When the Balance Holds Its Breath: Orchestra in the Age of Fracture

Contemporary art music stands at a crossroads. In the shadow of war, shifting defence spending, and political turbulence, the struggle to articulate the value of arts is harder than ever.

This panel explores music's role as a cultural megaphone and questions how we can expand the dialogue beyond our own circles—identifying where new international collaborations could be fruitful and discussing strategies to secure the future of the art music scene in a changing reality.

Speakers:

• Graham McKenzie, Artistic Director and Chief Executive of Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival (hcmf//)
• Helena Tulve, Composer, Artistic Co-Director of Estonian Music Days, Composition Professor at EAMT
• Taavi Kerikmäe, Musician and Head of Estonian Centre for Contemporary Music (ECCM)
• Maria Faust, Artist and composer
• Maria Hansar, R&D Manager, ECCM

Moderator:

• Nick Hobbs, Founder of Charmenko, Charmworks, and Charm Musics