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The Florist’s Gardens, above Sobieski Park, has been renovated in the last few years, most recently after a competition for designing urban furniture that has left this space with a refreshing blend of innovative design and practical functionality. The layout is a subtle and balanced mixture of traditional patterns with a contemporary edge. 4 – 5 Mar – Radio Muezzin One of the world’s most poignant sounds is the Muslim call to prayer. In the Egyptian capital, there are moves to quell the thousands of Muezzin, those who perform the call to prayer and have one official voice that will be broadcast over the radio to the thousand mosques of Cairo and beyond. The Muezzin have been around since the time of Mohammed and use their melodious voices to announce to the neighrourhood the five prayer times each day, required by Islam. Any visitor to the Egyptian capital would be enchanted by the sounds of these voices merging and mingling over a waking city as the sun rises each morning. However, there has been official disquiet over the practice. Once confined to a real person, many mosques not broadcast the call by using recordings and it is not uncommon to hear the clunk of a needle on scratchy vinyl and many of the loudspeakers used nowadays are very poor, giving this beautiful sound all the grace and charm of a railway station announcement. The Egyptian govenment has had enough and announced that they would choose thirty of the best singers and broadcast them over the radio, for mosques to use. The Minister of Religious Foundations wants to introduce a centralized muezzin next year. The government will broadcast a single muezzins voice live on a radio channel simultaneously to all government mosques. This will abolish the cacophony, but also the diversity of prayer cultures. This proposal has been delayed after protests. The Muezzin are, in many mosques, government employees and often act as caretakers. Many would lose their employment. Swiss director, Stefan Kaegi uses this timely moment to bring Radio Muezzin to life, bringing four Muezzin to the stage. They are a blind Qu’ran teacher who travels to the mosque in a minibus for two hours every day, who listens to the Qu’ran on his journey, pausing only to get the football results; a farmers’ son and former tank driver from Upper Egypt, who vacuums the carpet in his mosque; an electrician, who began to learn the Qu’ran by heart after a serious accident, and a bodybuilder and runner-up world champion in Qu’ran recitation. These men tell their stories with simplicity and grace, providing a look into the heart of a mosque and into the rich diversity of their calling.
Despite being such a creative nation, Belgium hasn’t really given exposure to its music scene. There are several reasons for this, including the small size of the nation and the linguistic divide that separates bands into Francophone or Flammand music communities. To counter this, a new venture is being opened, that is to try to publicise all Belgian bands and encourage creativity, regardless of language. It aims to provide a platform for bands to publicise themselves, upload songs and videos etc that could attract the attention of industry players. The opening party is in Churchills Bar, near de Brouckere Metro. There will be several local bands playing, all who have already built up a reputation for good music and great live performances. The night will feature the band Garner launching their new CD, the Vogues will have their new EP and My TV Is Dead will have their latest video. If that’s not enough, up an coming band, Diplomat will be asking the audience to pick their next single. In the background, three video screens will be showing the best of Belgian music and bands will be there to meet with fans. In addition, sponsors have provided some free booze. Come and listen to the sound of Belgium!  Tram in Brussels snow Here’s a prediction for next December; No body will be wishing for a white Christmas. When it comes to the never ending bad weather, we’re all feeling a bit like Al Pacino in Godfather III, when he said, “Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in.” Spring seems a long way away.
Born and brought up in the beautiful rolling landscape of Wigan, Nancy Elizabeth is a lover and creator of songs and instrumental music. The first release was an E.P. called ‘The Wheel Turning King’, which came out on Manchester label, Timbreland. That led to her hiring a cottage in the middle of nowhere, where she created her first album ‘Battle and Victory’. This was released by The Leaf Label in October 2007. She has toured across Europe (and Mexico), laden with instruments, playing her music. Recently, North Wales saw her recording her second album, which is due out in September. In between touring and working on her own music, she has played with James Yorkston on a few albums, as well as collaborating with Japanese sound artist Susuma Yokota on his recent release ‘Mother’, along with other things.
