Rawabet Musical Project Residency 2025 (France)

Rawabet is a cultural development, residency and exchange project bringing together several cultural organisations operating in Europe. Led by Ettijahat – Independent Culture (Beirut/Brussels), Rawabet is implemented in partnership with CNCM VOCE, Gezmataz (Genoa, Italy), coculture (Berlin, Germany), Masahat for Arab Culture in Exile (Oslo, Norway) and Transversal Project (Malmo, Sweden).

The project aims to help artists from the Arab world who have recently emigrated to Europe to develop their careers and facilitate their mobility in Europe. It mobilises shared experiences to promote innovation, solidarity and the involvement of different audiences in Europe with the aim of dismantling stereotypes and respecting the rights of refugees and migrants. The project also contributes to promoting freedom of expression and connecting artists from the Arab world who have recently arrived in Europe with professional networks, providing them
with resources to conceptualise their projects and test new practices with other artists from Europe.

About Centre National de Création Musicale VOCE

The Centre National de Création Musicale VOCE’s cultural project is rooted in the idea that contemporary musical creation, at its most innovative, is not necessarily the prerogative of capitals or metropolitan areas, and that it can, and indeed must, take root in rural areas provided they are rich in a strong musical tradition, as is the case in Balagne and more widely in Corsica. The centre is positioned at the crossroads between the promotion of intangible cultural heritage, constituted by centuries of so-called “traditional” or “ancient” musical practices in Corsica and the Mediterranean region, and contemporary sound creation at its most innovative, in terms of harmony, timbre or texture, but also in terms of listening and experience. We regard artistic innovation as the fruit of surprising, diagonal and far-flung encounters. We aim to encourage the hybridisation of art forms and repertoires by promoting cross-disciplinary approaches. We also aim to help de-stigmatise what is known as “tradition” by restoring the density and intensity of creative practices and techniques that have been confined and stifled in the category of “folklore”.

Call for residencies

The call is open to musicians, composers, artists and companies with a musical project who have been established in a European country between 2015 and the present day. Eligible nationalities: Algeria, Bahrain, Comoros, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait,
Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Yemen.

Candidate artists must hold a residence permit or dual nationality authorising them to reside in the country where they are established.

Other criteria:

• Artists who have already released at least one album or EP
• Solo artists or groups of 2 to 6 members maximum
• Original composition (projects already broadcast are ineligible)

Hosting conditions

The CNCM VOCE welcomes musicians, composers, artists and companies for a residency at its facilities in Pigna (Corsica) as part of their musical creation project. An artistic project can be hosted at any stage of its creation. Any musical or multidisciplinary project with music as a
fundamental element can be carried out as part of an artistic residency. The Rawabet residencies will take place in the first quarter of 2025 for a period of 7 to 10 days. The residency period will culminate in an open performance, at no cost to the local public, which will take
place at the Pigna Auditorium.

An audio and video recording will be made of each residency. The artists in residence will rehearse and record a musical composition of at least 45 minutes (any number of tracks). VOCE will supervise and provide the equipment, venue, facilities and professional support for
the audio and video recording of each project.

Between 3 and 4 tracks recorded during each residency will be selected to appear on an audio compilation dedicated to the Rawabet project. VOCE will supervise the mixing and mastering of the selected tracks and coordinate the production and distribution of the compilation in
digital format via the Casa Editions label.

To encourage the circulation of artists in Europe, the artists will also be offered performance opportunities. The CNCM VOCE provides:

• Logistical, administrative and legal support for the residency;
• Transportation from port to port, preferably*;
• Accommodation and meals for the artistic team;
• Access to the Auditorium di Pigna and the centre’s music rooms;
• Adapted stage management support provided by a sound technician and a lighting
  technician;
• A dedicated moment for cultural participation in the form of presentations, discussions
  or exchanges with local audiences;
• Invitation to the centre’s events (concerts, conferences, workshops, etc.) during the
  residency period;
• Audiovisual recording of the residency presentation, made available to the artistic
  team for non-commercial use;
• The recording in audio format, made available to the artistic team for commercial and
  non-commercial use. Only the tracks selected for inclusion in the project’s audio
  compilation will be mixed and mastered;
• SACEM or SACD regulations
  *Special transport conditions may be defined on a case-by-case basis: reimbursements, rail
  transport to departure ports, air transport, vehicle hire, etc.

More information

Learn more about the call and how to apply here, or visit the website of VOCE.