Inside Artists – Daniel Arkadij Gerzenberg – development department
Daniel Arkadij Gerzenberg

Daniel Arkadij Gerzenberg (lyricist & pianist) works with the Beethovenfest’s Development department in the discourse on sexualised violence in the cultural sector. Structures that enable abuse of power and even sexualised violence can also exist in the context of a cultural event organiser such as Beethovenfest Bonn.
Removing taboos and providing support for those affected
It is therefore necessary to design internal organisational structures and hierarchies in such a way that employees are protected from all forms of abuse of power and made aware of situations that may arise. In addition, a safe space must be created for those affected and a counselling centre set up.
Information and offers for the public must also be created as part of the Beethovenfest events. Beethovenfest wants to send a clear signal against all forms of abuse of power and sexualised violence and create structures that counteract this preventively at concerts and, in the event of incidents, offer support and protection to those affected in the form of trusted persons or anonymous contact options.
Creating visibility and artistic reflection
As part of a comprehensive awareness campaign, ways of dealing with incidents of abuse and contact points will be communicated transparently and visibly to all groups involved in Beethovenfest.
In addition, the team is working with Daniel Arkadij Gerzenberg and other artists involved to develop specific artistic projects and interventions from the perspective of those affected, which will be performed as part of Beethovenfest and will focus on processing trauma with and through music.
Participants:
- Henrike Alscher - team Development, Beethovenfest Bonn
- Daniel Arkadij Gerzenberg - lyricist & pianist, Berlin
- Johannes Leuschner - team Development, Beethovenfest Bonn
- Jonas Nachtsheim - team Development, Beethovenfest Bonn
- Barbara Stach - team Development, Beethovenfest Bonn
Biography Daniel Arkadij Gerzenberg
Daniel Arkadij Gerzenberg (*1991) is a poet, song pianist, librettist and member of the poetry collective G13. He works on the themes of identity, anti-Semitism and sexualised violence. Together with Max Czollek, he curated the four-part series »Songs for the Now« at the Heidelberger Frühling International Music Festival in 2022. He teaches poetry at the Hanns Eisler School of Music Berlin and is a member of the Coalition for Pluralistic Public Discourse (CPPD). In 2023, his poetry collection »Wiedergutmachungsjude« was published by Rohstoff/Matthes & Seitz Berlin, in which he deals with the sexual abuse he suffered as an adolescent concert pianist.
