Unheard Music Festival 2024 - Diversity

The Unheard Music Festival, organized by Matangi in collaboration with Korzo, is a unique event that focuses on exploring and celebrating lesser-known and 'unheard' music. The theme for the 8th edition of the festival is 'Diversity.' The festival aims to examine the diversity within the classical music world and explore whether the performing arts reflect the diversity of the LGBTQIA+ community. It poses these questions while considering the past, present, and future.

On May 4th, as part of the Theater na de Dam, the festival will feature the opera 'For a Look or a Touch' by Jake Heggie, which centers around the queer community before, during, and after World War II. This theme is particularly relevant today, given the ongoing discussions about war and freedom of identity. The opening concert, titled 'Queer Klassiek,' also explores the freedom to express one's identity on and off the stage as a performer or creative artist. The Conversation on May 4th will involve exchanges of experiences between performers and the audience, discussing the showcased documentary 'Paragraph 175' and looking ahead to the opera performed after the Remembrance on Dam Square.

However, the Unheard Festival also celebrates the diversity of artistic expression that already exists in classical music. This is evident in the closing concert, 'Freedom in Diversity,' featuring music by Caroline Shaw, Jonathan Dove, and Julius Eastman, who were able to celebrate their identities on and behind the stage. The European premiere of 'Abanico,' a recent work by the Cuban-American composer of color Tania Léon, will also be presented during the Unheard Music Festival 2024.