Southeast Asia’s rich musical traditions have long been intertwined with its political and social history including queer histories, serving as a form of protest and unity. Whether it's through traditional folk songs, protest anthems, or contemporary pop music, music has been used to express shared identities and shared futures, challenge oppressive regimes, and nurture a sense of unity. With »Resonant Resilience,« Lynn Nandar Htoo and rEmPiT g0dDe$$ engage with this ongoing sonic history.
The performance will focus on the experiences of individuals displaced by the ongoing political turmoil in Myanmar and the harsh regulations faced by queer communities in Malaysia, giving voice to these struggles as a means of empowerment and healing. In »Resonant Resilience,« Lynn Nandar Htoo and rEmPiT g0dDe$$ explore resilience as a response to socio-political inequities disproportionately affecting Southeast Asian female and queer communities. While empowering, resilience can obscure the need for structural change, framing it instead as an active reclamation of agency that challenges systems perpetuating marginalisation.
A key part of the work are Htoo’s field recordings made in her home of Yangon, Myanmar, before fleeing the country due to the country’s ongoing and intensifying violence. In collaboration, the two artists will integrate these sounds with live integration of recorded traditional instruments and electronics. This fusion of natural soundscapes, classical analogue sounds, and digital elements will be enhanced by dynamic visual art created by the filmmaker Gabriel Htoo, highlighting the devastating impact of Myanmar’s political turmoil and the struggles of those caught in its path, and Sarah Hanan, who captures layers of repression, isolation, internalised shame, and enduring hope that mark the lives of queer identities in Southeast Asia.
Affection, typically seen as a space of care and refuge, becomes a complex and multifaceted theme here. Mekawei reimagines affection as both a source of comfort and a means of resistance. In the context of »Sonic Forces«, it operates within spaces of conflict—both external, where refugees seek safety, and internal, where Mekawei herself struggles to assert her artistic voice against societal restrictions. Her live performance will engage the audience in a dialogue between these external and internal borders, where affection is constantly redefined.
The Radio Lab is a project by Deutschlandfunk Kultur – Hörspiel / Klangkunst and CTM Festival in collaboration with Goethe-Institut, ORF musikprotokoll im steirischen herbst, and Ö1 Kunstradio. In 2025 it is also supported by the sound art initiative tekhnē, which is co-funded by the Creative Europe programme of the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.