Press release Berlin, 30 July 2018

Not Your World Music: Noise in South East Workshop discussion, book presentation and concert accompanying the exhibition [sound] Listening to the World and the mikromusik festival

Together with the German Academic Exchange Service’s Artists-in-Berlin programme, on Sunday, 19 August 2018 at 7 pm the Humboldt Forum will present the concert Not Your World Music: Noise in South East Asia in the daadgalerie studio, Oranienstraße 161, 10969 Berlin. Prior to the concert, a moderated workshop discussion and book presentation will be held in English at 5 pm with the participating Dimitri della Faille, Cedrik Fermont, Liew Niyomkarn und Luong Hue Trinh. The event will also bring to a close the mikromusik festival of and (15 to 19 August 2018) organized by the German Academic Exchange Service’s Artists-in-Berlin programme.

What are the historical, social and cultural dynamics that make experimental noise from South East Asia so vibrant? What does electro-acoustic, experimental and from South East Asia sound like – in the past and the present day?

Composer, and author Cedrik Fermont and sociologist and musician Dimitri della Faille documented South East Asian cultures in their 2017 book Not Your World Music: Noise in South East Asia, which was awarded the Prix Ars ’s Golden Nica. The authors will now continue their journey in a discussion not only with musicians Luong Hue Trinh and Liew Niyomkarn but also with the audience. The discussion is hosted by Deutschlandfunk Kultur’s Marcus Gammel. The panel will team up again afterwards for the concert, continuing the discussion in musical form.

In their book, Fermont and della Faille explore how electronic music, sound art and noise compositions are created in Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and . They examine how the artists found their audiences outside the usual capitalist channels and beyond the concept of cultural difference that dominates what is known as “World Music”. Fermont and della Faille see their work as a “political, antisexist

Page 1/3

and anticolonial contribution to the discourse on social representation, inequality and colonialism”. Not Your World Music: Noise in South East Asia includes political, historical and sociological essays as well as interviews with artists, a comprehensive bibliography of South East Asian music and a discography of noise and experimental musicians.

The [sound] Listening to the World exhibition in the Humboldt-Box, with input from the Phonogramm-Archiv of Berlin’s Ethnologisches Museum (Staatliche Museen zu Berlin), the Lautarchiv of the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and the AMAR Foundation in Beirut, makes it possible to hear and experience the fascination of sounds and the different ways in which they are treated in all their tonal variety. The two Berlin collections are famous for their audio recordings from all over the world. When they come together in the Humboldt Forum in late 2019, they will bring an aural dimension to the museum that incorporates the important sphere of linguistic diversity, thereby making a key contribution to the Humboldt Forum’s unique character which can already be experienced in the exhibition. A wide-ranging educational programme and diverse series of events throughout Berlin invite visitors to delve into different soundworlds and musical cultures until September.

When the Humboldt Forum opens its doors in late 2019 it will mark the establishment of a whole new cultural quarter in the very heart of Berlin. By bringing together outstanding collections containing major exhibits – among them spiritual objects and artworks from Asia, and America – and coupling these with a variety of cultural activities, the Humboldt Forum is seeking to inspire new insights into the worlds of the past, present and future. The participating actors are the Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz (SPK) with the Ethnologisches Museum and the Museum für Asiatische Kunst of the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Kulturprojekte Berlin with Stadtmuseum Berlin, and the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, with the Humboldt Forum Kultur GmbH taking on a leading role for the Stiftung Humboldt Forum im Berliner Schloss. The Humboldt Forum has already developed a highly visible presence throughout Berlin with its diverse programme of exhibitions, discussions, performances, workshops, films and artistic interventions.

Page 2/3

Not Your World Music: Noise in South East Asia Workshop discussion, book presentation and concert accompanying the exhibition [sound] Listening to the World and the mikromusik festival

Date Sunday, 19 August 2018 Time Workshop discussion starts at 5 pm, concert at 7 pm Entrance 15 minutes beforehand for each event Duration 60 minutes (discussion), 90 minutes (concert) Venue daadgalerie studio, Oranienstraße 161, 10969 Berlin, first floor Tickets Entrance is free of charge (prior registration not required)

Accreditation Journalists should apply to [email protected] for mandatory accreditation.

Language English Host Marcus Gammel Discussion and concert Dimitri della Faille / Cedrik Fermont / Liew Niyomkarn / Luong Hue Trinh

Organizer The event is being staged jointly by the Stiftung Humboldt Forum im Berliner Schloss and the German Academic Exchange Service’s Artists-in- Berlin programme. It forms part of the programme for [sound] Listening to the World and mikromusik.

Exhibition [sound] Listening to the World Exhibition Runs until 16 September 2018 Opening times 10 am to 7 pm daily Venue Humboldt-Box, Schloßplatz 5, 10178 Berlin Entrance Free of charge Further information about the programme and educational activities are available at humboldtforum.com/laut

Organizer Stiftung Humboldt Forum im Berliner Schloss in cooperation with the Ethnologisches Museum of the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Humboldt- Universität zu Berlin, Kulturprojekte Berlin and Stadtmuseum Berlin, as well as the AMAR Foundation in Beirut, with support from the Arab Fund For Arts and Culture AFAC.

Press contact Michael Mathis Press Officer Cultural and Digital Communication +49 151 1617 97 27, [email protected], humboldtforum.com/presse

Page 3/3