The Annual Worldwide Security Conference has become one of the largest and most prestigious events mobilizing global cooperation in the fight against international terrorism, violent extremism and organized crime. Since 2001, more than 450 leaders from around the world participate in our annual Conference to examine achievements, failures and challenges in the fight against terrorism, extremism and organized crime. Each year, the Worldwide Security Conference is hosted by the World Customs Organization. This year, the conference is also co-sponsored by the Canadian Government in its capacity as Chair of the G-8, the Financial Times, Dell and Deloitte. It is organized in association with the Oxford Analytica, Mind-Alliance Systems, New Europe and SGS S.A. This year, the keynote speaker is H.E. Mr. Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Foreign Minister of Pakistan. The conference will hear from expert speakers and high level participants from policy and business discuss a number of vital issues, including combating extremism in S.E. Asia, cyber threats, financial risk and economic security amongst many other issues. The aim of the conference is to foster debate and discussion between the speakers and participants. Speakers include; General K. Khodaidad, Former Minister of Counter Narcotics, Afghanistan, General Ehsan Ul Haq, Former Chairman, Pakistan’s Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, Gilles de Kerchove, Counter-Terrorism Coordinator, Council of the European Union, Christopher M.E. Painter, Director for Cybersecurity, National Security Council, Executive Office of the President, Zeeshan Amin, Political Affairs Officer, UN Counterterrorism Implementation Task Force and Sean K. Moon, Senior Policy Advisor U. S. Department of Homeland Security.  Anvil co-founders Robb Reiner (L) and Steve “Lips” Ludlow contemplate their band’s future. Photo: Brent J. Craig Anvil! – The Story of Anvil The world of film hasn’t been kind to Heavy Metal music, but this has changed with a remarkable documentary that will appeal to even those with no interest in the music. The Story of Anvil chronicles the lifelong friendship between the groups co-founders, Steve “Lips” Ludlow and Robb Reiner as they try to follow their dream of fame and fortune. They had some early success in the 80’s alongside Bon Jovi, the Scorpions and Whitesnake, but although they have the respect of their peers, they never made it to the big time. What makes them different is that they never gave up and are still playing today. The film also marks the debut of its director, Sacha Gervasi. He was an early fan and worked on a couple of their tours in the 80’s. Wondering what had happened to his old friends, he set out to find them. As the film opens, they were in dire straits, almost broke and worn down by 30 years of not getting very far. But this isn’t a depressing tale, it covers a European tour that descends into farce, with venues refusing to pay them, missed connections until they are reduced to sleeping in railway stations. It all sounds very Spinal Tap – the legendary satire on life on the road, but this film has something very special at its core, the two band members. Their dedication and an optimism that is impervious to the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune are inspirational. They also come over as genuinely good hearted people who chase dreams but keep their feet firmly on the ground. Taking a last shot at success, they track down an old producer and begin work on their 17th album and then try to get record companies interested. They fail and are selling the CD’s themselves to their fans through their website. The film is a lot more than this. It is a portrait of a lifelong friendship, one that withstands stress and pressure, it is also about the love of family, for both men are not products of an arrested development, but they love and are loved by their families. Their essential decency is shown in one key scene. Lips has taken on a job as a telemarketer, desperate to raise thousands of dollars to fund recording a CD. As the rest of the marketers shout, blandish and cajole people on the other ends of the phone to but sunglasses, Lips is unable to make a single sale. Not out of adolescent rebellion, but because he just feels painfully unable to trick or pressure someone into buying something. Any viewer will admire these two in their Quixotic quest, especially as the film shows just how tough it is, and will root for the band as they struggle to get the success they deserve. However, the film unfolds to be something more than just another tale about the music industry. It becomes a meditation on the nature of success, of what is important in a life. Anvil may not have had the rewards of fame that other bands around at the time, or were influenced by them, but is that a real loss? When we see these two friends, surrounded by families that truly love them for what they are, their kids who seem to be good, happy kids. When we look at the bands in their type of music that did find fame, we can see the failed marriages, the addictions and rehabs. So, who are the successful ones? Who has the real, meaningful success? On this evidence, it looks like Anvil win, hands down. So, check out this touching and moving documentary, or even better, buy a signed copy from the band’s website – www.anvilmovie.com – for only $20!  