THEATRE STAGE
15:15 - 16:00
Seeking melancholy across the Balkans and the Mediterranean region: 10 countries, 92 days, and 11,927 kilometers. Last summer, violinist and composer Wouter Vandenabeele embarked on a journey to the Balkans, Greece, Southern Italy, Catalonia, Andalusia, and Galicia in search of the melancholic soul in music. Over three months, bonds were forged with local musicians.
Melancholy connects people across centuries and cultures. It is ambivalent: sadness accompanied by comfort or hope, pain accompanied by beauty or joy. With Hiraeth, the musicians meander through the tonal colors of melancholy that are especially present in Southern European music cultures (saudade, flamenco blues, Balkan music, etc.). A bittersweet, hopeful longing for what is absent and can never be fully present.
For fans of: Brussels Balkan Orchestra, Bella Ciao, Olla Vogala
Line-up:
Livia Giaffreda (Tamboerello & Vocals) Puglia, IT
Francesca Manoccio (Vocals) Arbëreshë, IT
Carmen Fernández (Vocals) Andalucia, ES
Katerina Douka (Vocals) GR
Polis Efraimidis .(Lier & Vocals) Pontic, GR
Bojan Cvetrežnik (Violin & Mandoline) SLO
Barja Drnovšek (Violin) SLO
Laura Cortese (Violin & vocolas) VSA
Bert Ruymbeek (Accordeon) B
Jan Debrabandere (Guitar) B
Alexander Gavilán (Guitar) B
Raphaël De Cock (Flutes, Percussion & vocals) B
Wouter Vandenabeele (Violin) B