Antistatic

The Danish instrumental trio Antistatic creates complex soundscapes with just two guitars and drums. Their instruments intertwine effortlessly, combining percussive guitar lines and intricate polyrhythms to create hypnotic grooves that lie somewhere between post-punk and math rock. Their debut album, Relics, was released in 2024 on the renowned US label Cuneiform Records and received rave reviews worldwide. This year, the band will follow up with a new release. Antistatic is an experience, especially live. They build dynamics between controlled precision and cathartic outbursts. With their repetitive, driving rhythms, they put you in a trance, only to create new tension time and again with surprising twists.

Sc'ööf

Sc&#x27;ööf are tipped to be the next big thing in Europe. The experimental band has already won the Zenith Award from the European Jazz Network, among other accolades, and has developed its own radical sound that is refreshingly adventurous and provocative. With their fascination for strange grooves and exuberant live energy, Sc&#x27;ööf are an exciting surprise. The Swiss-based quartet consists of drums, a laptop, an electric guitar and two saxophones with electronics and sound design. They create acoustic glitch music using advanced instrumental techniques, weaving atonal melodies into dense, complex rhythms and blending a variety of musical ideas into a single piece. Their sound uniquely combines elements of jazz, rock, metal, punk and experimental music. Their technically impressive performances are based on strong individual musicality and years of collaboration. Thanks to their long, repetitive, highly rhythmic structures, their performances are hypnotic, and thanks to their physical energy, they are intense.

Guitar

Drum Kit

Holland Andrews & yuniya edi kwon

Kay Zhang – ANCESTRAL ROOTS

ANCESTRAL ROOTS invites people to a celebration that honors heritage and culture, living in and through the diaspora, and third culture identities through sound, storytelling or chanting, making the invitation wide, vibrant and inclusive. Holland Andrews (they/them) and yuniya edi kwon (she/her) are composer-improvisers, vocalists, and interdisciplinary performance makers based in Brooklyn, New York. Their collaborative practice is an emergent and embodied extension of their lives as ritualists, spiritual practitioners, and partners. Holland, a multi-instrumentalist and producer, arranges music for voice, clarinet, and electronics, harnessing the power of these instruments to address themes of vulnerability, catharsis, and healing. yuniya, in her work, connects sound, movement, and ceremony to explore transformation, transgression, and mythology’s ability to both obscure and reveal. Their co-created opera-in-progress &quot;How does it feel to look at nothing&quot; is a transdisciplinary space of convergence for their shared life, queer-trans family, and beloved creative lineages, grounded in the foundational questions that connect and inspire them. Separately, their work has been presented by The Whitney, REDCAT, PICA, ISSUE Project Room, Dia Art Foundation, Performa Biennial, Roulette Intermedium, Civitella Ranieri, and others. Holland and yuniya are both Guggenheim Fellows, Foundation for Contemporary Arts Awardees, Creative Capital Awardees, and United States Artists Fellows. &quot;How does it feel to look at nothing&quot; will have its world premiere in Fall 2026 before touring internationally. Curator: Kay Zhang (she/they) is a sonic artist whose work explores in-betweenness through sound, performance, curation, and research. Rooted in experimentation and learning-by-doing, their practice bridges transdisciplinary art, queer feminist theory, and sound ecologies. Kay is a founding member of Kollektiv international Totem (KIT), River Oracle, and ARKA, and is part of the curatorial team at Les Complices* in Zurich. Their work fosters collective listening, care practices, and intercultural dialogue through sound performance and curatorial experiences.

Vocals

Clarinet

Electronics

Violin

MKZ «Best of Stufentest»

Every year, the students of Musikschule Konservatorium Zürich (MKZ) can have their musical progress assessed by a jury of experts as part of the Stufentest. Outstanding contributions from all seven levels are then performed in front of an audience. This year&#x27;s final concert again reflects the stylistic breadth of MKZ - from Mozart to Motörhead, played and sung by eager beginners to stage-tested near-pros. Line-up: about 20 students (tba) from MKZ, accompanied by teachers (piano or accompanying band)

K.O.S Crew Dancehall Mood

Party

Dancehall Mood is the monthly reggae and dancehall party at Moods. Like on every first Saturday of the month, the K.O.S crew will make the Moods club cooking with hot riddims. This promises an evening full of dancehall hits and reggae rarities, perfectly tuned to the respective audience and immaculately presented by the K.O.S crew and their guest.