The Man Who Plays With Himself 9 Feb – Pat Metheny Pat Metheny was born in Kansas City on August 12, 1954 into a musical family. Starting on trumpet at the age of 8, Metheny switched to guitar at age 12. By the age of 15, he was working regularly with the best jazz musicians in Kansas City. Since then, he has performed with artists as diverse as Steve Reich to Ornette Coleman to Herbie Hancock to Jim Hall to Milton Nascimento to David Bowie. Over the years, Metheny has won countless polls as “Best Jazz Guitarist” and awards, including three gold records, 17 Grammy Awards including an unprecedented seven consecutive Grammies for seven consecutive albums. He will be stretching himself with a highly unusual performance at BOZAR, with his “Orchestrion” a machine that is, in his words, “a method of developing ensemble-oriented music using acoustic and acoustoelectric musical instruments that are mechanically controlled in a variety of ways, using solenoids and pneumatics. With a guitar, pen or keyboard I am able to create a detailed compositional environment or a spontaneously developed improvisation, with the pieces on this particular recording leaning toward the compositional side of the spectrum. On top of these layers of acoustic sound, I add my conventional electric guitar playing as an improvised component.” With this, he is taking an entirely new approach to the idea of a musician playing solo. Citing his heritage as a 20th Century musician, Metheny, says that he has always been interested in technology, right from when he first plugged in an electric guitar and his background in jazz. He explains, “One of the inspiring hallmarks of the jazz tradition through the decades has been the way that the form has willfully ushered in fresh musical contexts, resulting in new performance environments for players and composers. This pursuit of change, and the way that various restless souls along the way have bridged the roots of the form with the new possibilities of their own time, has been a major defining element for me in the music’s evolution at every key point along the way.” This technology means that his robot musicians can perform in a way that the human body can never do, but as each step in programmed by the composer, it still keeps a human feel. Metheny says that it is like performing with many versions of himself. In any case, with his reputation for high quality music and a love of the inventive, this concert will be something very different and should be entertaining and exciting.  Maelbeek Metro Underground Art The Brussels Metro is the nations largest art gallery, with artists being invited to decorate each station. This is Maelbeek, where Brussels artist, Jaques Benoit made tiles containing simple line drawings of people. Although simplistic, they have an elegance and add a little charm to this otherwise cold and bleak station.  Still from Belgian entry, Boomkuijper © Kaze The Anima International Animated Film Festival This festival has something for people of all ages.Anima is first and foremost an international competition for animated features made during the previous 18 months. Ten features, 5 for children and 5 for adults, have been selected and will be chosen by the public. There are two competitions for short films, one national the other international, along with the rest of the selection of sneak preview shorts offering 128 short films in all. Screenings concentrating on a particular subject will give everyone the chance to discover or rediscover both dark and comic sides of animation, with programmes like Humour and Fresh Bones (guaranteed to cause a shiver), Acides Animés showing off the young generation with films from the innovating Autour de minuit production company, and all the films of Adam Elliot (Mary and Max). Another programme spotlights the work of French director Florence Miailhe, there’s a focus on Greek animation from the 40s to the present, and the Canadian documentary A Thorn in the Mind, where masters of animation like Pjotr Sapejin, Georges Schwizgebel or Raoul Servais talk about their art. Mr Servais will also be in attendance this year for the DVD release of his feature Taxandria, co-produced by Cinéart and Folioscope. The afternoons are set aside for the kids at Anima with programmes of new shorts and features including Kurt Turns Evil, The Bear and the Magician and Panda Go Panda. There will be workshops too, in collaboration with the ABC association, and the Animatins will give a wide audience the opportunity to enjoy the Festival.There’s also a very Animated Night at Anima (from 10 pm to 4 in the morning), a special VJ party with the Meaksuma collective, the Open Screenings, for all out of competition Belgian filmmakers, conferences with international guests… In short, enough to give the eyes a real treat from ten in the morning till midnight, every single day! As well as this rich programme, Anima is also offering free access to its exhibitions, its children’s workshops (an ABC production), numerous concerts and for the second year running a big Cosplay competition organized by the Belgian Cosplay Team. More information: www.animatv.be  Breaking The Habit. Police Impound Smuggled Cigarettes 1 Feb – Combating the Global Illicit Trade in Tobacco and the consequences for Europe and Africa It has been estimated that 10.7% of global cigarette sales were attributed to illicit trade in 2006 and the major tobacco companies were implicated in the hidden trade, including British American Tobacco, according to an investigation by the British Medical journal, who say “Documents show that BAT has advanced its corporate interests by systematically exploiting strategic opportunities to supply the contraband tobacco trade throughout Africa. To date, BAT and its senior directors have remained unaccountable via litigation or public inquiry for these activities, which was epitomised by the abandoned investigation by the UK Department of Trade and Industry in 2004 amid reports of political pressure.87 The lack of public accountability to date for these activities, in some of the world’s poorest countries, starkly undermines BAT’s claims of corporate social responsibility.” A new protocol to be discussed and signed by governments at a meeting in Geneva in March is expected to boost the war on illicit trade in tobacco products as it will make it possible for countries to disclose bank accounts of suspected smugglers. The manufacturing or distributing of tobacco products whose duty have not been paid or dealing in products that do not bear applicable fiscal stamps or unique identification markings is considered an offence under the protocol that would be ratified by governments. The issue has huger implications, not just for health and lost taxes, but also for fighting organised crime and the dubious uses of the profits from smuggling. 5 Feb – 27 Mar – Olivier Megaton, Our Faces On Your Walls
