A new international music festival is coming to Nine Elms this autumn, bringing artists and musical traditions from across Asia, Europe and Africa to Wandsworth.
The inaugural Silk Road Music Festival will run at World Heart Beat Embassy Gardens from 3 October to 12 December, with nine concerts exploring music connected to the cultures and traditions of the historic Silk Road.
The programme will span Sufi qawwali, Bengali music, jazz, Anatolian folk, Chinese classical music, Armenian folk, Indian and Pakistani classical music, Sudanese music and contemporary cross-cultural collaborations.
Nine concerts coming to Nine Elms
The festival opens on Saturday 3 October with a Sufi Qawwali Night featuring the Khan Brothers and Ustad Haji Ameer Khan.
The following day, vocalist Sahana Bajpaie will bring together Bengali musical traditions and London jazz.
Other performers appearing during the festival include singer-songwriter Olcay Bayir, Chinese pianist Siqian Li and guzheng musician Kang Yang, Lucine Musaelian and The Khio Trio, Ustad Kamal Sabri and Ustad Tari Khan, Sudanese singer Amira Kheir, jazz pianist Julian Joseph and tabla player Alok Verma.
The series concludes on 12 December with mezzo-soprano Lydia Shariff and The Songs She Carried: Women’s Voices Across the Silk Road, featuring music ranging from Persian poetry and Urdu ghazals to Armenian lullabies, opera and jazz.
Celebrating music across cultures
Sahana Gero, Artistic Director and Founder of World Heart Beat, said: “The Silk Road was a meeting place for the exchange of ideas, stories and cultures.
“Our inaugural Silk Road Festival celebrates that spirit by bringing together exceptional artists from around the world, combining traditional music with contemporary interpretations and fusions.
“Through their performances, we celebrate the power of music to spark curiosity, create connections, and bring people together across cultures.”
World Heart Beat Embassy Gardens opened in Nine Elms in 2023 and combines a concert venue with music education and recording facilities.
The organisation also runs World Heart Beat Music Academy, which provides music tuition and performance opportunities for hundreds of young people each year, including bursaries and access to instruments.
Proceeds from festival ticket sales will help support the academy’s bursary programme for young people facing financial or social barriers to music education.
