Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk

The International Festival of Arts "Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk" (Belarusian: Міжнародны фестываль мастацтваў «Славянскі базар у Віцебску», Ukrainian: Міжнародний фестиваль мистецтв «Слов'янський базар», Russian: Международный фестиваль искусств "Славянский базар в Витебске") is an annual festival held in Vitebsk, Belarus under the auspices of the Belarussian Government since 1992. Its main program is devoted to Slavic music. The main participants are artists from Russia, Belarus and Ukraine, with guests from many other countries, both Slavic and non-Slavic. It is a member of the International Federation of Festival Organizations (FIDOF) since 1998.

The festival was awarded the diploma 'FIDOF Festival of the Year 2000' "for impeccable quality of organization, professionalism, hospitality, and promotion of noble humanistic aims on the international level", 'FIDOF Festival of the Year 2004' and other awards.

The Contest

During the festival the contest of young singers under the name "Vicebsk" is held . It has two stages, each held in a separate day. In the first day the contestants should perform the song in a national language of the country the contestant represents. All vocals are sung live using backing track. In the second day the contestants perform the song written by a composer from any Slavic country in any of the Slavic languages. On this stage all vocals must be sung live with the National Concert Orchestra of Belarus under Mikhail Finberg's conduction. The final decision is made by the international jury usually consisting of 10 people who are usually the former winners of the contest, the former contestants or the other celebrities. After the performance each jury gives points from 0 to 10 (although the nil has never actually been given). At the end of the second day all the points are summed up and the Grand Prix winner and other places holders are defined.

The most successful country in the contest of young talents that is held during the festival is Ukraine having a record of five wins. During the first six years of the existence of the contest Ukrainian performers shared the dominance with Yugoslavian ones. The festival also became a startpoint in the careers of such singers as Ruslana, Taisia Povaliy, Toše Proeski, Pyotr Elfimov and Željko Joksimović.

Children's Contest Winners

Children's contest during the festival in Vicebsk was first held in 2003 thus becoming one of the stages of expansion of the cultural and artistic diversity of the event. It has also become one of the main events in the East European countries for children performs who are making their way to Junior Eurovision Song Contest.

References

External links

• Slavianski Bazaar website
• News of Slavianski Bazaar