 Olivier Megaton directing Transporter 3 Olivier Megaton, was born in 1965, exactly 20 years after the US army dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, which inspired hid pseudonym. He is best known as the Director of The Transporter 3, staring Jason Stratham, has had a varied career. He initially qualified as a psychologist, but took up a paintbrush instead. Deeply interested in urban culture, he took up street art and his grafitti, whilst his paintings began to be exhibited in galleries, firstly in France and then worldwide. In the nineties, Jean-Baptiste Mondino who encouraged him to take up film making and he has become one of France’s foremost action movie directors. He has produced a great deal of short films and video clips for well-known or emergent artists, such as Negresses Vertes and JL Aubert and he has made ads for the some of the best known brands like Coca-Cola, Audi and Nike as well as TV shows or soundtracks and documentary films. In a continuous attempt to work on the image, Oliver successfully managed to adapt his painting techniques to new materials and life experience. So, over the decades, he used aerosol paints, plexiglass and ink paintings. His major theme is to question the way icons are evolving and he succeeds in immortalizing their emotion. He takes special care to prepare his portrays which testify of a moment of life and telling us a full story. With his own language and sensibility, he communicates with everyday people through his artworks, having never truly left his love of street and urban art behind. This exhibition, in the seriously cool Wereof Gallery is a chance to see this multi-skilled artist return to his roots.
This four day festival features over 30events, organized by The L, and provides opportunities for resident artists to share their research on work sites or mature multidisciplinary projects including theater, dance, performance, installations. It also includes concerts, cinema and a journey into the city. for the more sedate, there are workshops above the bar at the festival. The L said through his project that is taking the time to seek, to hesitate, to go back to better move forward and confront the public will emerge in surprising forms. Celebrating its second year, the organisers offer a pass, sold at a special price of 10 €, provides access to more than 30 events. The festival mascot is the Lion of Ixelles and if you want a taste of the creativity and talent on display at the festival, check out the VRAK website, where a wonderful stop motion animation, featuring the lion moving through the streets of Brussels: http://tinyurl.com/neweurope304  Stoned Immaculate Ian Brown, We get the chance to see one of the most influential musicians of the last 25 years play live and at the top of his game. Ian Brown was the frontman for The Stone Roses, who in 1984 were one of the major forces behind the ‘Madchester’ scene that gave new life to the music scene in the North West of England. However the atmosphere around the band was chaotic and, after long legal disputes the band finally folded in 1996. The band have been cited as a major influence by Oasis, The Verve, The Charlatans, Kasabian, Coldplay and The Bluetones. Since the split, Brown has continued to release records, some better than others, but all have been an interesting blend of musical styles as well as occasionally getting arrested and appeared in a cameo role in a Harry Potter film. His sixth and latest solo album, My Way has been getting good reviews, especially for its track “Stellify” that he claimed that the song was originally written for pop star Rihanna, but he thought he had created “a great sound” and kept it for himself. Speaking to Clash Magazine, he explained the song’s title, which turns out not to be a reference to a Belgian beer, but, “On each album, I try and get a word in on a Pop song that I’ve never sung before… that’s right back to ‘Waterfall’ and ‘Roses.’ I’ve never heard the word brigantine in a song before and it’s like find the word and on this one it was ‘inclement,’ like this inclement weather. I’d never heard before and then I came across ’stellify,’ the one before that was ’solarised’. Yeah, I just try and put one in each album.” So, go and see a living legend, one who has mastered the mix of edgy and powerful guitar sounds, a rhythm coming from Jamaican dancehall, traces of soul and funk, but above all something unique, something original.  Another Bloomin' Artist Bedroom Art at Hotel Bloom, rue Royale One of the city’s coolest hotels has been host to an unusual project to support young European artists. After going through a selection process a group of painters get the chance to put their designs on the walls of a hotel bedroom. This gives them exposure, but more importantly, experience of gaining a commission and dealing with a client. The guests get so sleep in a unique room! |
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Sobieski Park
Music Brussels Opening Party
16 Feb – Nancy Elizabeth
The 7th Worldwide Security Conference
4 – 7 Feb – VRAK Festival