Marie Krüttli & Ensemble

For the currents festival, Marie Krüttli presents new music as a ritual of becoming. The lyrics evoke feminine power through ancient goddesses — Amaterasu, Isis, Athena — luminous, wise, maternal, brave and fiercely protective figures of transformation. These presences mirror a journey of self-growth and love, deeply rooted in nature and its cycles. Musically, the work draws on the forward-looking sensuality and groove of Bilal’s recent creations and on Baudelaire’s poetry as set to music by Debussy, alongside the refined colors of Poulenc and Ibert. The music unfolds as an intimate, expansive soundscape where myth, care, and strength resonate.

Zola Jesus & Ensemble

Nika Roza Danilova has summoned electronic goth incantations as Zola Jesus (us) since 2006. She’s endlessly tinkered with her sound as a sonic auteur, and explored the inner workings of her soul by engaging with art pop, classical, and brutally industrial cold wave. For her currents festival appearance, Zola Jesus is joined by musical polymath Louise Woodward and an all-star cast of Zürich classical musicians, including the acclaimed Galatea Quartet, for a new hypnotic, tidal piece for voice, string quintet and French horn.

Flute

Saxophon

Composition

Keyboards

E-Bass

Tim & Puma Mimi für Familien

Tim &amp; Puma Mimi are back! The Swiss-Japanese electro duo, known for their techno cucumber, toothpaste flute and Skype concerts, recently even made it into the Hollywood film Ghost in the Shell. After seven years of absence aka raising children aka training interns, another baby is now here: an album with twelve tracks: &quot;More or Less Tim &amp; Puma Mimi&quot;. The play with addition and subtraction runs through the entire album. Many new signature sounds appear: a pocket operator synthesizer that looks like a pocket calculator and sounds like a Gameboy. A vocoder that opened up new possibilities for Mimi&#x27;s unique vocals. Or the KoTaMo, a mix of koto, tambura and monochord - three cultures, three bodies of sound, one instrument. What is striking about the new songs is the (supposed) lack of beats and the even stronger incorporation of Japanese music elements via flute melodies, crickets or folk songs (Aka Tombo, Ryushi), while the unique Tim &amp; Puma-Mimi quirkiness remains at all levels. - Duration of the concert 50-65 minutes - Kids of all ages are welcome. - We will keep the volume at a reasonable level, but we do recommend hearing protection for the little ones. - Children under the age of 12 can attend the concert free of charge, but we ask that they reserve a free ticket. - Teenagers between the ages of 12 and 16 pay half price. - Can&#x27;t afford a ticket? Send us an email at info@moods.ch.

Kotamo

Gurke

Zahnpasta

Teil-Absage Kalem Ensemble

Kultur Shock & Moods present

Unfortunately, Stefan Ilić, singer and violinist with the Kalem Ensemble, was refused entry at customs. Fortunately, Dušan Popović Lipovac, guitarist with the Kalem Ensemble, has agreed to play a solo set, and DJ Mario Peric will be spinning records before and after the concert. Valid tickets can be refunded in full or for a desired partial amount, e.g. 50%. To do so, please send an email to info@moods.ch. As we would still like to pay both musicians their fees, and expenses such as flights and hotels also need to be covered, we would be grateful for any solidarity contributions. We deeply regret this incident and apologize for the inconvenience.

Mario Peric

Warm Up & Afterparti

After the quiet, seated concert, you can round off the evening at the bar. Global beats are served far beyond the borders of the Balkans. With the legendary concert and party series Kultur Shock, Mario Peric is one of the pioneers of the Balkan scene as an organizer, DJ and producer. He has been thrilling audiences for many years with his varied, explosive and crazy sounds. His musical spectrum cannot be pinned down to one direction. The main thing is that it fits!

