About

The festival is a complex, multidimensional entity shaped by a wide range of engaged stakeholders, from audiences and volunteers to sponsors, organizers, and city authorities. Each year, audiences are presented with a new programme and the opportunity to meet artists who captivate with their performances. Importantly, the Different Sounds festival has retained its unique character: cosmopolitan, transboundary, and alternative. What presents a challenge, and what seems like an obvious solution when running a festival? What will it look like in the future? And can it become even better?

We will talk with the people who know the Different Sounds best: the festival’s directors and its researchers. We will also look at the festival from a bird’s-eye view, taking a broad, including international, perspective to examine the extent to which its trends and challenges are local, European, or even global. The meeting serves as a preview of the latest issue of “Kultura Współczesna”: Fragile Balance. Cooperative Practices in Contemporary Culture.

The participants will include: Agnieszka Wojciechowska and Rafał Chwała – directors of the East of Culture – Different Sounds festival, Przemysław Głuchowski – researcher, Tamara Kamińska – EMEE, Ewelina Szyszkowska – moderator.

Przemysław Głuchowski is a PhD candidate in Sociology at the Doctoral School of Social Sciences of Maria Curie-Skłodowska University in Lublin. He collaborates with Workshops of Culture in Lublin. His research focuses on the social significance of festivals, cultural policy, and the relationships between culture and urban space. He is the author of publications in the fields of the sociology of culture and festival studies. Outside his academic work, he writes poetry and occasionally performs at poetry slam events.

Agnieszka Wojciechowska is a cultural manager, curator of local and international artistic projects, and a festival producer with nearly twenty years of professional experience. She is affiliated with Workshops of Culture in Lublin, where she serves as Programme Manager and Programme Director of the East of Culture – Different Sounds festival. She is also the author and coordinator of numerous educational programmes for cultural professionals, representatives of the creative sector, and the music industry. As part of the Keychange network, she supports women in the music industry. She is a member of the programme team preparing Lublin’s bid for the title of European Capital of Culture and Chair of the Consortium – Union of Lublin Cultural Operators.

Rafał Chwała – music manager, booker and producer of cultural events. Since 2014, Artistic Director of the East of Culture – Different Sounds Festival. Has twenty years of experience on the domestic and European music market. At the Workshops of Culture in Lublin (home institution for Different Sounds Festival), he is also responsible for the program of film screenings of the Miasto movie series and the concert program of the Different Sounds Zone series.

Tamara Kamińska has over 14 years of experience in the cultural and creative industries. As Programme Director at one of Poland’s leading cultural institutions, she was responsible for the development and production of major music events, including WOMEX 2017. She is also the author of Katowice’s successful application to join the UNESCO Creative Cities Network and led the implementation of the city’s “City of Music” programme. Between 2015 and 2018, she was a member of the UCCN Steering Committee. Until February 2026, Tamara served as President of the Board of Music Export Poland. She is also the initiator and founding CEO of Music Week Poland. Currently, Tamara serves as Manager of the Europeana Music Exporters Exchange (EMEE) network as well as Head of Strategy and Policy at the Global Parliament of Mayors. As an independent consultant, she partners with cities and organisations worldwide to advance the development of creative industries, with a particular focus on supporting the international career development of artists and music industry professionals.

Ewelina Szyszkowska is a philologist and sociologist, a publishing market expert, publisher, and journalist associated with the book industry. She teaches courses on the publishing market and creative writing, and her research interests focus on book culture, reading practices, and transformations of the publishing market. She is the Chair of the Programme Board of the “Hola, hola, literatura!” festival.

Details

When: July 5, 2026, 16:00-17:00
Where: 

Workshops of Culture in Lublin, Grodzka 5a – auditorium 2nd floor
Admission free

Accessibility

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