Musica Libera Adds Two New Events to the 70th International Contemporary Music Festival

The 70th Festival Internazionale di Musica Contemporanea della Biennale di Venezia, directed by Caterina Barbieri, has added two new events to its programme. These events, titled Musica Libera, are scheduled for October 18 and 24 and will be held in the courtyard of the Casa di reclusione femminile Venezia Giudecca. The location is notable for its historic core, which includes the former Church and Monastery of the Convertite, an ancient female convent within the prison grounds.

Musica Libera will present the results of a workshop that brought together women incarcerated at the institution, young musicians from Biennale College Musica, and their mentors. The performances are the culmination of this collaborative process, which took place within the unique setting of the prison.

The initiative is designed to reflect a cultural programming approach that values the therapeutic power of music. It views artistic creation not as a passive object for consumption, but as a potential channel for catharsis and collective transformation. This perspective shapes the structure and intention of the Musica Libera sessions.

In keeping with the festival’s theme, which is dedicated to childhood and intuition, the sessions were organized according to a principle of total openness. The aim was to create spaces for authentic creative freedom, without the pressure to achieve predetermined results imposed from above.

The essence of Musica Libera lies in its choral nature, which is based on listening, vulnerability, expressive urgency, and co-creation. This approach is distinct from following a fixed compositional method, emphasizing instead the collective and spontaneous aspects of musical creation.

Musica Libera is part of a broader effort by the Biennale di Venezia to strengthen relationships with penitentiary institutions. It joins the initiative Rinasco con l’Arte, which is also promoted by the Biennale and aims to foster connections with correctional facilities.

The organizers have expressed their gratitude to the Casa di reclusione femminile Venezia Giudecca, the Department of Penitentiary Administration, and the regional penitentiary administration for Veneto, Friuli Venezia Giulia, and Trentino-Alto Adige for their collaboration. Audience members interested in attending one of the two Musica Libera events will need to register online via the Biennale di Venezia website, with further details about registration to be announced.