Laura & Luzius Schuler: Mandà in Lunga

It is music of crystalline beauty, equally natural spectacle and document of a most intimate musical interaction. In the autumn and winter of 2023, Laura and Luzius Schuler travel to Val Poschiavo to listen to alpine tales. Here, siblings Laura and Luzius are confronted with the rugged mountain world and a landscape in a state of flux. In the face of this scenery, voice and instruments become mist and shadow. They pulse like the rock that surrounds them. The organ is no longer a monolith, but flexible, malleable, capable of singing, while the bow plays the wind, the light, the water. This music resembles the brushstroke of the sun, which brings the stone to life, painting it through the clouds. Recorded in the reformed church of Poschiavo, with Luzius on the church organ and Laura on violin and vocals, their album &quot;Mandà in Lunga&quot; (Ronin Rhythm Records, 2025) was recorded over in just two sessions. As if in a state of suspension we find improvised confrontations with the surrounding environment and with nature, somewhere between acoustic ambient and experimental sound art. Concert location: ZHdK, Konzertsaal 2 (Orgelsaal), 7.K12, Pfingstweidstrasse 96, 8005 Zürich

Orgel

Fred Wesley Generations Trio

Fred Wesley wrote funk history alongside James Brown and George Clinton, serving as one of the genre&#x27;s architects. Now, he is starting a new chapter that connects him with his jazz roots and an exciting future: Generations. Generations is a versatile trio featuring Wesley on trombone, Leonardo Corradi on organ, and Tony Match on drums. The three musicians originally came together to pay tribute to legendary organist Jimmy Smith&#x27;s soulful jazz — and immediately found a musical chemistry that has kept them performing together to this day. However, the trio doesn&#x27;t limit itself to jazz. They groove through rap, soul, and funk together, creating a sound that is as versatile as it is rousing. Together, they elevate their groove and bring the rhythm to life.

Cavaliere Spruzzi (Monorecords)

Warm Up & Hang Out 

The man for funk in Zurich for 4 decades. Who doesn&#x27;t remember the legendary Cool Mondays? Smoky afternoons in THE record store in Zurich on Froschaugasse? Or the Real Funk for Real People series at Moods? Cavaliere Spruzzi is back! You better put on your dancing shoes!

Trombone

Hammond organ

JazzBaragge Wednesday Jam

25 YEARS VINTAGE JAM BAND

The JazzBaragge Wednesday Jam offers an important platform for the Swiss jazz jam scene. After the musical opening of the jam band, lively and exciting sound conversations begin between musicians who spontaneously meet on stage, reflecting the diversity of jazz in all its facets. The JazzBaragge Wednesday Jam is supported by the non-profit association JazzBaragge. To celebrate the 25th anniversary of the JazzBaragge Wednesday Jam, the association is hiring a jam band every month, at least one of whose members played in the original line-up. 25 years later – a retrospective! There is no presale for JazzBaragge, only box office.

Piano

Bass

«Zugzwang» (Uraufführung)

Tomas Korber, Christian Kobi, Tobias Gerber, Karolina Öhman, Tamriko Kordzaia, Christian Wolfarth

Decisions must be made within a network of feedback loops whose course is only partially predictable, acting under conditions of limited control. Zugzwang is an electroacoustic ensemble composition by Tomas Korber, created as part of the City of Zurich&#x27;s 2025 Work Year programme. The ensemble combines acoustic instruments with a network of microphones, software, and feedback loops. The result is music with extreme registers and strong dynamic contrasts, characterised by an archaic, raw sound. The repetitive and process-oriented nature of the music causes listeners and musicians to enter a trance-like state in which time seems to stretch infinitely. Thus, Zugzwang examines the interplay between individual decision-making, collective processes, and the momentum of an unstable system. For twenty years, the Swiss-Georgian festival Close Encounters has promoted encounters and collaborations, providing spaces for experimentation and reflection. It facilitates intensive exchange between participating musicians, transcending geographical distances, scenes and styles. In both Switzerland and Georgia, Close Encounters continues to break down institutional, stylistic and scene-related boundaries, connecting a diverse range of audiences.

