Sharjah Art Foundation’s Music and Sound Club brings together musicians, sound artists and music enthusiasts for a programme of workshops and meetup sessions centred around collective learning, experimenting and community building. Taking place from 20 September to 26 November 2026 at Photography Gallery, Al Manakh, Sharjah, the programme offers participants opportunities to access knowledge through active, hands-on engagement with music and sonic arts.

Organised as bi-weekly workshops and fortnightly meetup sessions, the programme explores two strands of enquiry: tape and cassette as mediums of composition and instrumentation, and the synthesis of AI and new musical technologies. 

The fortnightly meetup sessions provide a dedicated space for participants to work independently, as well as build upon ideas and techniques explored in previous workshops, or develop their own projects and share their work.

Tape Loop Manipulation
20 September 2026 | 4:00–5:30 pm

In this workshop, participants will learn how to open, splice and reattach cassette tape to create an endless loop. They will then explore how this tactile analogue technique can unlock novel creative approaches to sound design and music composition.

AI and Music Technology
4 and 18 October 2026 | 4:00–5:30 pm

This two-part workshop exposes participants to some of the most accessible yet cutting-edge artificial intelligence tools currently available to musicians and sound artists. During the session, they can access modern software environments that innovatively integrate contemporary technology into creative workflow and compositional method.

Contextualising Tape Loops and Music Technology 
8 November 2026 | 4:00–5:30 pm

Bridging the analogue and the digital, this session encourages participants to craft hybrid musical works by creatively synthesising vintage media with modern software environments.

The programme’s fortnightly meetup sessions will take place on 24 September; 8 and 22 October; and 12 and 26 November, from 6:00 to 9:00 pm. The programme will conclude on 22 November, 4:00–5:30 pm, with performances by participants.

Sharjah Art Foundation is an advocate, catalyst and producer of contemporary art within the Emirate of Sharjah and the surrounding region, in dialogue with the international arts community. The Foundation advances an experimental and wide-ranging programmatic model that supports the production and presentation of contemporary art, preserves and celebrates the distinct culture of the region and encourages a shared understanding of the transformational role of art. The Foundation's core initiatives include the long-running Sharjah Biennial, featuring contemporary artists from around the world; the annual March Meeting, a convening of international arts professionals and artists; grants and residencies for artists, curators and cultural producers; ambitious and experimental commissions and a range of travelling exhibitions and scholarly publications.

Established in 2009 to expand programmes beyond the Sharjah Biennial, which launched in 1993, the Foundation is a critical resource for artists and cultural organisations in the Gulf and a conduit for local, regional and international developments in contemporary art. The Foundation's deep commitment to developing and sustaining the cultural life and heritage of Sharjah is reflected through year-round exhibitions, performances, screenings and educational programmes in the city of Sharjah and across the Emirate, often hosted in historic buildings that have been repurposed as cultural and community centres. A growing collection reflects the Foundation's support of contemporary artists in the realisation of new work and its recognition of the contributions made by pioneering modern artists from the region and around the world.

Sharjah Art Foundation is a legally independent public body established by Emiri Decree and supported by government funding, grants from national and international nonprofits and cultural organisations, corporate sponsors and individual patrons. Hoor Al Qasimi serves as President and Director. All exhibitions are free and open to the public.

Sharjah is the third largest of the seven United Arab Emirates, and the only one bridging the Arabian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. Reflecting the deep commitment to the arts, architectural preservation and cultural education embraced by its ruler, Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Mohammad Al Qasimi, Sharjah is home to more than 20 museums and has long been known as the cultural hub of the United Arab Emirates. It was named UNESCO's Arab Capital of Culture for 1998 and the UNESCO World Book Capital for 2019.

Joseph De la Cerna
joseph@sharjahart.org
+971 (0)6 5444113