em guide impossible possibilities: the difficult paths of pakistani regional music. interview with daniyal ahmed of honiunhoni label
Daniyal Ahmed is a musician, ethnomusicologist, music enthusiast and founder of the honiunhoni label from Karachi based in Pakistan. The label started as a blog gathering recordings of regional classical music from Pakistan, but quickly evolved into a full-fledged platform for publishing and promoting local artists. Bulat Khalilov met Ahmed for an interview.
em guide “insects are fascinating and underappreciated“– an interview with robert schwarz
Viennese composer Robert Schwarz presents us with his new release ‘Stridulations 1-14‘ with field recordings of insect life combined with computer synthesis. This album is a continuation of themes introduced with Schwarz’s previous release, ‘Clear Cues’ (ETAT, 2022), and partly based on a 2023 composition commissioned by ORF’s Musikprotokoll. ‘Stridulations 1-14’ explores the audible characteristics of entomological communication, paying special attention to the spatio-temporal sonic patterns resulting from swarm behaviour and synchrony. With 20 years of field recording as foundational bedrock, Schwarz guides listeners through richly textured abstract sound entities that invariably request a dissociative listening state of its audience. Stefan Juster (Jung An Tagen) had a long autumn walk with Robert and asked him about biology, insect behaviour and sound.
gespräch mit roby saavedra: the only way out is to build the alternative
After using big streaming platforms and social media, Roby Saavedra found that the algorithms did not extend his listening habits, but in fact rather limited them. Therefore, he started programming his own online platforms to share and recommend music, based on community and coincidence. Borbála Kovács met the designer and producer for a talk about the challenges of building alternatives, genres and his favorite BPM.
em guide subcultures vs. sculptures: a quick glimpse into skopje’s local music scene
Amidst the folding maps of history, there are certain cities that, when mentioned, we may find ourselves thinking of endless processes of destruction and renewal. Such is the case with Skopje, the capital of Macedonia. And no, I am not talking only about the fake neo-classicism facades and monuments that had become the dominant landscape of the city in the past decade. I am also talking about plagues, floods, earthquakes, and the solidarity that rebuilt the city after each of these catastrophes. I believe that any art scene that has emerged from such circumstances, must inevitably be built on the same principles – constant rebirth based on free will and mutualism. Coming from, and being a part of Skopje’s music scene for the past 15 years, I will try and give a quick glimpse into its history and the emergence of its present day streams.
em guide Über die experimentelle elektronische musikszene in pécs
Der ungarische Komponist und Klangkünstler Dávid Gerlei entwirft ein Panorama der vielleicht letzten ländlich gelegenen Stadt in Ungarn, die für die experimentelle elektronische Musik relevant ist. Mit verschiedenen Akteuren sprach er über den Studiengang “Elektronische Musik & Medienkunst” an der Universität Pécs, über Experimente mit neuer Musik, Clubmusik und über Veranstaltungsorte – unter anderem mit Balázs Kovács, Roland Nagy und Tamás Hámori.
em guide ellen arkbro: “i love making sound in a room and having people there to experience it”
The Swedish composer, musician and sound artist Ellen Arkbro is known for her very precise productions, for which she works with both Just intonation and Meantone tempering. So far she has released four albums, “For Organ And Brass” (Subtext, 2017), “Chords” (Subtext, 2019), “I Get Along Without You Very Well” (together with Johan Graden, Thrill Jockey, 2022), “Sounds While Waiting” (W.25th, 2023), in the spring 2025 her collaboration with Microtub (Robin Hayward, Martin Taxt, and Peder Simonsen) will be released: “Clouds for Three Tubas”. In the run-up to the performance by Arkbro and Microtub at this year’s CTM Festival, Ellen Arkbro and Thomas Venker chatted via Zoom.