«Homo Freq»

An Experimental Electroacoustic Opera

Homo Freq: An Experimental Electroacoustic Opera is more than just a mini opera. It is a platform for experimentation, a space in which opera, the old and immovable monster, is translated and reimagined. Created in collaboration with Nasi Chavchavadze and Lisa Kereselidze, who like Tiko have their roots in classical music, the project is the brainchild of Georgian musician Tiko Gogoberidze. In Homo Freq, their background meets experimental practice, resulting in an experimental electroacoustic opera. The means employed range from live electronics and classical singing to free improvisation and experimental approaches, with a constantly changing libretto depending on the performers, their voices, and their perspectives. This evening, the young Zurich-based composer and musician Felix Friedrich will be joining them. Tiko Gogoberidze belongs to the next generation of the Georgian electronic and club scene. Her music ranges from technoid club music and noisy experimental projects to pop and music theatre. Her work is characterised by her openness in moving between different musical fields while always maintaining her own unique style. Not only is Tiko Gogoberidze an accomplished electronic musician, she is also a classically trained singer.

Sampler

Cello

Meshell Ndegeocello

The concert is completely sold out. There will be no box office sales. Meshell Ndegeocello has survived the best and worst of what a career in music has to offer. She eschewed genre for originality, celebrity for longevity, and musical trends for musical truths. Fans have come to expect the unexpected and follow her on sojourns into soul, R&amp;B, jazz, hip-hop, rock, all bound by the search for love, justice, respect, and resolution. Those sonic investigations have defied and redefined the expectations for women and queer artists for over 30 years and she remains one of few persons who write the music, sing the songs, and lead the band. A bass player above all else, Meshell brings her warm, fat, and melodic groove to everything she does and is often seen as the pioneer of the so-called Neo Soul movement alongside The Soulquarians or Maxwell. Following her acclaimed Blue Note debut in 2023 with &quot;The Omnichord Real Book&quot;, Meshell returns with &quot;No More Water: The Gospel of James Baldwin&quot;, released in Summer 2024.

Leslie

Fender-Rhodes E-Piano

Bloco Adalu

Adalu & Moods present: Adalu Carnaval

Tropikaos - Carnaval Adalu invites you on a journey through the sounds, sights and culture of Brazilian carnival, where people revel in colorful, harmonious chaos at the world&#x27;s biggest street parties. The city of Zurich loves Brazilian rhythms, which is why we have brought together percussion groups to perform at the same tempo. Led by the talented musician Juninho Ibituruna, these groups will open our carnival party in the foyer of the Schiffbau. Similar to a traditional “Bloco de Rua,” we are bringing together the groups Borumbaia, Zurich School of Samba, and Pandeiro LX.

Coletivo Gira

Women unite their voices, their instruments and their love of samba in a performance that revives the great samba classics, but also presents the samba of the new generation, always highlighting the work of other women, whether as composers or performers. The focus of the concert is on samba and other Afro-Brazilian rhythms from the Samba de Terreiro. The sound of the hand drums (ilú and conga) is present in most of the arrangements, giving them an original sound identity without forgetting the roots. The group is made up of multi-instrumentalists from different parts of Brazil and the world, who bring their idiosyncrasies and influences, resulting in a unique performance full of power but also lightness, without neglecting the activism and resistance of women who are still fighting for greater representation in samba.

Miss Trópica

Adalu Carnaval

Cris Trópica Indian from Rio de Janeiro, has set herself the goal of spreading the extensive Brazilian music culture, with all its roots and influences, in Europe. In her project BelezaPuraSomSistema, she regularly collaborates with DJs from home and abroad who share her passion for Brazilian music. She will end the party with hot brazil beats.

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Streaming

Over 700 video-on-demand and 40 live streams per year from jazz, global, blues, funk, soul and rap await you. Curated with playlists and recommendations from our program team. In addition, 70% of the subscription revenue goes directly to the musicians. With a subscription you support the artists and this project.