review
Into the Unknown
In Žibuoklė Martinaitytė’s first opera, the Arctic becomes a landscape for music that moves slowly but contains immense power.
review
Samsø Finds a New Sound
On Samsø, Salad Days makes room for sound art, improvisation, noise and experimental music. The festival’s small scale creates a particular openness – but also leaves the project vulnerable, as it depends on the efforts of a few people.
review
Langgaard Lets His Hair Down
The Rued Langgaard Festival opened up the composer’s universe to Sweden, visual art and new interpretations of his music. The strongest moments came when Langgaard escaped the familiar confines. The next step must be to bring him further out into Ribe.
review
When Opera Leaves the House
Copenhagen Opera Festival has broadened the reach of opera while making it more experimental under Amy Lane. But when bold projects fail to find their form, the courage to experiment can tip into gimmickry.
review
The Art of Letting Go
On three new albums by Sofie Birch, Tyondai Braxton, and Gustaf Dicksson & co., electronics come alive, melodies are allowed to lose their way, and experimental music discovers a rare lightness.
review
Five Things I Learned About Love in Bergen
The Bergen International Festival promised »endless love«. I listened closely – and found it everywhere from medieval madrigals to pop ballads spanning the centuries.
review
Oh, to Lose Yourself in Moers
The German Moers Festival is no longer primarily a jazz festival, but a curated laboratory for free improvisation, sound art, compositional music, and political absurdism. At times it feels forced. Most of the time, it is liberating.
review
When Music Stopped Explaining Itself
Klang Festival was at its strongest when the works spoke directly to the body rather than to the programme notes. Not everything succeeded, but this year's festival was willing to take risks.
review
While Europe's Jazz Searches for New Languages
At Jazzkaar, international stars are no longer the main attraction. Instead, the festival offers a glimpse of an Estonian scene in the process of shaping its own musical identity.
review
In a Forest Without a Path
Niels Rønsholdt’s new music-theatre work »Osmosis« creates a compelling universe of inverted trees, yearning voices, and rock-inflected asceticism. Yet the work’s central idea remains elusive.
review
From Coal Dust to Sound Art
Contemporary music is still alive – but often despite its own obsession with complexity and endless duration. That became clear at the festivals in Witten and Cologne.
review
In Aarhus, Music Refused to Stay in Its Lane
While the industry talked about AI and formats, it was the bodily, fragile, and defiant musical experiences that lingered at Spot 2026.