AVA Festival and Conference has been a highlight moment in the calendar for any electronic music fan or aspiring industry professional since its inception in 2014. With the main event moving to September for 2021 and with the support from the Arts Council NI, AVA will host a packed day of online performances and conversations on Friday 28th May to mark the usual AVA Festival and Conference flagship weekend. Staying true to the quality standard of creativity, AVA pulls together a serious selection of talent from Belfast and beyond including Annie Macmanus and Max Cooper heading up talks and conversations, plus Holly Lester, Robbie Kitt, Visual Spectrum and Kev Freeney who’ll be collaborating on DJ sets and mesmerising visual performances representing the true AVA experience. All of the day’s events can be streamed for free at avafestival.com, a taster for the full AVA experience to follow in September.
Representing the arm of the AVA Conference will be a series of curated conversations, where audiences are invited to learn from industry leaders and artists alike. A highlight talk will be Annie Macmanus in conversation with Seamas O’Reilly; where one of the nations favourite broadcasters and curators will be touching on the theme of evolution within careers and art – delving into Annie’s transitions from Dublin to Belfast to London and DJ/broadcasting superstardom, and now to Author & Podcaster. As an ex-student of Queen’s University, Annie will also be touching on her relationship with Belfast in her discussion with Seamas filmed at the House of St Barnabas.
Also part of the program is AVA favourite Max Cooper, who’ll deliver a workshop around his Yearning For The Infinite project. Plus, there’ll be a panel on ‘DIY Release Strategies 101’ digging deep into the strategic side of release campaigns. Plenty for artists and next-generation industry heads to learn from throughout the day.
‘Annie Mac’s career and what she has done for the industry, particularly females, is staggering. Her transition from DJ to Radio and now Author is inspiring and a story we want to know more about! I am thrilled that we have her on board, alongside the very talented Max digging deep into his Visual Album ‘Yearning for the Infinite’, Robbie & Kevin Freeney’s Live show, Holly Lester and Visual Spectrum and a panel not to be missed for those planning their first release. The day is packed with unmissable content, to celebrate our annual AVA fix!’
Recorded live from Portview Trade Centre’s Banana Block, AVA’s live streamed performances will come in the form of R. Kitt Live A/V Show with visuals from Kev Freeney (Algorithm) and Holly Lester teaming up with Visual Spectrum to create two AV art x music explorations that will ring true to the usual AVA Festival experience. Mainstays of the AVA line-ups, this group of talent represent all that is bright about the current and future of Belfast’s exciting movement right now.
“The idea behind this performance was to create a real live connection between the visuals and music. It’s hard to transport people out of their mind and body when they’re watching you through a screen. We hoped that with both Kev and myself performing live, feeding off each other’s sound and visuals, we could create something truly immersive. The visuals are envisaged to move off the screen, the colours and abstract imagery filling the space along with the sound. All of it is generated from live video recording of the performance. Our perception through technology is so two2- dimensional. We wanted to add more depth to that.” – Robbie Kitt
Recorded at Portview Trade Centre, a re-developed spinning mill in East Belfast with a 110-year history, Portview was once the largest mill of its kind in the world and was also a centre of innovation for manufacturing and new technology. The Banana Block is a new living museum and venue celebrating Belfast’s histories and futures.
The performances and conversations will be available to AVA’s online community on May 28th 2021 from 21.00pm, available across avafestival.com, Youtube and Facebook.
To get the most of the experience AVA encourages you to link up sound systems and big screens to create the best set up you can!
Sign up at www.avafestival.com to keep updated
AVA Online May 2021 is supported by Arts Council Northern Ireland. **Insert Arts Council Quote**
AVA is launching a new content platform via the avafestival.com website that will be a hub to all recorded live performances, workshops, mixes, playlists and more. AVA’s platform will continually be updated with new content, as well as allow AVA fans to access recordings from previous years conferences and performances, as a celebration of what AVA has done since its inception and to share the knowledge base across an ever-evolving digital world.
View the content platform here > https://avafestival.com/gallery/
AVA’s main festival event will take part across the 24th-25th September for 2021, leading the way forward for the return of the Electronic live event sector in Northern Ireland. As always, the programme will shine a light on the best in local talent and International heavy weights; artists include Berlin Techno duo Fjaak, one of the world’s leading electronic live acts KiNK (Live), who’ll return after an amazing Samba band collaboration at 2018’s AVA. Also joining with raw, angular techno energy is Helena Hauff, disco queen Jayda G, plus Dutch female forces Carista & KIKI. Revered duo Optimo return, a regular on the AVA roster, these guys capture the spirit of Northern Ireland with their eclectic electronic selections. Derry Native and long-term AVA family Or:la, Hammer and Cromby all return, plus revered techno helmsman Sunil Sharpe. Another set of female powerhouses who’ll take to the decks are AVA are super-selectors Saoirse and Sally C, plus many more.
Weekend tickets are almost sold out, so reserve one now at Avafestival.com to save a place at 2021’s show. After a year out, AVA are excited to welcome dancers back to their flagship event. See you on the dance floor.
AVA ONLINE : MAY 2021
28th May 2021
WATCH LIVE AT WWW.AVAFESTIVAL.COM
Recorded live from Portview Trade Centre
– Robbie Kitt Live A/V Show with visuals from Kev Freeney (Algorithm)
– Holly Lester performance with visuals from Visual Spectrum
– Annie Macmanus in Conversation with Seamas O’Reilly
– Max Cooper Yearning For The Infinite Workshop
DIY: Release Strategies 101
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