates pass. Delegate pass grants priority access to the whole programme, including conference

Tickets for individual shows are on pre-sale at Piletilevi ticketing office and also on the door at each venue at the night of the show. Individual tickets are subject to capacity, with all pass holders enjoying priority entry over those queuing for an individual ticket.

Festival passes are sold at our webstore. Single tickets are sold at  Piletilevi from February 2018, also on the door at each venue at the night of the show.

The festival passes must be exchanged in advance for a wristband at the festival information point at Viru Keskus.

Festival passes must be exchanged for a wristband. The pass can be exchanged from Monday 27.03 to Saturday 01.04 at Viru Keskus TMW info point.
You will not be able to gain entry to any show without a wristband.

For registered conference delegates (delegate pass), wristband pickup is only at the information desk at Nordic Hotel Forum.

No, not if the venue is full. We can guarantee that there will always be spare capacity at some of the venues, but not at all of them all of the time. Some of the participating venues have a capacity as low as 50-100, making a guarantee of entry impossible. However, the delegates’ pass and festival pass owners + people who have purchased a single ticket in advance, have priority over the queue at the door.

It is important to arrive early if there is a band you absolutely must see. There is usually quite a bit of traffic flow from venue to venue, so if one band’s show is full, it is quite possible that people will leave after their set, enabling you to get in to see the next band, so sometimes it pays to queue a little.

To help everyone see a particular artist, some acts will play two shows on different days and/or at City stage programme.

Both. And more. Tallinn Music Week started out as music industry conference and new music festival in 2009. Today TMW is one of Europe’s leading city festivals with a carefully crafted line-up of various art forms for a curious mind. It is a celebration of creativity, curiosity, freedom and equality and one of the major meeting points for Eastern, Western and Central European music and creative communities.

The conference takes place at Nordic Hotel Forum conference centre. The hotel is conveniently placed in the heart of Tallinn.

The conference and constituent seminars are open to all, but are particularly aimed at the music industry. You must be a registered delegate and your registration paid up in full. If you are an artist, playing at the festival, you have to register your representer / manager as a delegate (1 delegate pass per artist is free).

Artist pass does not grant access to the conference, only delegate’s pass does.

Delegates must check in and pick up their wristband / pass at the TMW information desk in Nordic Hotel Forum lobby.

Opening times for the information desk TBA.

Unfortunately not. Admission to TMW is sold only as a package and only delegates have admission to the conference areas of the hotel.

TMW offers an early bird rate and lower prices to those who register early. There is a limited amount of student passes available with 50% discount from each price range.

Admission to the conference-only areas in the hotel, where both Estonian and international delegates congregate, all the seminars and other TMW activities. The delegate pass offers priority access to all the festival concert venues.

Artist passes do not give access to the conference and seminars, but each of the artists in the line up can select a representative (manager) to sign up as a delegate free of charge. In case there are band members interested to attend, they are of course welcome, but will have to buy a delegate’s pass.

Please send an e-mail to advertising@tmw.ee or call us at +372 672 6608.

Tallinn Music Week  is organised by Musiccase OÜ.

The event is financed with a help of various public supporters and private sponsors. The funding model of Tallinn Music Week will be uploaded shortly.

Yes. We need plenty of volunteers right before and during the event. The work itself is generally associated with marketing support, day-time seminars, ticket sales, production assistance in festival venues, logistics, transportation, artist hosts etc. Volunteers get free access to all TMW’s events during the festival.

For additional info, contact: volunteers@tmw.ee