Berlin’s CTM Festival to host takeover at the ICA this month

Berlin’s CTM Festival is returning to London's Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) this month.

Taking place on November 22 and 23, CTM x ICA has been supported by the Goethe-Institut London and Pro Helvetia and is set to feature an array of international artists performing both live and DJ sets.

The first night will kick off with the avant-garde sounds of Ohio-based avant-garde composer Seth Graham and multi-instrumentalist More Eaze.

They will be followed by DJ Rabih Beaini and Julian Sartorius, both of whom push the boundaries of techno by playing with field recordings, hip hop samples, analogue sounds and percussive elements.

Read this next: Review: CTM is the inspiring festival dance music needs

Cuban-American singer LAMB K305 will present a live performance that draws influence from bass, pop, grime and horror soundtracks — while US musician and composer Stephen O’Malley will close the first night with an experimental guitar solo.

Saturday will further broaden the array of sounds on offer, starting with multi-instrumentalist duo Kuntari and their modern take on traditional Indonesian music.

Nídia and Valentina are set to play after, presenting a new collaborative project that pushes the boundaries of the former’s kuduro practice and the latter’s experimental drumming.

Lorraine James will then take to the stage with her genre-blending grime, jazz and IDM compositions while rounding off the festival will be O Ghettão, a collaboration between Príncipe producers DJ Danifox, DJ Firmeza, and DJ N* Fox.

Read this next: CTM Festival pushes the limits of the electronic music experience

Earlier this year, several artists pulled out of CTM's 25th-anniversary edition as part of Strike Germany, a cultural strike against state-funded cultural institutions across Germany — in particular, to combat a now-removed clause passed by the Berlin senate in December 2023 that required recipients of arts funding to adhere to the controversial IHRA definition of anti-semitism.

CTM released a statement following the withdrawals, insisting that it respected the artists' decisions to pull out of appearing at the festival and that it shared the "worries and concerns" raised regarding the clause, calling it a "massive intervention in the freedom of the arts".

While the Berlin Senate dropped the requirement clause in January, a new law has been passed by the German Parliament this week to "prohibit public funding for any organisation or project that promotes antisemitism, questions Israel's right to exist, calls for a boycott of Israel or actively supports the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement."

CTM released a statement on November 5, reiterating its stance ahead of the decision by the German Parliament, writing: "This draft resolution does not combat antisemitism but instead pits minorities against each other, targets the rights of asylum seekers, migrants, and students, and disregards the fact that antisemitism originated in Europe."

"Through its one-sided focus, it derails Germany’s responsibility to also protect Palestinian lives, shields Netanyahu’s government in its war efforts, and undermines foreign policy efforts to end the war and avert impending genocide," the statement adds.

You can read CTM's full statement, here.

For more details on CTM's takeover at London's ICA, click here.

Meena Sears is Mixmag's Digital Intern, follow her on Instagram