Thanks to support from the WAYS programme of the Cultural Foundation of Germany we are thrilled to collaborate with XAOS festival in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia around our ongoing thematic strand Resynthesising the Traditional. While Mongolia balances deep-rooted traditions with forced modernisation and a young experimental scene, Germany’s relationship with its heritage is more tenuous and politically contested, and its experimental music forms have evolved through decades of international exchange. This stark contrast is the starting point for a dialogue in inquiring how cultural heritage can be reinterpreted to counter essentialist notions of culture and identity in both European and Central Asian contexts. Through working visits in Berlin at the end of this month as well as in Ulaanbaatar in late August we hope to develop a roadmap for longer term collaboration involving commissioned works, performances, labs and more. We are also thrilled to give input into the upcoming edition of XAOS festival in September 2026. XAOS festival was launched in 2024 by MCASA – Mongolian Contemporary Art Support Association, as a new international platform for the intersection of experimental music and visual arts, supporting Mongolian and international artists in transcending boundaries through residencies, exhibitions and live performances. MCASA is an NGO founded in 2012 to promote and raise the profile of contemporary art in Mongolia. Between 2015 and 2022, MCASA has organised the Mongolian Pavilion at the Venice Biennale. The organisation has also collaborated with further international platforms such as documenta, the Gwangju Biennale and others. Stay tuned for more information as the collaboration develops. | 