em guide the voices that wait
This essay explores my encounter with the archive of Chile al día, a broadcast transmitted from Radio Berlin International in the GDR between 1973 and 1990, during the same period as Pinochet’s dictatorship in Chile. I visited the Deutsches Rundfunkarchiv in Babelsberg, where this archive resides, six times between 28 August and 18 October 2024. Those visits involved me with it on different levels, whereas my listening practice was affected as I opened myself up to an aesthetic of resonance (Friz, 2009). From my listening experience, I shift the definition of this archive as such, presenting it rather as a radio show capable of creating an elsewhere from the sonic.
em guide punk ist nicht, wer…
Wie klang eigentlich Punk in Ungarn, und was war das für eine Szene? Das von Trottel Books veröffentlichte Buch “Nem az a punk, aki…” zeichnet die Geschichte des ungarischen Punks anhand von zeitgenössischen Artikeln, Schriften, Fanzine-Auszügen und Fotos nach. Autor Molnár Barnabás hat das Buch gelesen und gibt einen Überblick über die wichtigsten Akteur:innen.
em guide a düsseldorf-based label exploring local sounds, music from other regions and histories of forgotten scenes
In this article Ored Recording's Bulat Khalilov interviews Stefan Schneider, a prominent figure in the contemporary Düsseldorf scene. Although this statement may sound clichéd, it accurately reflects the musician’s extensive experience.
em guide southernests: radiolibre. free communication infrastructures from colombia
In this series by 3/4 magazine, Argentina-based curator, researcher and sound artist Florencia Curci introduces us to artists and creators who, through their diverse activities, bring communities together to educate, create and express themselves within the cultural and political landscape of South America. Drawing from this intensive engagement with sound and archival practices, Florencia researches tools for community-building. These gatherings act as nests of friendship that give rise to actions that build foundations for better futures, resisting the monoculture of the present.
em guide echoes of persistence: the evolution of zagreb’s experimental music scene
Zagreb, Croatia’s capital, is home to a vibrant series of experimental music events, despite the obstacles that hinder the growth and development of its local scene. In the context of Zagreb, the term “underground experimental music” encompasses a wide range of styles: from sound art experiments, ambient and noise soundscapes to free jazz, riff-based assaults and adventurous dance music. Exploring the happenings that nurture these heterogeneous aesthetics thus becomes the best way to encapsulate and portray Zagreb’s scene: they gather communities and audiences and provide opportunities, platforms and networks for artists.
em guide “processing life” – an interview with rent
RENT is the pseudonym of transdisciplinary artist and ecologist KATRIN EULLER. Their sounds, allocated between dark ambient and noise, refer to industrial ecosystems, interconnections, dark landscapes and their inherent stories. Katrin Euller is also part of artistic collaborations such as the doom band EAERES. Tanja Fuchs met with the artist to talk about the upcoming album, physical needs in composition, collectivity, unmeasurable data and being pathetic.
em guide an interview with ankali: time doesn’t work; here it doesn’t make sense
A talk with the representatives of Ankali & Planeta Za, underground gems of the Prague night life, inspired by a random visit to the venue.
em guide the tulnic culture of the romanian apuseni mountains
This article aims to analyse a woodwind instrument found only in the Apuseni Mountains, called tulnic, and the social relations it engages in. A cultural particularity related to this instrument is that, predominantly in the Apuseni region, only women play the tulnic. Another particularity is related to its materiality: its length, thickness, weight, type of wood, the various manufacturing processes it undergoes, the way and space in which it is stored (temperature, humidity, exposure to sunlight), the frequency with which it is used – all these elements constitute an index of the instrument's uniqueness regarding its sound capabilities and ways of usage.
em guide “el pueblo, el pueblo, el pueblo ¿dónde está?” estallido social and co-listening to sound (noise) archives
This text reflects on the sonic dimensions of Chile’s Estallido Social, where noise served as a tool of resistance. Drawing on Attali’s concept of noise as a disruptor, it explores how sonic practices like “cacerolazos” and chants challenged the order and redefined public space. Chattopadhyay’s idea of co-listening frames these sounds as collective and political acts that foster communal engagement, while co-listening to sound archives from this period also evokes the creative potential of noise, allowing it to resonate across memories, territories and disputes, imagining other (new) realities.
