SHAPE+, a music and audiovisual art platform co-funded by the European Union, has announced two collaborative showcases outside of the EU, at Serbia’s Polja Festival, and şien Festival in Kazakhstan.
Polja takes place from June 28 to 30, and is a non-profit, sustainable festival organised by Belgrade collective Dis-patch and their collaborators. This year’s edition will showcase “traditional and modern folklore” as well as experimental music, and also features an educational component exploring the connections between the two subjects, and their evolution in the digital age.
The lineup for the SHAPE+ showcase features Buenos Aires-born, Netherlands-based Morita Vargas; Slovenian multi-instrumentalist Iztok Koren; Swedish composer and instrument-builder Amina Hocine; Hungary’s Triglav; Latvia’s Anna Fišere; French producer Sébastien Forrester; Vienna’s Robert Schwarz; and Taiwan’s SABIWA.
şien, meanwhile, will be held from July 4 to 7, and is the product of Central Asian collective ZVUK, who focus on independent, experimental and electronic events and releases. It will be the first edition of the festival.
Speaking about the event, the ZVUK team said in a statement: “A lot of interesting artists have recently emerged in Kazakhstan, both in electronic and experimental music and in the field of art and media. However, that scene is very fragmented. We want to create a festival that will bring the scene together creating interesting future collaborations. Having this festival will help to bring our independent music and art scene forward.
“It will also be a breath of fresh air in conservative Kazakhstan. Our aim and goal is to build a place which is multicultural, open for everyone, regardless of background, sexual orientation, gender, curious about others, inventive while sharing ideas in different languages: music, art, technology, dance and performance.”
şien will take in sets from Berlin-based autoharp player Petra Hermanova; Berlin-based, Naples born sound artist Sara Persico; Juba; L. Zylberberg; and Rita Silva. Further additions to the bill will be added in the coming weeks.
