Where do marginalised groups locate themselves within civil society, and how do they express their concerns? How can music contribute to negotiating belonging and participation? What collective cultural and musical practices can be employed to challenge political power and representation dynamics and create spaces for transnational solidarity? The 2025 MMRC Lecture will explore and reflect on these areas of tension from academic and musical perspectives.

In his keynote, Martin Stokes (King's College, London) will examine the profound connection between music, identity, and political participation and how music not only creates a sense of belonging for some but also can lead to the exclusion of others. Stokes will delve into the complex relationship between ethnicity and citizenship, issues that are highly contested in the current climate of rising populism.

Drawing on his extensive research in this field, Stokes will use examples from the musical practices of minoritized Muslim communities across Europe and the Mediterranean. In the keynote Strokes will provide a critical perspective on how reflecting on the music-making of minorities can help us achieve conceptual clarity and a deeper understanding of our political responsibilities today.

Responding to Martin Stokes considerations, Isabel Frey (IVE, mdw, Vienna) will explore how musical practices can act as powerful tools for political solidarity, challenging conventional notions of national and ethnic identity. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork with contemporary Yiddish music practices, she will demonstrate how music transcends simple group boundaries to forge cross-group alliances.

Frey will reflect upon collaborative projects between displaced Ukrainian and Berlin-based Jewish musicians, highlighting how shared cultural heritage can counter geopolitical propaganda. Additionally, she will discuss a compilation of new Yiddish songs created in solidarity with Palestinians in response to the destruction of Gaza, exploring how music can acknowledge historical entanglements and structural inequalities.

The event will be framed with music contributions by Marwan Abado. Abado was born into a Palestinian Christian family in a refugee camp in Beirut, Lebanon. In 1985, he fled from the Lebanese civil war and moved to Austria, where he continued his musical training with Asim Chalabi, an Iraqi oud master. It was in Vienna that he found a new home as a musician, singer, composer and poet. His music combines traditional Arabic sounds with European and contemporary influences. His songs deal with exile, identity and peace, and he is committed to intercultural dialogue and artistic encounters across cultural boundaries.

This event explores how musical solidarity can foster coalitions among minority communities, offering timely perspectives on music, citizenship, ethnicity and belonging in an era of growing authoritarianism and populism. An evening dedicated to minoritarian alliances and solidarity.

Programme:

Opening
Ursula Hemetek (director of MMRC)

Musical Performance
Marwan Abado

Introduction
tba

Keynote: "Music, Citizenship and Belonging"
Martin Strokes (King's College, London)

Response: "Sounding Solidarity: Music, Minoritarian Alliances, and the Politics of Belonging"
Isabel Frey (IVE, mdw, Vienna)

Q&A Session
Chaired by Ursula Hemetek, University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna

Musical Performance
Marwan Abado

Time and date:

Tuesday, November 18, 2025

Doors 6.30 PM, starts 7.00 PM (CEST)

Location:
mdw – University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna

Konzertsaal
Future Art Lab am mdw-Campus
Bauteil V
Anton-von-Webern-Platz 1, 1030 Wien 

and online: tba

The location is wheelchair accessible. For questions and support please contact us: mmrc@mdw.ac.at