The showcase festival and industry networking event started out in 2009 and is this year a programme highlight of the European Capital of Culture Tallinn 2011.
TMW was devised and set up by Helen Sildna. Inspired by similar events across Europe and beyond and buoyed up by the Capital of Culture announcement in 2008, the festival was given the go ahead as a way of integrating the Estonian music scene into the European music industry circuit, providing a new platform for the country’s musical talent to spread further afield.

Sildna said that if it wasn’t for the decision to make Tallinn European Capital of Culture in 2011 “there would have been no resource to carry such a project through”.

"The Capital of Culture funding in fact runs up in 2011, so we will have to fill this lump of financing from the next year, but as the event and the festival has proved itself and gained national importance throughout the three first years, I am confident we are able to make this work with our other key partners Ministry of Culture and Enterprise Estonia."

Speaking about the International aspect of the festival, Sildna explained, “One thing is clear our focus will remain on Estonian talent but we will continue to bring in international acts and work on international collaborations. And we want to develop international collaborations and make them deeper and more meaningful.”

Tallinn Music Week 2011 in figures:
3 nights
16 stages
147 artists from 10 countries
123 artists from Estonia
7600 visitors
423 delegates, of whom 229 from Estonia
194  internationa delegates
52 483 unique visits to website from 88 countries