em guide “die harfe war schon immer sehr mit klischees behaftet” – im interview mit miriam adefris
Miriam Adefris ist eine musikalische Grenzgängerin. Ihre Reise begann in frühen Jahren in Perchtoldsdorf, einem Vorort Wiens, führte sie durch die traditionellen und etwas angestaubten Musikinstitutionen der Hauptstadt und schließlich in die pulsierende Musikszene Londons.
em guide a snapshot into festivals, clubs & networks in electronic music through the independent movement for electronic scenes (times)
Festivals, and especially clubs, are in a tricky situation in recent years, and 2024 is arguably the most challenging year after COVID and since the start of the war against Ukraine. Obvious reasons are inflation and less money in the pocket of festival goers/clubbers, less obvious ones include the lack of the usual generation takeover on the dancefloor due the COVID years, and lastly, there seems to be a transition in genres and trends where festivals and clubs need to adapt to.
em guide theresia philipp: mir fehlen 50% meiner zeit!
Theresia Philipp ist eine der erstaunlichsten Saxophonistinnen der Gegenwart, aber in den letzten Jahren gab es wenige Gelegenheiten, sie live auf der Bühne zu sehen. Im Jahr 2020 erkrankte sie an COVID. Seitdem halten die Symptome an. Theresia Philipp hat Long-Covid. Lars Fleischmann sprach mit ihr über den Spagat zwischen Erfolg und Krankheit.
em guide interview mit bolka
»Subversion ist meine kompositorische Herangehensweise« – der Komponist Matúš Kobolka (aka Bolka) über seine Alben »Smutné stropy« und »Žiadzasamy«
em guide a queer platform dedicated to experimental electronic music – an interview with tender matter
Since 2020, Tony Wagner and Melissa Antunes de Menezes have run the label Tender Matter in Vienna, focusing on queer experimental music. Under the same name they regularly throw shows featuring artists from the label roster as well as local and international collaborators. We met to talk about how the label came to be, the motivation of their artistic practice as well as challenges DIY and independent promoters are facing in Vienna at the moment.
em guide underground culture under threat i. — georgia’s illiberal turn and resistance movement
The illiberal frenzy has hit Georgia hard. Gábor Erlich sketches out some of the key challenges facing this tiny gem of a country in the South Caucasus — including its creators, selectors, promoters, clubs, venues and electronic music scene (and its entire civil society as such). Essentially: of 2024 in Eastern Europe.
em guide the muscut and shukai sounds of lost futures
At first glance, the sonic worlds of Ukrainian labels Muscut and Shukai sound very similar. While the aesthetics of both share the sound of the nostalgic allure of blurred, overdubbed tape loops, they diverge in their creative approach. Shukai delves into the archives, unearthing lost gems often banned and suppressed by the Soviets, while Muscut crafts new music that evokes the feeling of a lost vintage soundtrack to a picture promising visions of a brighter future.
em guide the trials and tribulations of being a musician in post-covid italy
»There seem to be two categories of musicians, those who have side jobs and those who lie.« The image of an artist is a complex one. On one hand there is the glitz and glamour of the globetrotting touring artist with an aspirational lifestyle and social media presence to…
em guide ored recordings: punk ethnography and the sounds of the north caucasus
Founded in 2013 by Bulat Khalilov and Timur Kodzoko, Ored Recordings is a pioneering label dedicated to documenting and preserving the traditional and post-traditional music of the North Caucasus.
the final transcript: tina frank
In the interview series "The final transcript" Stefan Juster aka "Jung an Tagen" delves into the non-musical work of individuals and institutions within the experimental electronics music scene. For this edition he met up visual artist and graphic designer Tina Frank, who is currently professor at the University of Art and Design Linz where she is heading the Department Visual Communication at the Institute for Media.
