For the 19th time, the international folklore festival "Pokrovo varpai" will delight its loyal audience with exceptional concerts, programmes and performances. The events will take place on 6-10 November at St Catherine's Church, Vilnius University and Vilnius Town Hall.

On 6 November, the festival will begin with a spectacular opening concert "Music for Gourmets". Lithuanian and foreign folklore groups will perform on the stage of St Catherine's Church . The audience will have the opportunity to enjoy unique examples of folk songs and traditional choreography performed by folklore ensembles from Armenia, Latvia, Poland, Lithuania, Norway, Sakartvel, Ukraine, Germany.

UNESCO-protected immovable objects of cultural heritage - the Armenian bagpipes, traditional group dance Kocharis, Estonian setai polyphonic singing tradition, Ukrainian Cossack songs, Lithuanian sutartinės, and Kartvelian traditional polyphonic music. The festival's colourful programmes combine performances by the best ensembles with educational and scientific events.

Fostering the traditional music of different nations, the Pokrovo Bells Festival has been promoting the traditional music of different nations since 2006. Since 2006, the festival has presented folk ensembles from Abkhazia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, China, Estonia, Hungary, Italy, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Mexico, Norway, the Netherlands, the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Republic of Poland, the Republic of Serbia, the Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Turkey, the Ukraine and other countries to the Lithuanian audience.

The rigorous selection of the participants provides the audience with a valuable opportunity to listen to high level performers only. All of them uphold authentic traditions, reveal the uniqueness of their country and region and present original programmes.

This year's Festival programme includes concerts in the best halls of Vilnius, folk dance evenings, a scientific conference with the participation of renowned ethnographic specialists from Lithuania and abroad, an exhibition of ethnographic textile works by the Department of Textile Art and Design of the Vilnius Academy of Arts at Vilnius Town Hall, masterclasses, traditional singing and laboratories for young craftsmen.

Organiser- Lithuanian Folklore and Ethnography Centre of National Minorities
Partners.Jonušas Music School