Thank you for the strongest edition of Pohoda
Pohoda 2018 was for us the strongest edition ever. For the fourth time, all the tickets were sold in pre-sale; however, the measurable variables are by no means the essential reasons why we consider the twenty-second Pohoda to be the strongest so far.
09. July 2018
Exceptional moments and connections
The speciality of this edition was the realization of many exclusive collaboration projects, whether it was the opening concert delivered by the Slovak Chamber Orchestra and choirs from all over Slovakia, the collaboration of Rebel Babel and Textilanka or the concert of the Czechoslovak Philharmonic Orchestra. When we were awarded the Green Operations Award, the reasoning said that Pohoda is not only valued for its attitude toward the environment but also toward society. Several performances and installations responded to the centenary of the founding of Czechoslovakia. The most remarkable theme, repeating across debates, different genres and forms of artistic expression, was the commemoration of Ján Kuciak and Martina Kušnírová.
In this regard, there have been moments that would rather fall into the category of miracles, when, for example, the work of the Slovak author Miroslav Tóth had its world premiere delivered by the most famous string ensemble Kronos Quartet. David Harrington, the founder of the formation, explained at his extraordinarily personal press release the reasons why he did not hesitate for a second to agree to perform the Tentacles Reaching Out quartet. After the festival he wrote to us that we could be sure that this work would be played worldwide also on other occasions.
One miracle happened also on Sunday noon. Sixto Rodriguez was halfway from his hotel to the Vienna Airport when he asked his driver to turn around and go back. He wanted to stay at Pohoda for a while longer and personally thanked us for a great festival. We spent over an hour talking about music and life and he played guitar for us. His concert was one of the tops of Pohoda 2018 and he was the last artist to leave the grounds, on Sunday shortly before 2 PM. Rodriguez expressed his wish to return to Slovakia as soon as possible and play here again. Similar were the words of Jamie Cullum, English musician and singer, who even said he would like to come to Pohoda also as a visitor, not only as a performer. Charlie Winstonʼs team said they would send a bus of festival organisers to Pohoda next year to make them see how to do things right.
Line-up
At Pohoda 2018, we managed to offer several names that we had been trying to book for many years, such as The Chemical Brothers, Rodriguez, Kronos Quartet, and St. Vincent. Having many dream names was also reflected in spending the biggest amount of funds in the history of the festival. The Chemical Brothers concert was at the same time also the most massive artistic production we have ever participated in. The excellent work of our stage-hands was also personally appreciated by the bandʼs tour manager—he wanted to “steal” them from us also for other concerts of the band. A challenge for the production was also the concert of St. Vincent and the record nearly 300 people on one stage.
Production
This edition was also the biggest challenge in terms of production, where, for example, we added a vacuum toilet sector, the festival food containers were completely plastic free, most of the beverages was tapped into reusable cups, we expanded our fixed electricity network, and changed the main stage. This yearʼs edition was the cleanest and most ecological thanks to 140 collectors, 170 volunteers in separation points, and waste management and composting staff. We saw the results during the festival and we can see it now, too, when we are packing. This would not be possible without active visitor approach, we highly appreciate them.
We are receiving more and more beautiful messages from artists, agents, partners, and visitors of the festival. They ensured that, in addition to superlatives about our production, all foreign artists from The Chemical Brothers to Donny Bénet emphasized the unique atmosphere of Pohoda. We are a lucky festival because we can rely on the whole-planet winner of the “Best Festival Audience” category. Each of the 30,000 people has their own strongest moment. You may find them on photos and videos that we will be gradually adding to our website and social networks. Come and claim some more strong moments at Pohoda 2019, which will take place from 11 to 3 July 2019.