Favourite Songs of Düsseldorf - Impulse Festival 2026

Michikazu Matsune

Favourite Songs of Düsseldorf

Listening Session, Come & Go

Favourite songs can be love letters or protest anthems or the soundtrack to an unforgettable day. Whether we’re singing along to a pop song from the 80s, savouring a particular opera aria or listening to the latest hit in our native language – we almost always associate our favourite songs with a special feeling or a special story. As part of Impulse meets…, Vienna-based Japanese artist Michikazu Matsune poses a question to residents and visitors of Düsseldorf that is as simple as it is multi-layered: What is your favourite song? As part of the Impulse Festival, he is offering two formats: short, informal chats (come and go) about participants’ own ‘favourite songs’ – simply drop by KreativRaum D during the times listed – and two group listening sessions in which participants share their favourite songs and the stories behind them.

The continuation and outcome of “Favourite Songs of Düsseldorf” — an archive of personal anecdotes and a playlist featuring music in various languages, genres and from different generations — will be presented in November at Nippon Performance Nights Vol. 12.

In the “Nippon Performance Nights” programme series curated by Akiko Okamoto at the FFT, productions from Japan and by Japanese artists living in Europe engage with the unique German-Japanese context that characterises Düsseldorf.

Programme

Thu 04/06
13:00–19:00 Come & Go (short conversations about favourite songs)
15:00–16:30 Listening Session (shared listening & exchange)

Fri 05/06
15:00–21:00 Come & Go (short conversations about favourite songs)

Sat 06/06
12:00–20:00 Come & Go (short conversations about favourite songs)
14:00–15:30 Listening Session (shared listening & exchange)

Dates

4 June, Come & Go

4 June, Listening Session

5 June, Come & Go

6 June, Come & Go

6 June, Listening Session

Tickets

Admission is free, but a free ticket is required for the listening session.

Venue

KreativRaum D, Düsseldorf

Duration

90 minutes

Discussion

–
Accompanying Events:
04/06 Introduction for blind and visually impaired audiences 2:45 pm

Language

English and German

Accessibility

Credits

Concept, Artistic Direction: Michikazu Matsune
Project Team: Akiko Akamoto, Pia-Marleen Schwede
Graphic Design: Eva Weber
Production Management: Akiko Okamoto (Nippon Performance Nights), Franziska Zaida Schrammel (Studio Matsune)

Presented by the Impulse Festival in cooperation with Nippon Performance Nights and in co-production with FFT Düsseldorf.

Funded by the Cultural Office of the City of Düsseldorf and the Ministerium für Kultur und Wissenschaft of North Rhine-Westphalia.

A project by Studio Matsune / Verein Violet Lake, funded by the Cultural Department of the City of Vienna and the Bundesministeriums für Wohnen, Kunst, Kultur, Medien und Sport (BMWKMS).

Biography

Michikazu Matsune is an artist whose work spans a wide range of practices, including stage performances, interventions in public and private spaces, as well as participatory projects and publications. At the crossroads of conceptual and documentary methods—where poetry, humour, the absurd, and critique intersect—his approach examines the interplay between public and private realms, global and local contexts, and unity and diversity within society. Michikazu is the founder of performance projects such as Homesick Festival (since 2017) and The Institute of Sleepless Nights (since 2022). His works have been presented internationally at renowned venues including Festival d’Avignon, Festival d’Automne in Paris, Gwangju Biennale, Kyoto Experiment, The Centre for the Less Good Idea in Johannesburg, Kunsthaus Graz, Tanzquartier Wien, ImPulsTanz Festival, Theater Bremen and FFT Düsseldorf, among many others. He teaches performance art at the University of Arts Linz. Michikazu is originally from Kobe and based in Vienna.
www.michikazumatsune.info

Details on accessibility

Accessibility details will be available here on the website soon.

Content Notes

For this event, we have no information regarding potentially sensitive content or sensory stimuli.

If you require specific information to plan your visit, please feel free to contact us.