The Serbian Ministry of Culture has just rejected both projects of the Nishvil Foundation competition for co-financing projects in the field of music.
Ceo program of this year's International Nashville Jazz Festival refused, assessing that "the applicant of the project is able to implement this program with his own and sponsor's funds, while for the second project, the tour of the Nashville Jam Orchestra in the cities of the south and east, they said that it "has the appropriate quality", but they refer them to the support of the cities where they will be visiting.
This is the second year that the Ministry of Culture has rejected the projects of the Nashville Foundation.
And last year we worked alone
Director of Nišvil Ivan Blagojević he says that the repeated rejection does not worry him, he just states that the fact that the London Guardian ranked Nishville among the 10 best European jazz festivals is obviously not important to the Ministry."
Otherwise, he agrees with the Commission's reasoning.
He says for "Vreme" that "The Ministry is absolutely right. We managed to do Nishville last year without the support of the Ministry of Culture. It is true, the hotels and equipment in the total amount of 13 million dinars remained unpaid, which we only paid from this year's budget. However, the Ministry of Culture is not right that we will find sponsors easily, because the economy of southern Serbia is collapsing."
Still, he says their "explanation should include the project's failings that led to its rejection, not a statement about our ability to survive. Instead of criticizing us, they praised us."
The results of the Ministry's competition were announced two weeks before the start of the festival (August 13).
Scandalously small amount
Ivan Blagojević recalls that "this year the results were delayed by 60 days, and last year by 90. I reacted as the long-term president of the Group of Organizers of All Events at the Serbian Chamber of Commerce, with the intention of protecting various event organizers and musicians who expected support for their concert series. This kind of delay threatens the survival of many, and the existence of some, because they are put in a position where they cannot plan, and therefore realize their projects."
He believes that "the amount allocated by the Ministry of Culture this year for the competition for Music Creation is scandalously small. For a total of 375 submitted projects, only 55 million dinars!"
"Only in 2020, during the corona, so few funds were allocated, but that was understandable because most of the festivals and concerts were canceled. Already in 2021, 91 million was distributed. It is pointless to compare the expenses of the organizers in 2021 and this year, starting from the artist's fee, stage rental, loudspeakers, lights or video walls, to the costs of transportation, accommodation or food.
I can only guess.
Of course, he doesn't know why the Ministry of Culture felt it necessary to reject the world-important Nashville festival, while helping some local projects that only their organizers know about.
"I can only guess that we are not on the line of caring for Serbian cultural heritage, even though jazz is world music today. The main reason is that no one from Belgrade has visited Nišville and convinced themselves of the artistic quality of this kind of Festival. Perhaps this is also the reason why even the oldest manifestation in Niš, the Choral Festival, did not receive a single dinar at the Ministry's competition this year."
The ministry of tourism
Nishville's experience with the Ministry of Tourism, however, is quite the opposite. "They announced the results on time and paid Nišvil four million dinars a long time ago, rating it as the best event in Serbia."
Blagojević reminds that this January, Nišvil "hired the well-known consulting firm 'Glenfield' and they calculated that in recent years, Serbia and the City of Niš have had an average annual income of 384 million dinars thanks to Nišvil. The study was done on 40 pages and supported by appropriate tables and statistical data."
The city, he says, is "absolutely aware of the importance of Nishville, both in terms of its image and the return of income to the city budget. That is why this year it allocated 15 times more funds than the state did. Unfortunately, the state that earns the most through VAT, taxes and contributions thanks to Nishville, leaves the impression that this European face of Serbia in the south of Serbia is not important to them."
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