Ring Ring’s Festival Whistle Blows for the 29th Gathering

The 29th edition of Belgrade’s one-of-a-kind festival of new and experimental music will take place from May 23 to 25, 2025, at Radio Belgrade’s Studio 6, the Jewish Cultural Center, and Karmakoma Club. Over the course of three adventurous musical evenings, audiences will hear artists and bands from Norway, Japan, Germany, Austria, Portugal, the Czech Republic, the USA, and Serbia.

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The longest-running festival of alternative, experimental, free-jazz, and improv music in Serbia, “Ring Ring”, has gone through various phases since its inception in 1996, evolving in different circumstances. At times, it boasted a lavish program lasting up to seven days, while at other moments, it took a more stripped-down form. However, regardless of the number of concerts, “Ring Ring” has always focused on high-quality, challenging, and diverse content.

This year’s 29th edition of “Ring Ring” will stay true to that spirit. Despite the challenging circumstances, the festival will be held in its usual May slot, bringing five concerts to delight fans of “different music”. Over three nights of concerts, taking place in three different venues in Belgrade, we will hear musicians from eight countries.

Alongside local favorites such as Otomo Yoshihide, Luís Vicente, and Marina Džukljev, the program will feature old acquaintances and fresh names from the world of top-tier improvised and innovative music, with a slight emphasis on free-jazz this year.

The festival opens with a Serbian-Austrian duo consisting of MARINA DŽUKLJEV (piano) and DIEB13 (turntables), two artists whose highly praised album “Štrudel” is the product of long-distance collaboration and a simultaneous performance from Novi Sad and Vienna in “COVID October” 2020. This performance, which is a Balkan premiere, is scheduled for Friday, May 23, at Studio 6, starting at 8:30 PM.

Entrance to this evening is free, with prior registration required via email: ringringfestival@gmail.com.

The second evening, Saturday, May 24, will take place at the iconic “Ring Ring” location, the Jewish Cultural Center “Oneg Shabbat”. Czech percussionist PAVEL FAJT, who last performed at “Ring Ring” in 2012 as a member of the Mie Zabelka Trio, will showcase the richness and excitement of his solo performance, presenting yet another Balkan premiere at the 29th edition of the festival.

The closing performance of the second evening will feature the world premiere of a Portuguese-American-Serbian quartet made up of: LUÍS VICENTE (trumpet), JOHN DIKEMAN (saxophone), BRANISLAV RADOJKOVIĆ (double bass), and ALEKSANDAR ŠKORIĆ (drums). This will be a free-jazz fireworks display from these prominent improvisers.

The third and final evening, Sunday, May 25, at Karmakoma Club, will begin with another Balkan premiere. The German-Norwegian acoustic trio consisting of IGNAZ SCHICK (saxophone), INGEBRIGT HÅKER FLATEN (double bass), and OLIVER STEIDLE (drums) brings together three legendary artists from the contemporary European jazz, improvised, and experimental music scene.

And finally, to close the 29th edition of “Ring Ring”, the festival will welcome true international stars to perform before the local audience, led by the legendary Japanese guitarist OTOMO YOSHIHIDE. Otomo has performed at the festival several times, and now he returns with his acclaimed Japanese quintet ONJQ (Otomo Yoshihide’s New Jazz Quintet), which has been promoting energetic free-jazz and experimental music since 1999.

This will be their first performance in Serbia, expected to be a powerful conclusion to another edition of “Ring Ring”, a festival celebrating new sounds, human creativity, and togetherness through music!

Tickets for the second evening (1,200 RSD) and the third evening (1,700 RSD) can be purchased through tickets.rs and by email: ringringfestival@gmail.com.

The festival is supported by: the Austrian Cultural Forum Belgrade, Goethe-Institut, the Czech Centre Belgrade, Radio Belgrade 3, the Jewish Cultural Center “Oneg Shabbat”, and “Karmakoma” Club. The organizer is the “Ring Ring” Association in collaboration with MICS.

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PROGRAM OF THE 29TH RING RING FESTIVAL

May 23, 8:30 PM, Studio 6 of Radio Belgrade

Marina Džukljev & dieb13 (SRB/AUT)

May 24, 7:30 PM, Jewish Cultural Center

Pavel Fajt (CZE)

Vicente/Dikeman/Škorić/Radojković (PRT/USA/SRB)

May 25, 8 PM, Karmakoma Club

Schick/Håker Flaten/Steidle (DEU/NOR)

ONJQ (JPN)

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