Izštekani, a radio show and music community with a history spanning more than thirty years, continues its new format of concerts and conversations – performed live before a devoted audience rather than recorded in the studio, and broadcast on Val 202.

The autumn series opens with the legendary and unfailingly witty Primorska band Zmelkoow. They promise a performance without an orchestra, a Dalmatian klapa, fireworks or elaborate stage props. They may, however, be joined by a surprise guest who will add an extra spark to a musical concoction featuring classical guitar, fretless bass, ukulele bass, electronic drums, flute, goblet drum, violin, mandolin, saxophone and accordion. And if anyone still finds the folk element lacking, they can always throw in a bajs – a traditional bowed bass instrument – spoons, or the meh, traditional Istrian bagpipes.

This year marks the 30th anniversary of their groundbreaking, cult-classic second album, Čiko, Pajo in Pako. Although they have released eleven albums since then, many of its songs remain the backbone of their live sets. At the same time, however, some have been overshadowed by newer material. This time, they have decided to perform the entire album from start to finish. To top it off, they’ll add a selection of songs from this year’s release PLUS – including a hit, a hidden gem, and at least one track they almost never perform live because it is simply too tender for a rock venue.

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For ages 11–15

France Prešeren’s famous ballad gets a modern high-energy reimagining for the twenty-first century. Urška attends a party, meets a mysterious biker and finds herself in a dazzling underwater world where not everything is as perfect as it seems. The musical is packed with powerful music, humour, suspenseful scenes and fantastical twists. A little romance, a hint of danger, bursts of energy – and a story that proves even old poems can carry a very contemporary beat.

Jackline Kasiva Mutua, vocals, guitar, percussion 
Michael Munene Gichuhi, bass, back vocals 
Nahshon Mweu, guitar, back vocals
Bonface Odera Onganga, keyboards, back vocals
Victor Kioko Muthini, drums, back vocals

“Kasiva, do you hear that?” her grandmother would ask as they sat by the fire after supper. A gifted storyteller, she wove witty tales with life lessons hidden at their heart. When she grew tired and wanted to distract her six-year-old granddaughter so she could doze for a while, she would say, “Go to the cow pen and listen to the secret that Nzilú, the black bull, is telling Nzalú, the white bull.” The curious little Kasiva would run to the pen and listen eagerly, only to return a few moments later, slightly out of breath. “I heard nothing… I only saw Nzilú licking his nose!” Her grandmother would insist, “Hurry, go back and listen carefully. The secret is being told right now.” Determined to uncover these mysterious animal secrets, Kasiva would return, this time with greater focus. That was when she began to hear it: crickets chirping in layered patterns, cows breathing in a steady tempo, the wind moving through the trees, laughter drifting from the kitchen. In the seeming randomness of it all, there was rhythm. On her way back, Kasiva would hum what she had heard. Later, lying in bed, she would recreate those rhythms on the bed frame, on her lap, her chest and her cheeks. Years later, she experimented with sound everywhere – on pans, spoons, school desks, buckets, anything she could lay her hands on. That was how Kasiva Mutua discovered the most beautiful world she knows – the world of percussion.

Through rhythm, she tells both her own story and that of African women. She advocates for women’s empowerment and gender equality across the continent. Holding a degree in journalism, she frequently participates in projects with educational or activist aims, including the Nile Project and TED Talks. Just over a decade ago, she co-founded the all-female percussion group MOTRA (Modern and Traditional Rhythms). With her musicality and charismatic stage presence, she forges a powerful connection with audiences, captivating listeners around the world and gaining wider recognition through appearances at showcases such as Jazzahead! 2025 and WOMEX 2026.

 

Sogol Mirzaei, tar; Eleanna Pitsikaki, qanoûn; Marie-Suzanne de Loye, viola da gamba 

Ensemble Chakâm, named after an ancient Persian poetic form, explores the intersection of music and poetry, creating a distinctive artistic language in which master instrumentalists performing on traditional string instruments – the tar, qanoûn, and viola da gamba – bring to life musical material situated between classical heritage and contemporary improvisation. The trio draws on the rich traditions of Persian, Arabic, and European Baroque repertoires, weaving them together with original contemporary compositions. The string instruments engage in a dialogue that alternates between sonic intensity and meditative contemplation, forging connections between three distinct musical worlds. The ensemble’s founder, the Iranian musician Sogol Mirzaei, is a renowned performer of Iranian classical music on the tar. While completing her master’s degree in musicology at the Sorbonne, she crossed paths with Marie-Suzanne de Loye, a viola da gambist specialising in early music, particularly the musical legacies of Anatolia, Persia, and Brittany.

The ensemble’s third member, the Greek artist Eleanna Pitsikaki, is among the most distinguished qanoûn players on today’s international music scene. She approaches her instrument with a distinctive artistic vision, reviving traditions from both East and West while blending maqam with jazz and heritage with modernity. She is currently completing her doctoral studies at the University of Music in Mainz, where her research focuses on cross-cultural music, migration, and belonging.

The trio thus embodies a convergence of life trajectories and experiences; through music, its members express a longing for the lands they have left behind, a sense of rootlessness, and memories of places gradually disappearing. At the same time, the ensemble bears witness to the creative power that emerges through encounter, discovery, and the continual reshaping of identity.

Since its founding in 2019, the Chakâm ensemble has quickly established itself on the French and international music scene. In 2023, the ensemble was honoured for its exceptional artistic work at the Diaspora Music Awards. In 2024, it performed at the WOMEX showcase, and in 2025, released its debut album, Les Vents Brûlants.

