Tartu Folk 2025

Tartu Folk is a folklore festival dedicated to creating bonds between different Tartu and European folklore groups and sharing local culture with one another and with the audience. The festival will host concerts, dance workshops and music workshops.

The first festival organised by Folklore Club Maatasa took place in 2016, intending to connect and bond with other communities of youth specializing in authentic folklore. Back then, the festival was named Tartu Youth Folklore Festival. In 2020, however, it was impossible to organise a live event due to COVID restrictions. Hence, an alternative solution was brought to life – an international competitive web show called Tartu Folk-Off, which garnered much attention. Once COVID restrictions were cancelled, the organisers combined the concepts of a web show and live festival into one, creating what we now know as Tartu Folk.

The Festival Tartu Folk will take place in November, a time of spirits, during which the connection between us and our ancestors’ songs, tunes, and dances is vital and valuable. This festival will bring light and warmth to our hearts during the darkest time of the year. The festival’s main keywords and symbols are: fire, youth, and the heritage of our ancestors.

Photos of the festival in 2024. Photographer: Peeter paaver

“Veere, veere päeva” (“Roll, roll along, oh day!”) is a music video produced by Folklore Club Maatasa about the traditions of St Martin’s and St Catherine’s day. It is a common belief that these figures roaming around on these dates are our ancestors’ souls.