The European Bridges Ensemble

The European Bridges Ensemble (EBE) was established for Internet and network performance. Its members were Kai Niggemann (Germany), Ádám Siská (Budapest), Johannes Kretz (Vienna), Andrea Szigetvári (Budapest), Ivana Ognjanavic (Belgrade), Georg Hajdu (Hamburg), Stewart Collins (Lincoln, England) and Marlon Schumacher (2005-2006), performing with Georg Hajdu’s interactive network performance environment Quintet.net. 

Using the term bridges as a metaphor, the initiative made the attempt to bridge cultures, regions, locations and individuals, each with their specific history. Particularly Europe with its historical and ethnic diversity has repeatedly gone through massive changes separating and reuniting people often living in close vicinity.

The first Bridges concert which brought together musicians from Western (Germany and Austria) and Central (Hungary, Serbia) – all connected by the river Danube – has demonstrated the potential of Internet performance as a means to overcome national borders and political single-mindedness. 

The aim of the project was to further explore the potential of taking participating musicians and artists out of their political and social isolation by creating virtual communities of like-minded artists united by their creativity and mutual interests. The focal points of our project (Budapest – Hamburg) have traditionally stood out as major centers of European cultural life (Gustav Mahler left Budapest for an appointment in Hamburg), and it is our aim to use digital technology to “(re)connect the dots.”

EBE was active from 2005-2014. Georg Hajdu continues to develop the quintet.net platform.