Inaugural Silk Road music festival with Sufi qawwali, Indian and Pakistani classical, Anatolian folk, Chinese classical and other traditions from along the historic Silk Road.
World Heart Beat Music Gardens in Nine Elms is launching its first Silk Road Music Festival, with the opening night on Friday 30 October. It's not a one-off weekend; the programme runs across three months, with concerts on 30 October, 6 November, 7 November, 19 November, 20 November and 12 December. The opening night kicks off with a Sufi Qawwali night featuring the Khan Brothers and Ustad Haji Ameer Khan.
From there, the line-up pulls from across the old Silk Road. You'll find Sahana Bajpaie, Olcay Bayir, Siqian Li and Kang Yang, Lucine Musaelian & The Khio Trio, Ustad Kamal Sabri and Ustad Tari Khan, Amira Kheir, Julian Joseph and Alok Verma, and Lydia Shariff. The styles cover a lot of ground: Sufi qawwali, Bengali song, jazz, Anatolian folk, Chinese classical, Armenian folk, Indian and Pakistani classical, and Sudanese music, along with contemporary cross-cultural fusions. Sahana Gero, the venue's artistic director and founder, describes the Silk Road as a meeting place for the exchange of ideas, stories and cultures, and the festival pairs traditional music with contemporary interpretations.
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World Heart Beat Music Gardens opened in Nine Elms in 2023 and combines a concert space with music education and recording facilities. It's home to the World Heart Beat Music Academy, which provides tuition and performance opportunities to hundreds of young people each year through bursaries and access to instruments. Ticket proceeds from the festival go towards that bursary programme, so your ticket helps keep the academy running. The venue is at Embassy Gardens, Ponton Road, Nine Elms, London SW11 7BD.
Date
30 October – 12 December
Recommended Age
+14 years
