Mėnuo Juodaragis ( en, Black-Horned Moon or Moon of the Black Horn, sometimes abbreviated as BHM (''MJR'')) is an annual Baltic culture, alternative music,

folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has ...

and experimental music festival organized in

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

. It has been running since 1995 and is visited by 5,000 to 6,000 people each year, making it one of the biggest and oldest festivals in Lithuania. The festival's programme includes lectures by folklorists and

historians A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the st ...

, workshops and demonstrations by

artisans An artisan (from french: artisan, it, artigiano) is a skilled craft worker who makes or creates material objects partly or entirely by hand. These objects may be functional or strictly decorative, for example furniture, decorative art, ...

(

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such as gates, gr ...

s, leatherworkers, weavers, jewellers, dyers and others), traditional rites, historical reenactments, art exhibitions,

film screening A film screening is the displaying of a motion picture or film, generally referring to a special showing as part of a film's production and release cycle. To show the film to best advantage, special screenings may take place in plush, low seat-cou ...

s, hikes,

sports competition Competition is a rivalry where two or more parties strive for a common goal which cannot be shared: where one's gain is the other's loss (an example of which is a zero-sum game). Competition can arise between entities such as organisms, indi ...

s and folk dancing.

History

The festival was initiated in 1997 as a spontaneous one-day gathering of several young people and their friends in Verbiškės village, Molėtai District,

, where it was organized biennially until 1999. The festival later moved to Sudeikiai, a settlement near Utena town, where it took place from 2000 to 2002. Since then the timing of the festival also became fixed on the last weekend of August. Then in 2003–2005, Mėnuo Juodaragis was held in Kernavė, the medieval capital of the

Grand Duchy of Lithuania The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state that existed from the 13th century to 1795, when the territory was Partitions of Poland, partitioned among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Empire, Habsburg Empire of ...

. After a break in 2006 for financial and organisational reasons, the festival chose an island in Zarasas Lake in Zarasai town as the location for the 2007 festival. In 2011 Mėnuo Juodaragis returned to Lake Zarasas and the 12th festival was dedicated to sutartinės, Lithuanian ancient polyphonic singing. The theme of the 13th festival in 2012 was birds and

aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' includes airplane, fixed-wing and helicopter, rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as aerostat, lighter- ...

and it was once again organized in Lake Zarasas. An air balloon race was held during the festival, as well as a nighttime balloon parade. Duburys1

The 14th Mėnuo Juodaragis was dedicated to

Latvians Latvians ( lv, latvieši) are a Baltic ethnic group and nation native to Latvia and the immediate geographical region, the Baltics. They are occasionally also referred to as Letts, especially in older bibliography. Latvians share a common L ...

, the other surviving Baltic people, and the unity of Baltic people, featuring an extensive list of Latvian bands, such as Iļģi, Auļi,

Skyforger Skyforger is a heavy metal band from Latvia which was formed in 1995 out of the remains of doom metal band Grindmaster Dead. Musical style and lyrical themes Most of their songs are about Baltic mythology and warfare; they also play Latvian ...

, Vilki, Grodi and Dzelzs Vilks, as well as Latvian artisans and lecturers. The main theme of the 19th festival in 2016 was "Home", according to the organizers not only in the physical sense but also in a spiritual meaning. That year Mėnuo Juodaragis took place on an island in Dūburys Lake,

Zarasai District Zarasai District Municipality is one of 60 municipalities in Lithuania. It borders with Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latve ...

and the headliner was Slovenian avant-garde music group Laibach. The 20th edition of Mėnuo Juodaragis returned to the island in Dūburys Lake. The festival was dedicated to

Baltic Baltic may refer to: Peoples and languages *Baltic languages, a subfamily of Indo-European languages, including Lithuanian, Latvian and extinct Old Prussian *Balts (or Baltic peoples), ethnic groups speaking the Baltic languages and/or originatin ...

god of thunder Perkūnas and was headlined by

Nordic folk music Nordic folk music includes a number of traditions of Nordic countries, especially Scandinavian. The Nordic countries are Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland. The many regions of the Nordic countries share certain traditions, man ...

group Wardruna. The 21st edition of Mėnuo Juodaragis in 2018 took place at the complex of Molavėnai Castle Mounds. In early 2019 the organizers announced an interlude and that the next festival will be held from 27 to 30 of August 2020.

Organisers and supporters

Mėnuo Juodaragis is organised by the Lithuanian record label and non-profit public institution "Baltijos Griaustinis". Since 2002, the festival is partially supported by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania, as well as the Department of UNESCO Cultural Management at

Vilnius Academy of Arts The Vilnius Academy of Arts ( lt, Vilniaus dailės akademija, previously ''State Art Institute of Lithuania'') in Vilnius, Lithuania, grants a variety of degrees in the arts. History The Academy traces its roots back to the creation of the Arch ...

, other cultural institutions, enterprises, media channels, and private persons.

List of festivals

References

External links

Official Mėnuo Juodaragis website

Official Mėnuo Juodaragis YouTube channel
*Povilas Vaitkevičius (January–December 2015)
The Black-Horned Moon Festival: Change is Life
. World New Music Magazine (No. 18). Music Information Centre Lithuania. {{DEFAULTSORT:Menuo Juodaragis Folk festivals in Lithuania Experimental music festivals Neofolk Recurring events established in 1995 1995 establishments in Lithuania Annual events in Lithuania Modern paganism in Lithuania Modern pagan music festivals