Shellfish concert, shamanism and wombat poo: the perched meetings of the Musica festival

The international festival of today’s music returns for a 39th edition with a formula that combines environment, shamanism and the US. From September 16 to October 10, the actors of the festival will be heard in no less than fifteen different places in Strasbourg. The opportunity to discover what is currently being done in terms of musical creation and to let oneself be carried away by one’s curiosity according to the appointments.

This year, the Musica festival offers about forty meetings with the Strasbourgeoises and the Strasbourgeois, which they will be able to discover from September 16 to October 10. Throughout the city, the actors of the festival will settle in about fifteen places such as the Théâtre du Maillon, the Cité de la Musique et de la Danse, at the Opéra national du Rhin, or even in several churches. But it is the Halles Citadelle that will host the majority of the performances.

The various events revolve around two main themes: the environment and the relationships we have with it, but also shamanism. In the background we also find the United States, the country of origin of several key artists of this edition. For the most impatient, the full program can be downloaded in pdf right here!

6 evening-concerts and 1 weekend at the Halles Citadelle

The Musica festival is about immersive experiences, wanderings, shows, theatre, but above all live concerts. And this year, it is at the Halles Citadelle that most of the concerts will take place. From the opening night of September 16, the US will take part in the party with Caroline Shaw who will open the festival with Roomful of Teeth, a concert that will mix popular music and vocal techniques from around the world. Then it’s the Horse Lords band originally from Baltimore and with post-rock influences who will be in charge of hosting the second part of the evening.

Throughout the festival, six evenings and a weekend will be held at the Phare Citadelle, this new place located in the Port du Rhin district, which particularly punctuated the summer of Strasbourg residents. To attend the concerts, you must reserve your place, but access is via the Phare Citadelle. The public will be able to enjoy the concerts that will take place in the Halles, but also the food court and beer garden at Le Phare.

The edition will end in Strasbourg at the Halles Citadelle next October 2, before continuing until the 10 in Mulhouse and Guebwiller. For Strasbourg’s end clap we will find the Cellule d’intervention Metamkine for Sonic Temple vol.3 – Indivision du travail, a concert like a festival where several artists will follow one another and which will echo the world of work and the old factories and workshops.

Appointments not to be missed, to be surprised

Asterism: an immersive installation accessible continuously for 35 hours – September 17 at Le Maillon

This is undoubtedly the most important meeting and we may tell you a little more about it soon… Asterism is an installation where the public is in total immersion, in the middle of nature. Or at least, in a semblance of nature. The environment is entirely artificial and in the biotope presented to us, there is an artificial intelligence. Playing the role of oracle, it will provide information to visitors, which everyone can decipher in their own way. The device will open at 7:37 p.m. at sunset and will close on Sunday 19 at 7:11 a.m. at sunrise. For exactly 35 hours and 34 minutesvisitors will be able to access this performance continuously, by reserving fixed slots every half hour. More info here!

Fecal cosmology in wombats – September 25 at CSC Fossé des Treize

Even if it seems enigmatic, everything is in the title! The Belgian philosopher Vinciane Despret, author of the text “Fecal cosmology in the common wombat (vombatus ursinus) and the hairy-nosed wombat (lasiorhinus latifrons)” will hold a conference on this astonishing subject which raises questions that many of us would not have landed while observing this animal. Surprising phenomenon: wombat excrement is cubic. And it is from this scientific truth that Vinciane Despret wonders about a potential philosophy, literature or religion of animals. More info here!

Tumik & Katajjaq: Inuit throat singing – September 24 at Halles Citadelle

Generally practiced by two women, throat singing was threatened with extinction after being banned for decades by missionaries and settlers in Canada. Today, like the influencer Shina Novalinga who officiates on TikTok, many are those who strive to preserve this Inuit practice and raise public awareness of it. This is the case of Philippe Le Goff, composer and specialist in Inuit culture, and singers of traditional throat games Akinisie Sivuarapik and Amaly Sallualuk. The first will offer a documentary performance during which he will present stories, stories and images brought back from his travels in the Arctic. As for the singers from the Nunavik region, in northern Quebec, they will undoubtedly deliver a breathtaking performance. More info here!

Frozen at the Opera – September 19 at the Opéra national du Rhin

At the origin of the famous animated film produced by Walt Disney in 2013, the story of the Snow Queen is actually the work of the novelist Hans Christian Andersen, published in 1844. The tale tells the story of Gerda, in search of her friend Kay who finds herself imprisoned in the castle of the Snow Queen following a broken mirror which was in fact bewitched. And as others have done before him, Hans Abrahamsen delivers his own adaptation in the form of an opera in three acts. The opportunity for fans of the cartoon to discover one of the variations of this story, carried by the Strasbourg Philharmonic Orchestra and the Choir of the Opéra national du Rhin. More info here!

Talking music: a talk show with queer accents – October 1 at the Cité de la musique et de la danse

A well-known personality in queer circles, the composer Philippe Wenelbel invites spectators to enter into his intimacy. Talking music is a performance between the talk show and the shrink session. The guest-patient engages on stage and in music, sometimes in a somewhat dramatic way. More info here!

Mini musica: performances for children

If a few events for children are scattered throughout the festival program, it is mainly the weekend of September 25 and 26 that the little ones will be in the spotlight. It is also on September 25 that the musicians of OMEDOC (Experimental Music Orchestra of the DOC) will present It smells of fir, a big Christmas concert completely out of season. And the particularity of this quirky concert is that the instruments that will be used were made from the Christmas tree that sat enthroned last winter on Place Kléber. We had already told you about this wacky projectnow it’s time to see how the famous conifer sounds. More info here!

Another highlight of the Mini musica not to be missed: Shel(l)ter, by Zonzo Compagnie & hetpaleis. This initiatory tale is to be seen on September 19 at the Hautepierre theater and aims to transport the spectators into a marine universe. And to achieve this, what better than to use seashells as musical instruments? More info here!

Find the full program for this 39th edition of Musica right here!

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from September 16 to October 10
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