 Oct 2 2023 - Oct 5 2023

 Ljubljana

The 12th annual Cultural Embassy of Palestine is focusing on Palestinian music and the role it plays in preserving Palestinian culture and identity.

The annual festival opens on 2 October with a photo exhibition My Flute is Palestinian, which pays tribute to the rich Palestinian musical tradition, spanning from folk music to songs of resistance and the contemporary experimental and innovative scene.

An evening of music and talk at Pritličje Bar the next day will see Palestinian musician Nidal Kalboneh talk about the stories behind the songs featured at the exhibition, and sign and play them.

On 4 October the Slovenian Cinematheque will screen the 2015 feature film Ya tayr el tayer (The Idol). Directed by Hany Abu Assad, the film was Palestine's candidate for the Oscar nomination.

It tells the true story of Mohammed Assaf, a young wedding singer from Gaza who succeeds to audition for the Arab Idol and ultimately wins the competition, making proud the population of the world's biggest open-air prison. Qais Attaallah, who played Assaf, will discuss the film after the screening.

The festival will wrap with a talk and music session themed Lullabies: Melodies of Memories, Comfort and Dreams, at the Department of Ethnology and Cultural Anthropology of the University of Ljubljana.