BALKAN AFFAIRS

Expanded and updated version of the project premiered in 2023

Against the backdrop of a Europe drifting apart and threatened by populism and war, seven composers from the seven republics that emerged from the former Yugoslavia artistically explore the effects of the Balkan wars–a legacy that continues to shape their societies to this day. Their individual, sensitive artistic statements shed light on this turbulent period from a wide variety of perspectives. As members of the younger generation, they experienced the war as children, teenagers or not at all. Their encounters with the voices and personalities of the Neue Vocalsolisten Stuttgart have resulted in seven performative works for voice and electronics.

The BALKAN AFFAIRS project premiered at the Zagreb Biennale in 2023. The works from the original version are part of Part 1 of the expanded, updated version, which is complemented by a new composition by Ylli Daklani.

Translated with DeepL.com (free version)

Additions to the 2025/26 version

Part 2

The Fragile Art of Living Together

7-channel video installation

The seven-part video installation consists of interviews conducted by the seven composers with people in their home countries, including family members and people from all walks of life–from a taxi driver in Sarajevo to a university professor in Belgrade to a Ukrainian migrant in Montenegro, among them Kosovar theatre maker Jeton Neziraj, Slovenian lawyer Miša Zgonec-Rožej and an AI robot. They all convey an impression of how coexistence can be mastered in a multitude of nationalities, ethnicities and religions.

Part 3

Coda

Insights into an uncertain future

Here, the composers take yet another perspective on their themes. While the concert section was a retrospective look at the explosive period of the 1990s, the short musical works are formulated as questioning outlooks into a future between disillusionment and hope.

Historical consultation: Arban Mehmeti
Video consultation: Mladen Ivanović