‚Saṅkhāra-Ensemble’ Jazzhall
Saṅkhāra feat. Jonathan Kay, Quincy Saul & Mark Nauseef The modern avant-jazz sextet Saṅkhāra is known for its spiritual, devotional sound. The ensemble combines the improvisational freedom of jazz with the melodic depth of raga-inspired forms—woven into the original compositions of singer and composer Hania Luthufi. Saṅkhāra’s concerts flow seamlessly between duos, trios, and quartets within the ensemble, bringing different musical voices to the forefront. With a strong focus on vocal expression and spontaneous creation, each set becomes a dynamic exploration of sound, meaning, and musical connection.
‘Barry Guy and Maya Homburger meets
SPIIC+ ensemble’
Workshop and concert with Maya Homburger and Barry Guy—two extraordinary musical personalities who rank among the world’s most prominent performers in their field. Yet this very question will be at the heart of the evening: which “field” are we talking about? In a unique, synthetic bridge-building exercise, Homburger and Guy span four centuries of music history, bringing the music of H.I.F. Biber into a congenial convergence with the sound worlds of György Kurtág and contemporary improvisational music—creating an exciting dialogue and unexpected “harmony.”
‘Anna Zucker studio recording - install new cycles’
Debut EP Recording. As a singer-songwriter, Anna Zucker releases her own music, which blends influences from jazz and pop.
‘transformation’ (35min) Film project as part of
WATTwanderungen x SPIIC+ ensemble
The film project “transformation,” which centers on the five-member SPIIC+ Ensemble, will be presented as part of the conference “Performing Transformation: Shifting Landscapes in Art, Science, and Technology” at TU Dresden on September 29–30, 2025.
The film project “transformation” is an exploratory approach to the theme of transformation through the medium of artistic research. It also addresses the pressing issues of our time, such as collective creativity, social competence and responsibility, cultural and ecological resources, sustainability, and the vision of a “better future” on planet Earth. The film project was created in collaboration with the SPIIC+ Ensemble, ligeti zentrum, TU Hamburg, the University of Music and Theater (HfMT), and Multi Media Kontor Hamburg (MMKH). WATTwanderungen in Hamburg is a project of the Hamburg Open Online University (HOOU) at TU Hamburg and was funded until the end of 2024 by the BNE Hamburg Masterplan 2030 of the Ministry for the Environment, Climate, Energy, and Agriculture (BUKEA).
ArtSearch 2024 @ ligeti zentrum
International Symposium on Artistic Research
On the occasion of the ArtSearch conference at the ligeti zentrum, the SPIIC+ Ensemble, led by Vlatko Kučan, has invited a group of renowned international (improvisational) artists and scholars to participate in a two-day group workshop/exploration lab/roundtable event. Under the motto “AI = Artistic Intelligence,” the group will explore artistic practices and their applicability to social, scientific, and political contexts.
Workshop: SPIIC+ presents: „Atlas of Breaths” a co-creative Workshop with choreographer and artist Anan Atoyama @ ligeti zentrum
Atlas of Breaths unfolds as a living laboratory where movement, music, and poetry are interwoven to transform knowledge into embodied experience. The workshop becomes a space for collaborative creation in real time—a place where new bonds are forged between those present and those who, whether near or far, have had to leave their homes. It is not just about welcoming: it is about listening and making space.
‘TAI-No Orchestra meets SPIIC+ ensemble’
TAI No-Orchestra is a multi-disciplinary project comprising some of the best improvisers of the Italian scene, both historical figures like Filippo Monico or Roberto Del Piano and new talents like Silvia Bolognesi and Paolo Botti. The main originators for this project are musicians Del Piano, Massimo Falascone and photographer Roberto Masotti; the name "TAI" refers to "Terra Australis Incognita," an imaginary southern continent which appeared on early maps of the world, later symbolizing unknown or unexplored territories. These starting points perfectly illustrate the collective's aesthetics—merging different creative activities in a form of performance where musical improvisation and visuals, but also dance and spoken word, are equally important in exploring the possible intersections of the different voices that comprise the ensemble.
‘kunstwerk - hörwerk’ Hamburger Kunsthalle
Event series in cooperation with the Franz Wirth Gedächtnis Stiftung. “StagnAktion and ZeitSkulptur” Pianist and composer Martín Zamorano invites the SPIIC+ Ensemble (ligeti zentrum), conducted by Vlatko Kučan, to an interdisciplinary performance at the Hamburger Kunsthalle. In dialogue with the improvisations, dancer Annick Schadeck also sheds new light on the relief as a cross-disciplinary medium. The three dimensions of the works are joined by a special guest: time.
‘2025: A Bach Odyssee’ Internationales Bach Festival
The SPIIC+ Ensemble embarks on a fascinating journey through time, in which the spaceship “HARPSICHORD ONE” and its adventurous international crew search for new portals connecting the dimensions of the musical past, present, and future. Along the way, they fly past familiar planets such as ‘CPE BACH’ and ‘G LIGETI,’ but also explore radiant fixed stars of the musical cosmos like ‘NEW JAZZ’ and ‘COM-PROVISATION.’ The logbook records not only time travels through the eras of music history but also repeated close encounters with dazzling comets such as ‘MICRO-TONALITY’ and ‘SPATIAL AUDIO,’ as well as other exciting moments in inner and outer space.
CEPI (Centre Européen Pour l’Improvisation) meeting in Esino Lario/ Italy
The CEPI (European Center for Improvisation) is an association founded in 2015, notably by double bassist Barre Phillips, and based in southern France (Puget-Ville). Its mission is to foster research, creativity, and dialogue between the arts and sciences through improvisation. CEPI organizes residencies, workshops, and interdisciplinary gatherings and focuses on the relationship between individual subjectivities and collective creation.
‚Workshop Special Event with
Satoko Fujii/ Natsuki Tamura’
A workshop with Japanese pianist, composer, improviser, and bandleader Satoko Fujii and her partner, trumpeter Natsuki Tamura.
Pioneers and globetrotters of contemporary jazz and improvised music. Having traveled for decades between Tokyo and New York City, across continents, musical traditions, and genres, they are now among the most renowned protagonists of a globalized new improvisational music.
‘Neuland betreten’ Hamburger Architektursommer @ ligeti zentrum
Neuland betreten! Film, Music, and Word—six cinematic explorations of the spatial, the territorial, the urban, and the rural meet six sound compositions and musical improvisations, creating a creative interplay of image, movement, tone, sound, and language. By and featuring former and current master’s students from the HCU and the HfMT/SPIIC ensemble. As part of the Hamburg Architecture Summer 2023.
Susan Chales de Beaulieu, in collaboration with the initiator and director of the SPIIC project, Vlatko Kucan, brings the short films into dialogue with sound compositions created specifically for this project.
‚ImproLab Workshop’ @ Conservatory of Music „Francesco Venezze", Rovigo/Italy with Pietro Frigato, Marco Bussi & Vlatko Kučan
ImproLab is a music improvisation workshop/Lab set and organized by Pietro Frigato. The lab is thought of as an open space for the students of the school and the improv community of the surroundings to meet and experiment together.During the last meeting of the workshop, in sept 2022, the lab coat was worn by a dear guest Vlatko Kucan from the HfMT of Hamburg. He expertly accompanied the group through a 3 days trip into many aspects of improvisation.