Saâdane Afif: The Old & Melancholic Beat Live

Composer Lucie Nezri picks up a refrain here, a verse there, and brings the texts to life based on her personal cut-up.

“The Old,” Live 2026

• Bass flute: Rebecca Lane
• Voice: Kristia Michael
• Composition, electronics: Lucie Nezri

“Melancholic Beat,” Live 2026 - In 2004, on the occasion of his exhibition “Melancholic Beat,” Afif commissioned song lyrics for the first time that were created in dialogue with his works. The four texts were written at the time by the artist Lili Reynaud-Dewar; they are now performed by Ugnė Uma.

“Melancholic Beat,” Live 2026

• Voice, playback: Ugnė Uma

The performance “Melancholic Beat, Live 2026” is a commission by the Museum Folkwang in Essen as part of the exhibition “Saȃdane Afif. Affiches / Plakate,” March 13 through October 4, 2026.

Hamburger Bahnhof on Tour

With the monthly event series “Hamburger Bahnhof On Tour,” the museum is placing a special focus on networking with Berlin-based cultural actors to mark its 30th anniversary: from February to July 2026, the Hamburger Bahnhof, in collaboration with Freunde* Guter Musik Berlin e. V., six concerts and performances by Berlin-based artists Annika Kahrs and Saâdane Afif at the SIM Museum of Musical Instruments, the Berlin Museum of Medical History, the Evangelical Church of the Holy Spirit, the Red Salon of the Volksbühne on Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz, KM28, and the Kantine am Berghain.

Curator: Gabriele Knapstein

Made possible by the Capital Cultural Fund. With support from FREUNDE der Nationalgalerie and Hamburger Bahnhof International Companions e. V.