35 years of Forum Guitar Vienna: Female power conquers the stage!

35 years of Forum Guitar Vienna: Female power conquers the stage!

In August 2025, the Viennese music scene will celebrate a special occasion: the Forum Guitar Vienna guitar festival is celebrating its 35th anniversary. With the motto “Women Edition”, the festival sends a strong signal for fair cooperation and visibility of female talent in the music industry. The event will take place from August 22nd to 29th, 2025 at the Music and Art Private University of the City of Vienna (MUK).

Diverse program

The festival program includes a total of ten concerts, countless master classes, exciting lectures and competitions. The focus is not only on renowned musicians, but also on promising talents who are often overlooked in the music scene. Rosemarie Brucher, the vice-rector of the MUK, emphasizes the importance of the festival as a symbol of feminism and equality. The festival opens with a concert in the renowned Schubert Hall of the Vienna Konzerthaus, where premieres of compositions by Melody Eötvös and Rebeca Santiago can be expected.

What treasure trove of talent awaits visitors? Among the musical actors are the twin sisters Sanaz and Sara Zaher, who take part in master classes as teachers. 10-year-old guitarist Xinyan Sun and youth competition winner Vasilina Shashkova are also on the list. There is also the Cypriot singer Loukia Agapiou and her ensemble, who want to inspire the audience with their performance. A total of 31 international musicians will enrich the master classes, while greats such as Margarita Escarpa, Ema Kapor, Dale Kavanagh, Kyuhee Park, Bozhana Pavlova and Tatiana Stachak take part. Anyone interested in the master classes should hurry - the registration deadline is August 12, 2025.

Women in the music industry

The festival's commitment is even more important when you consider how structurally disadvantaged women and non-binary people are in the music industry. A recent analysis of MaLisa Foundation shows that there has been little progress in gender distribution in recent years. The figures show that over 85% of the music in the German weekly charts is composed by men. The proportion of women on festival stages was on average just 16% in 2019. Although smaller festivals have higher proportions, the proportion of women across the industry remains below the social average.

The new initiative in Vienna addresses these realities directly and aims to promote the visibility of women in music. This not only sets an example, but also creates a platform to present the sounds and perspectives of young talent.

Music as a community

Through its upcoming events, the Guitar Forum Vienna will be a shining example of how diverse and lively the guitar scene in Austria is. Under the captivating motto “Women Edition”, it will not only promise joy and emotions, but also address an important socio-political issue: gender equality in music.

In summary, it shows that there is still a lot to do in the music scene when it comes to gender equality. But with initiatives like the Vienna Guitar Forum, hope for progress is being raised. It is high time for women's voices to be heard in music - and that is exactly what will now happen in an impressive way in Vienna.