German Ensemble Neue Vocalsolisten Performs in Sarajevo for the First Time: "Balkan Affairs" Concert at MESS Festival and Lecture at UNSA Music Academy

Organized by the International Theatre Festival MESS and SONEMUS Fest, the Neue Vocalsolisten from Stuttgart, one of the world's leading ensembles in contemporary vocal music, visited Sarajevo to perform a concert as part of this year's MESS Festival and deliver a lecture at the Music Academy of the University of Sarajevo.

At the Youth Theatre Sarajevo on 8 October 2026, the Neue Vocalsolisten ensemble presented the "Balkan Affairs" project. This program combines works by seven younger-generation composers from the countries of the former Yugoslavia, created as a multidisciplinary reflection on the war and post-war period in the Balkans. It offers various perspectives on how the peoples of the Western Balkans interpret their shared past today, thematizing existential experiences caught between religious and ethnic affiliations, nationalism, ex-Yu nostalgia, EU enthusiasm, hyperinflation, and physical and psychological violence.

At the beginning of the concert, Christine Fischer, the ensemble's manager and artistic director, addressed the audience. As the curator, she discussed the conceptual foundation of the "Balkan Affairs" project and the specifics of the works included in the program. These included "Requiem Ex Machina" for six amplified voices by Hanan Hadžajlić (Bosnia and Herzegovina), "When all the leaves have been burned" for six amplified voices and video by Ylljir Daklani (Kosovo), "NULA" for six voices by Jug Marković (Serbia), "Electroacoustic mantra From Ex YU to EU" for soprano, mezzo-soprano, and electronics by Ana Pandevska (North Macedonia), "Apparatus" for six voices and electronics by Nina Perović (Montenegro), "SCREAdoM" for five voices, sound installation, and electronics by Petra Strahovnik (Slovenia), and "The Blue Giraffe" for five voices, electronics, and video by Helena Skljarov (Croatia). The audience also had the opportunity to hear "Children of Abraham," the first movement of the composition "VOICES" for voice, tape, and video by Hanan Hadžajlić, and the piece "#itstime" for video, soprano, and mezzo-soprano by Jug Marković.

The program also included a screening of the short film "Sarajevo Vlog" by Hanan Hadžajlić, part of the series "The Fragile Art of Living Together." This series was filmed by the aforementioned composers within the "Balkan Affairs" project in their home countries, offering personal insights into the challenges of coexistence in societies marked by national, ethnic, and religious diversity.

Members of the Neue Vocalsolisten ensemble are: Johanna Vargas (soprano), Susanne Leitz-Lorey (soprano), Chiara Ducomble (mezzo-soprano), Martin Nagy (tenor), Guillermo Anzorena (baritone), and Andreas Fischer (bass), with Jakob Berger responsible for the technical realization of the program.

The following day, 9 October, at the UNSA Music Academy, ensemble members Andreas Fischer and Guillermo Anzorena, along with artistic director Christine Fischer, held a lecture. They spoke about contemporary repertoire for the voice and provided broader insight into various aspects of current vocal music practice.

The Neue Vocalsolisten is one of the world's leading ensembles specializing in the performance of contemporary vocal music. Through continuous dialogue with various artistic disciplines, the ensemble seeks new forms of vocal expression, with a particular interest in the potential of digital media and the blending of different genres. The ensemble's projects are characterized by authentic interdisciplinary formats that blur the boundaries between concert, musical theater, performance, and installation. With more than thirty premieres annually, the ensemble has been shaping and developing the genre of vocal chamber musical theater for over a quarter of a century.

The concert and lecture were held with the support of the Goethe-Institut and the Ministry of Science, Research, and Arts Baden-Württemberg (MWK).