Temporary exhibitions
Jazz Idealism 1967
Tallihoone
Jazz Idealism 1967
11.5.2021 - 3.10.2021

The idea for the exhibition “Jazz Idealism 1967” comes from the Tallinn '67 jazz festival. Through the recollections of the festival participants, the visitor is invited on an audio-visual journey, where against the historical background to the event, we are called to consider timeless topics such as idealism and reality and the relationship between power and the human spirit, and to reflect on what it means to be human.

Every night between 11 and 14 May 1967 the Kalev Sports Hall was filled with 3,000 listeners who had gathered to enjoy the Tallinn ‘67 jazz festival. More than 25 ensembles from both the Soviet Union and abroad had joined the jazz celebration. The event has left a mark that transcends the boundaries of time and place, which speaks of its legendary status, influence and historical significance.

The exhibition “Jazz Idealism 1967” focuses on the people who took part in the festival, for whom jazz was a world-view, an ideal and a lifestyle, as well as the basis of their ethics and self-realisation. At the exhibition venue, the stable building at Maarjamäe Castle, a spatial whole is created using short videos, music and installations of recycled instruments, in which, against the background of the festival as a historical event, the visitor can reflect on timeless topics of idealism and reality, the relationship between power and the human spirit and what it means to be human. In addition to the exhibition, the project will include a jazz parade, a jam session at the exhibition opening and a series of concerts in collaboration with Jazz Estonia.

The idea of the exhibition is based on the materials collected by the curator of the exhibition, music historian Heli Reimann, in the course of her research on the Tallinn ‘67 festival and a soon to be published monograph about the event. The programmes and activities accompanying the exhibition are managed by Risto Lehiste, head of the Chamber of Celebrities in Estonian Music.