Mitra Kotte
Pianist Mitra Kotte masters the classical repertoire from solo to chamber music works and piano concertos – but she also devotes herself in a special way to previously hidden works, for example in her programme ‘Herstory’ with compositions by women from the 19th and 20th centuries. As a soloist as well as a chamber musician, Mitra Kotte has been a prizewinner at national and international competitions since her youth, and in the 2022/23 season, she was selected as a Jeunesse ‘Featured Artist’. The fact that she also spent a year abroad in South Korea as part of her studies in Vienna enriched her with new artistic approaches. With her open-mindedness, she also introduces the youngest of audiences to music.

Avin Ahmadi
An artist who knows how to walk skilfully between musical worlds and traditions. The sound of Avin Ahmadi’s music tells stories from faraway places and invites you to embark on a journey to these very places. Born in Tehran and living in Vienna, the musician paints pictures in the minds of her listeners with her pieces. She brings melodies to life that captivate, stimulate the imagination and allow us to dream. What she performs with her oud and her voice are improvisations of traditional Iranian music, Arabic maqams and her own fusion folk compositions, which are interwoven and speak their very own language. Profound, moving and touching. Avin Ahmadi was chosen for NASOM 25/26. A sponsorship program by the Austrian Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs.

Slowklang
If you want to emphasise one characteristic of the band sound of the Viennese trio Slowklang, it is its ambiguous musical categorisability. Singer Amina Bouroyen and her two colleagues Robert Unterköfler (tenor saxophone) and Robin Gadermaier (bass) realise their very own sound, whose starting point lies in jazz, but which also branches out into other forms of music in the most beautiful way. As the name of the trio might already suggest, the three musicians take a more considered and reserved approach. Instead of focussing on musical virtuosity, Slowklang’s pieces focus more on the creation of atmosphere in the field of tension between the composed and the improvised. The trio’s music unfolds its mood and tells its story in a very varied way. Sometimes calm and fragile, then again emotionally intense, but also with a lot of groove and energy in the right places.

Maria Mogas Gensana
In her work, Maria Mogas Gensana explores the possibilities of the accordion in an extraordinary way – preferably together with the creators who compose for her, and thus the interaction with the composers opens up new worlds. She then brings these to the stage with an intense presence, often with performative elements playing a key role alongside her extremely accomplished playing style, turning the performances into a holistic experience. She appears on stage as a soloist, in small formations such as the Aer Duo together with saxophonist Patricia Coronal Avilés or in the Duo Ar with accordionist Mirko Jevtovic. In between feathers, she plays accordion together with percussion, voice and flute. She learnt this from Klangforum Wien and its course at the University of Music and Performing Arts Graz. She now brings her work to the public in her own personal style.

Aze
Alone they are Beyza and Ezgi; together they form Aze. Since 2020, the duo provides us a nonchalant insight into their deepest inner selves with their sound mix between sad & sexy and charming yet playful lyrics. Aze combine all facets of R’n’B, Indie and Pop with Middle Eastern nuances; in it they find and offer space to feel, to express and to process – for themselves, but also for their audience. But after all, no drama is so big that a humorous twist won’t make it easier to bear – a tried and tested coping mechanism that also works for Aze.