em guide toolkit: mári mákó
Interview & Fotos: Gábor NemerovÜbersetzung aus dem Ungarischen: Natalie Szende Működésben oder auf Englisch Toolkit ist eine neue Reihe beim MMN Magazin (unserem ungarischen Partner im EM Guide Netzwerk), in der das Magazin in thematischen Interviews bedeutende Akteur:innen der nationalen und internationalen elektronischen Musikszene vorstellt. Dabei liegt der Fokus…
em guide audiotag: challanging shazam’s fingerprinting
Peter Bokor of hungarian magazine MMN talked to Alex Radzishevsky, the creator of AudioTag.info for automated track ID detection. The Ukraine-born, Haifa-based Israeli sound engineer explains the inherent challenges of automated track ID detection, explains his approach with AudioTag, and sheds light on Shazam’s operation.
em guide with mappa on the fluid boundaries between fictional and real sound worlds
Jakub Juhás likes to listen to sounds that are easily overheard – from soundscapes in ponds to gradually disappearing Ukrainian folk songs. Ján Solčáni met the Slovakian mappa label runner and talked with him about peripheries, creating in Eastern Europe and doing things with love.
em guide listening bars in budapest. traditionen, orte und tipps zum musikhören.
In Japan entstanden Anfang des 19. Jahrhunderts Listening Bars – Räume, in denen kollektiv und konzentriert Musik gehört werden kann. Die ungarische Autorin Borbala Kovacs begab sich auf die Suche, wo man sich heute in Budapest voll aufs Musikhören konzentrieren kann. Dabei ist auch gleich ein kleiner Guide für Musikbars in Budapest entstanden!
em guide taking matters into our own hands and offering an alternative
The Oramics initiative sheds light on Polish female, queer and non-binary artists and collectives. One of them is DEKONSTRUKT, the first non-binary and trans-femme collective between Warsaw and Tri-City. Mac aka DiV4 is part of the collective. In an interview with Zosia Hołubowska, DiV4 talks about how they got into DJing and what changes they would like to see in the (international) club culture scene.
em guide aunty rayzor: »alles begann in der kirche«
»My pen is my razor and the razor is me« – so eine der pointierten Textzeilen, die Bisola Olugbenga (besser bekannt unter ihrem Battle-Rap-Psyeudonym Naija Thugress sowie ihrem Artist Name Aunty Rayzor) auf der Bühne von sich gibt. Die in Lagos lebende Musikerin rappt, beeinflusst von Afro-House, Reggae, US-Hip Hop und Afrobeat zweisprachig (auf englisch und in ihrer Muttersprache Yoruba) gleichermaßen über ihre sehr persönlichen Lebensumstände sowie die größeren soziopolitischen Gegebenheiten ihres Heimatlandes.
em guide toolkit: triglav
Weil Synthesizer von Buchla oder Serge Modular teuer sind, fing Márton Bertók aka. Triglav an, günstigere modulare Systeme umzubauen und zu erweitern, bis sie für ihn passten. Mittlerweile kann sich der Budapester Musiker auch Instrumentenbauer nennen. Im Gespräch mit dem ungarischen Magazin MMN erzählt er, was einen guten Synthesizer ausmacht und warum er keine Lust hat, langweilige Konzerte zu geben.
em guide cultivating tenderness through listening with warm winters ltd.
Warm Winters Ltd. is a great platform to discover experimental music (not only) from Eastern Europe. The label from Braitslava does not commit itself to genres, and yet the music is characterized by a certain tenderness. Label founder Adam Badí Donoval on his approach to curating and the challenges of running a label in Eastern Europe
em guide re-enchanted kingdoms
Folk music is strongly influenced by the region in which it originates: by its nature, its traditions, its craftsmanship. What does Slovakian folk music sound like today, and what perspectives on our globalized world does it offer? Author Michael Papcun presents four contemporary approaches ranging from experimental electronics to drone and metal. It becomes clear that Slovakian folk music is more of a concept than a sound.
