The Baltic Student Song and Dance Festival "Gaudeamus" in Daugavpils. Culture news

Next year, on June 27 and 29, Daugavpils will host 17th Baltic Students' Song and Dance Festival "Gaudeamus". Such a decision was made by the Ministry of Education and Science in early June after receiving Jelgava’s, Liepaja’s, Rezekne’s and Daugavpils proposal.

On Wednesday, June 24, working group created by the Ministry of Education and Science visited Daugavpils. During the meeting in Daugavpils City Council, guests informed the municipal representatives of the preparatory work already accomplished and discussed future course of action.

Deputy Director of National Centre for Education  Agra Bērziņa told that the contest on the 17th Baltic Students' Song and Dance Festival "Gaudeamus" logo has finised, the most interesting logo was created by a student Egija Gribuste from Liepaja University. Substantial efforts are currently put at planning the celebration program. The Festival will bring together around 5000 participants from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Expenses for organizing this event are colculated from the budget of Ministry of Education and Science.

The Chief producer of the festival Jānis Siliņš presented the main event plan, arguing that the main goal while creating the concept of festive was not to duplicate the traditional song and dance celebration, but to project it as an independent festival. City streets, squares, cultural and sports facilities will be used for festival activities. For the first time in Students Music Festival history, classical academic music concert will be held with the participation of all three Baltic States collectively. The event program is very diverse and interesting - choirs, dance groups, brass bands, different musical direction group concerts, walk of participns on Rigas Street and march of student fraternities from Daugavpils University to Daugavpils Fortress, an open-air cinema evenings, theater performances, art exhibitions. The celebration will be closed by the great concert on bandstand Stropi.

The City Council first Deputy Chairman Jānis Dukšinskis opined that this high level of organization of the event is a big challenge for Daugavpils, as before the Student Song Festival has taken place mainly in the capital city. Daugavpils municipality is ready to engage in festivity organization, providing the necessary infrastructure and the allocation of funding, ensuring security and order during the feast.

Next festival organizing comittee working group meeting will take place on October 16, in Daugavpils, with the Estonian and Lithuanian representatives.

Information prepared by the Public Relations Department