After Bologna, Brussels prepares to welcome Various Voices
On Saturday, Legato entrusted Sing Out Brussels! to organise the next edition in 2026
20 June 2023
With 5 days of indoor and outdoor concerts, 105 participating choirs and 3,500 singers, the Various Voices 2023 festival rocked Bologna (Italy) from 14 to 18 June. Organised by Komos, a local LGBTQI+ choir, the festival was an opportunity to come together and celebrate pride in music and song. This true Pride of choral singing ended with a handover. The Brussels LGBTQI+ choir Sing Out Brussels! (The Fabulous Queer Choir) has been commissioned by Legato, the European federation of LGBTQI+ choirs, to organise the next edition, scheduled for 24-28 June 2026 in the European capital.
The slogan of the Brussels festival is “Let your heart be heard”. On the festival’s main stage, some of the Brussels team took the floor and declared: “By singing together in the capital of the European Union, we will be sending out a strong message and a clear signal to the countries where our community faces repeated attacks”, setting the tone for a festival that aims to be both festive and militant.
The Brussels festival will take place at Bozar and Square, in the heart of the city, and is also intended to be open to the city, with concerts taking place all over the public space. The festival’s website www.various-voices.be describes the values of the project and already offers a first draft of the programme.
Barcelona and Brussels were in the running to organise this festival, which is held every four years. In 2021, the Sing Out Brussels! choir, supported by visit.brussels, won the bid. The Brussels team’s ambition is to welcome 120 choirs and 4,000 singers over five days, with major economic spin-offs for the Brussels tourism sector. Sing Out Brussels! also hopes that the event will have a socio-political impact through the actions taken to promote equal rights at European level as part of the festival, as well as through actions aimed at making the practice of choral singing in Europe more inclusive.
Brussels follows in the footsteps of London (2009), Dublin (2014), Munich (2018) and Bologna (2023), which have hosted previous editions of the festival.
