The fringes of folk and experimental music

Born in Siberia but based in France, Katya Shirshkova creates highly hypnotizing polyphonic harmonies in layered compositions and dense performances for voice. For Minorie she will perform her piece ‘Le Héron’, which was released on Stellage in 2025.

‘Le Héron’ is a vocal only piece consistsing of four parts, each carrying its own symbol of a life period. These life periods refer to the images of different birds, a way of narrating that connects to old archetypes from legends and fairytales. In this sense ‘Le Héron’ creates a strong relation with folk traditions, which influence can be recognised throughout the piece. But above all, it is the intricately layered sound of her one-voice-one-looper choir that makes the experience so hauntingly beautiful.

Katya Shirskova has performed extensively throughout Europe but this is the first time she will perform in The Netherlands. A collaborative album with Roxane Métayer – who performed at Minorie in Vera in September 2025 – was released on Edições CN in June 2026.

From Central Europe comes Czech guitarist and sound artist Tomáš Niesner. On his latest album ‘adventous mmxxv’ he takes the calming, somewhat majestic atmospheres of Eastern European medieval hymns and turns them into minimalist guitar compositions with subtle layers of electronics.

Tomáš Niesner made a name for himself in folk and fingerpicking guitar circles as part of the duo Šimanský Niesner as well as a solo artist with several releases on Czech label Stoned To Death. On these albums influences from American Primitive and English and European folk music come together. On ‘adventous mmxxv’ he turns his gaze to Eastern Europe, taking songs from old hymn books and reimagining them for a completely different time and instrument, preserving only the core, the deepest meaning. What remains are timeless, soothing melodies that ground us in an unsteady world.

Katya Shirshkova | Bandcamp

Tomáš Niesner | Bandcamp

Minorie | Bandcamp