 

Marie-Claude Lambert-Phileas, vocals; Fabrice Lambert, vocals, kalimba; Jyothi Lambert, vocals, rouleur drum; Kezia Lambert, vocals, percussion; Richelin Mahano, vocals, percussion; Fabien Boquet, vocals, percussion

For Marie-Claude Lambert-Philéas, a singer and musician from Réunion, music is a family affair. Once accompanying her father – the renowned singer-songwriter Gramoun Lélé – on tour as a young girl, she now continues the family legacy alongside her husband and children. Resonating in Malagasy and Réunion Creole, and driven by exhilarating percussive rhythms, her multi-vocal songs rekindle tradition, passing historical memory on to younger generations.
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The Votia group hails from the island of Réunion in the Indian Ocean, where African, Malagasy, Indian, and French colonial traditions intertwine within a compact geographical space. This cultural diversity is not merely the backdrop to the cultural expression of an island renowned for its exceptional musicians – it is its very foundation. At its heart lies maloya, a traditional musical genre that emerged under colonial conditions and long existed on the margins of official cultural life. The voices of enslaved plantation workers have nonetheless come to symbolise resistance and the island’s cultural identity. Rather than treating maloya as a folkloric artefact, Votia understand it in a broader sense – as a living, open system in which rhythm carries memory, the voice becomes a vehicle for storytelling, and repetition serves to deepen meaning.

Krzysztof Lasoń, Stanisław Lasoń, Robert Waszut, Jan Kaczmarzyk, Piotr Szczotka

The Polish string ensemble Vołosi is one of the most original groups on the contemporary European music scene. “An exuberant, original band!” wrote The Guardian – while the BBC praised the ensemble for music that “transcends boundaries”.

The story of the string quintet began at an unusual intersection of two musical worlds – a chance meeting in the heart of the Beskid Mountains between self-taught virtuosos of Carpathian folk music and classically trained musicians from Silesia. The encounter gave rise to a frenzied improvisational session that would shape the ensemble’s distinctive musical language. Marked by this diversity, their style embraces everything from the beauty of enigmatic melodies to fierce, surging dynamics.

Bringing together two violinists, a violist, a cellist, and a double bassist, the ensemble’s entirely instrumental performances reveal a rich and deeply expressive repertoire infused with elements of classical, film, and ambient music, Balkan rhythms, and contemporary improvisation. 

Shortly after its formation, word of the group’s virtuosity spread internationally. The ensemble made an immediate impact, winning a prestigious award at Nowa Tradycja, one of Poland’s most influential contemporary folk music festivals. Today, with more than nine hundred concerts at prestigious festivals and concert venues across Europe, Asia, and the United States behind them, the musicians have established collaborations with internationally renowned artists and orchestras alike.

Vołosi are renowned for their captivating stage presence and direct connection with the audience. Far more than a conventional musical performance, their concerts unfold as an intense, dynamic, and deeply emotional experience marked by extraordinary virtuosity.

For ages 11–15

Pinocchio is a wooden boy with a gift for trouble. He runs away, lies through his teeth, gets into strange situations and almost always does exactly the opposite of what he should. But that is precisely what makes his story so funny. This stage adaptation turns the famous tale into a fast-paced, humorous and visually exuberant adventure, featuring music, video and plenty of unexpected twists. A performance for anyone who sometimes feels that growing up is uncannily like driving without brakes.

For ages 11–15

This is no ordinary concert. It is a musical experiment in which sound is drawn from almost anything – from a singing saw to a rubber pig. Blending classical music and improvisation with playful antics, Boštjan Gombač and a group of outstanding musicians deliver a performance that leaves audiences staring at one another in utter amazement before erupting into hearty laughter. If you would like to hear what an unruly, unrestrained orchestra sounds like, join us in Linhart Hall this January!

For ages 11–15

France Prešeren’s famous ballad gets a modern high-energy reimagining for the twenty-first century. Urška attends a party, meets a mysterious biker and finds herself in a dazzling underwater world where not everything is as perfect as it seems. The musical is packed with powerful music, humour, suspenseful scenes and fantastical twists. A little romance, a hint of danger, bursts of energy – and a story that proves even old poems can carry a very contemporary beat.

Written by: Jack Cunningham, based on a novel by Kate and Hesketh Prichard
Director of Photography: Henry Sharp
Cast: Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Astor, Jack McDonald, Donald Crisp, Jean Hersholt, Lottie Pickford
Production: Douglas Fairbanks for Elton Corporation / United Artists 

The Slovenian premiere of Andrej Goričar’s new musical score, which will receive its world premiere as the opening event of the Pordenone Silent Film Festival in October 2026.

Don Q, Son of Zorro was made at the height of Douglas Fairbanks’s career. Alongside Mary Pickford and Charles Chaplin, he was one of the most celebrated icons of silent cinema. At the time, Fairbanks chose his own subjects and personally selected the screenwriters and directors for the films he produced.

The protagonist of Fairbanks’s signature adventure romance is Don Cesar de Vega, the son of the Californian swordsman Zorro – a swaggering, loud-mouthed master of the whip. He is portrayed with great wit by Fairbanks, one of the most charismatic and enduring figures of American silent cinema.

The story is set in Spain, where Don Cesar, during a visit to the royal court, impresses both the Spanish nobility and a visiting Austrian Archduke. However, he soon falls from favour when a local officer – who is also his rival for the hand of the young Spanish aristocrat Dolores (played by the young Mary Astor) – frames him for the Archduke’s murder.