7TH EDITION
27 FEBRUARY - 29 MARCH 2026
GHENT
Magic Strings & Wild Winds (6+)
During their Ha Concerts residency, Wu Na and Jeroen Van Herzeele craft a wide-ranging musical encounter that bridges Chinese and Western sound worlds, inviting listeners of all ages into their shared exploration. Their cross-cultural creation uncovers the resonant threads connecting traditions, generations, and ways of listening — a performance where young and old can meet, imagine, and experience music anew.
From their artistic residency, Wu Na and Jeroen Van Herzeele present a captivating musical creation for a broad audience of young and old. Their unique performance opens a playful doorway into the meeting of Chinese and Western sounds, inviting young audiences to listen, imagine, and explore.
After the concert, children can dive even deeper into Chinese culture through a hands-on calligraphy workshop with Dong Yingda, linking the music of Wu Na and Jeroen. The afternoon concludes with a delicious discovery: tasting Chinese jiaozi 饺子(dumplings) and tea. A multisensory journey for curious minds — where music, art, and flavour come together.
Who's Who
WU NA is an award-winning guqin virtuoso celebrated for expanding the ancient instrument into the realm of contemporary music. Trained from the age of nine, she graduated from the Central Conservatory of Music as China’s first musician to earn a Master’s degree in guqin performance. Her dual foundation in Chinese and Western music fuels adventurous collaborations across jazz, rock, experimental and classical scenes, working with artists such as Liu Sola, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Echo Ho, Cui Jian, and Li Daiguo.
Wu Na has toured extensively across Asia, Europe, and the United States—including performances at Carnegie Hall, the UN Headquarters, and the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing. She is also an educator and innovator, founding the online guqin platform, QIN Academy. Today, Wu Na continues to redefine the expressive possibilities of the guqin through cross-disciplinary projects, improvisation, and international artistic dialogue.
JEROEN VAN HERZEELE is a versatile Belgian saxophonist whose musical journey began with jazz standards at an early age. After starting with classical saxophone, he soon gravitated toward jazz, studying at the Antwerp Jazzstudio and immersing himself in workshops and improvisation. His career spans a wide spectrum of styles—from bebop and American free jazz to cross-cultural fusion—always driven by a search for sound that is intimate, spiritual, and instinctive.
Known for his powerful tone, urban rhythm influences, and transcendent improvisations, Van Herzeele continually expands his musical language. In recent years he has integrated EWI (electronic wind instrument) and modular synthesizers into his practice, exploring the meeting point between human expression and electronic energy. For him, technology is not an end in itself but a tool to channel the raw, natural electricity that shapes our world. His work bridges heritage and innovation, crafting music that resonates in today’s rapidly shifting sonic landscape.
DONG YINGDA is an illustrator and researcher based in Ghent, he is currently pursuing his PhD at LUCA School of Arts and KU Leuven. His research focuses on how visual language can integrate interculturality through illustration. He throws diverse materials, techniques and traditions in the mix to record his own life experience. Yingda Dong recently published his new picture book Matisse’s Journey for the first solo exhibition of Henri Matisse in China.
SARAH YU ZEEBROEK is a visual artist, illustrator, and musician. Trained as an illustrator, she creates both personal projects and commissioned work for newspapers,magazines, theatre companies, cultural centers, museums, and music groups.
Sarah also performs during this edition together with Veerle De Vos in Alles onder de hemel on Wednesday 4 March in Minard.
