Art Up with ADE

We are partnering with musician Elias Mazian especially for this edition of ADE Arts & Culture. Elias seamlessly blends music and stories in his radio show Private Hearts.

Now Elias is bringing his stories to the Rijksmuseum. As well as connecting his own musical career with a Rembrandt painting in the museum, Elias has invited three fellow music makers – Sarkawt Hamad, Nedda Sou and DJ Shahmaran – to share their stories in unique personal tours of the museum. Each musician will forge links between artworks in our permanent display and their artistic motivation and approach.

Data and artists

• Wednesday 16 October - Elias Mazian - Sold out
• Thursday17 October - Sarkawt Hamad - Sold out
• Friday 18 October - Nedda Sou - Sold out
• Saturday 19 October – DJ Shahmaran - Sold out

All guided tours are in English.

Elias Mazian

Elias Mazian is a versatile house DJ as well as a radio presenter and singer-songwriter who’s well-known for his dreamy Dutch-language songs. His morning show Private Hearts features warm, uplifting sounds for a great start to the day. He also presents Round Midnight on NPO Soul & Jazz, where he takes his listeners on a soul and jazz journey.

DJ Sarkawt Hamad

Amsterdam DJ Sarkawt Hamad allows new sound bridges to emerge in her sets. Exposed to the city's broad and vibrant music scene from the age of 17, this Dutch artist with a Kurdish background is known for her deep warm sound, subtly interwoven vocals and emotive techno, dub techno, breaks, bass and house. Her unconventional approach to layering and narrative prioritises organic transitions from one energy or rhythm to another, rather than continuity in genre.

DJ Nedda Sou

Amsterdam-based interdisciplinary artist and DJ Nedda Sou is aiming for the comeback of a near-mythical dancefloor experience: a strictly no-phones space that’s home to a mash-up of social circles, all intent on sharing their energy through dance. No stranger to the complexities and hardships of having a mixed identity, Nedda is driven by a desire to break down barriers and establish honest role models. She takes a no-bullshit approach to uniting people under one groove – inside and outside the club.

DJ Shahmaran

Drawing inspiration from the Kurdish tale of Shahmaran, a half-snake, half-woman with an uncompromising spirit, Rotterdam-based DJ Shahmaran fearlessly brings together diverse and uncanny strands of bass-driven music to soundtrack narratives of escape and hope. Merging broken beats, breaks, bass music, and leftfield techno, DJ Shahmaran's sonic explorations embody the intersection of tradition and experimentation in electronic music.