New Wave to stay in Jurmala this year

RIGA - After all, the international pop-music festival New Wave will be held in Jurmala again this year, the festival's organizer, Russian composer Igor Krutoy, informed a press conference on March 12.

As reported, Jurmala City Council decided last week to sign a trilateral cooperation agreement on organization of the next New Wave festival in the city. The cooperation agreement will be signed for a period of one year by Jurmala City Council, Dzintari Concert Hall and the festival's organizer, “Dzintara disks.”

At the moment, sale of tickets to New Wave remains suspended. Krutoy said in a statement at the beginning of February that New Wave' would not take place in Jurmala anymore, "because all cooperation possibilities with the Jurmala City municipality had been exhausted", and its organizers are looking at some other city as venue, including Riga.

The main reason for the dispute between New Wave organizers and Jurmala City Council is who will run Dzintari Concert Hall's cafes during the festival, former Jurmala Deputy Mayor Maris Dzenitis said previously: Jurmala authorities insist that this is done by the company "Priority," whereas festival organizers would like to themselves choose the company to run the cafes.

The current dates for the festival in Jurmala this year are July 24 - 29.