Autumn in Vienna: after a long stretch of weirdly pleasant weather, the clouds and dampness have finally returned, bringing that gray watery light that, to us, signifies that the year is leaning hard toward winter. You’re at home, baby. But some people aren’t! Fall is tour time, among other things… Rejoice! Your Austrian Music Highlights for October and early November have arrived.
Bands on the run
The summer festival season is definitely over at this point, which means Austrian acts are getting back down to the work done by musicians since minstrels roamed the medieval European countryside: touring! This is only a sampling; you can always check out our Live page to see our complete listings of Austrian music on the international stage.
Anna Koch
Anna Koch‘s globetrotting project Connecting the Dots is gaining momentum: over the course of a year, the current NASOM artist is traveling the world as an ambassador for contemporary music, with her partner and child in tow. They’re currently crisscrossing the United States and recently shot a video at a hydroelectric plant in Connecticut. Check it out:
Upcoming dates:
Nov. 8th & 9th – SIMN Festival in Curitiba, Brazil
For more on the project, see our recent interview with Anna – and keep up with her continuing adventures on the Connecting the Dots blog.
Good Wilson
A little closer to home, these good ol’ boys – also a current NASOM act –continue to cut a swath through Europe – they’ll be hitting Alemannia in the next couple of weeks (and Hamburg for Halloween).
Upcoming dates:
Oct. 26 – Grabenhalle, St. Gallen (Switzerland)
Oct. 27 – Gaskessel, Bern (Switzerland)
Oct. 28 – Prabbeli, Wiltz (Luxembourg)
Oct. 31 – Astra Stube, Hamburg (Germany)
Nov. 3 – Merlin, Stuttgart (Germany)
Lofoten cello duo
This dynamic duo will be bringing their signature mix of Scandinavian and Catalan folk music to the stages of WOMEX this week…
Upcoming dates:
Oct. 25-29 – WOMEX, A Coruña (Spain; see )
Oct. 30 – Soncello, A Coruña
Meretrio
This intrepid trio led by Emiliano Sampaio has been much on the road of late – before a well deserved break, they’ll be appearing in Belgium and Spain in the next week or so.
Upcoming dates:
Oct. 27-28 – Music Village, Brussels (Belgium)
Nov. 3 – Asociación enVIBop, Soria (Spain)
Dec. 2 – Jazzclub, Lübbecke (Germany)
Rahel
The playfully serious Rahel has been doing pretty well in Germany of late, as her success at the recent Nuremberg Pop & Reeperbahn festivals testifies. She’ll be crisscrossing Germany to build on that success in the next couple of weeks…
Upcoming dates:
Nov. 4 – Erlangen Festival, Erlangen
Nov. 17-18 – Molotow, Hamburg
Nov. 20 – Lido, Berlin
Nov. 27 – Strom, Munich
Rian
Rian seems like a pretty fun guy, if his Instagram account is anything to go by. The recent XA Export Award nominee will be bringing his personal brand of feel-good pop to multiple parts of Germany in the next month…
Upcoming dates:
Nov. 13 – Strom, Munich
Nov. 14 – Im Wizemann, Stuttgart
Nov. 15 – Gebäude 9, Cologne
Nov. 16 – Naumanns, Leipzig
Nov. 17 – Brotfabrik, Frankfurt
Nov. 19 – Bahnhof Pauli, Hamburg
Nov. 20 – Frannz, Berlin
Briefly noted
It’s safe to say at this point that Oskar Haag is a legit phenomenon. The 17-year-old with the seen-it-all-before voice released his debut album on his own indie label and snagged the FM4 Amadeus Award this year, and he has a ton of shows lined up in the first part of 2024 – including an appearance at Eurosonic Norderslaag, traditionally a launching pad for new artists. He also has a new single out that might just be the new “Lambada“.
…Closer to the other end of the age spectrum, composer and conductor Gerd Kühr (*1952) was recently awarded the Großer Österreichischer Staatspreis, the highest decoration an Austrian artist can receive; previous recipients have included the late Friedrich Cerha, Györgi Ligeti, Olga Neuwirth, and Beat Furrer. Austrian Music Export adds its voice to the choir of congratulation!
…From mica – music austria:
Popfest Wien has announced its new curator team for 2024: author and Attwenger member Markus Binder will be teaming up with FM4’s Lisa Schneider (you’ve seen her byline if you follow the FM4 Soundpark acts of the month on this site) to choose the acts that will be shaking the pillars of the Karlskirche next year from July 25th – 28th.
…And finally: if you’re a musician and you have aspirations of working elsewhere in Europe and/or inviting people to come work with you, you should really have a look at this article outlining the possibilities offered by the EU program Culture Moves Europe. The call for proposals is open, with rolling deadlines up until May 31, 2024 – check it out!
Dust off those daylight lamps and get your hats and scarves ready (though who knows; it could be summer again by mid-November) – in any case, be well and keep reading. – Philip Yaeger