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Goethe-Institut im Exil

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8:00 PM-8:45 PM

Musician Anas Maghrebi in conversation

Talk|On Sound as Refuge, Protest, and the Rediscovery of Syria’s Nightlife

  • ACUD Studio, Berlin

  • English
  • free entrance
In conversation with Carmen Herold, director of the Goethe-Institut in Exile, Anas Maghrebi discusses artistic resistance, sound as testimony, and the question of how Syrian identity can be renegotiated through music — between exile and underground, between trauma and new beginnings. Maghrebi is a versatile musician — as a folk singer, DJ, and producer, he moves fluidly between genres and scenes. In 2022, he performed as Abu Muhammad at Sawt Syria, an evening initiated by Boiler Room and the collective Sadaa, which spotlighted Syrian sonic practices between Damascus and Berlin. Now, amid economic crisis and psychological exhaustion, a young club and music scene in Syria is re-emerging — one that celebrates life not as an escape from reality, but as a form of self-assertion.

Artists

  • Anas Maghrebi

    Anas Maghrebi is a Berlin-based singer/songwriter. He writes and sings in Arabic. Since he released his first solo album “Daftar Layli” in 2021, he has been exploring different genres of music both as a solo act under the alias “abu muhammad” and a band member with his band “Jazeera 10”. As Anas Maghrebi, he performs occasionally in unplugged form his original songs. While his lyrics deal with mostly personal themes, the political ones hide between the lines sometimes.

  • Carmen Herold

    Project head

    Carmen Herold studied Cultural Studies, East Asian Studies, and Postcolonial Studies in Berlin, Beijing, and New York. From 2015 to 2018, she worked at the Goethe-Institut Beijing, curating and coordinating cultural projects. She co-founded the music club Zhao Dai and later the festival Zhao Dai on Leave. She has worked as a writer and speaker, held roles at the Goethe-Instituts in Munich and Brussels, and has led the Goethe-Institut in Exile since September 2024.

Agenda

  • Feras Fayyad in Conversation

    Talk & Film Excerpts | On Memory, Accountability, and Cinematic Testimony

    • ACUD Studio, Berlin

    Details

  • Musician Anas Maghrebi in conversation

    Talk | On Sound as Refuge, Protest, and the Rediscovery of Syria’s Nightlife

    • ACUD Studio, Berlin

  • Concert with Anas Maghrebi

    Concert | Live Music

    • ACUD Club, Berlin

    Details