Date: Saturday, 19 September 2026
Start: 13:00h CET
End: 16:00h CET
Entrance: 0/3/5/7/10 euro (pay wat you can)
Location: Varia (Gouwstraat 3, Rotterdam)
Sign up: by sending an email to info@varia.zone (limited capacity)

We all touch music. We all know music.

Despite music being largely considered an aural sensation, we all experience sound through touch, muscle, and bone, as well as hearing. There is an argument that hearing is a form of touch. Some of us experience music by sight as well.

Despite traditional beliefs that music is something to be taught and learned, we all inherently know music. There is no right or wrong answer to the question of “what is music?” Music is subjective and can be whatever we want it to be.

This workshop aims to explore how music can be experienced beyond the ears—through touch, vibration, movement, and the body. By combining Ali’s experience as a Neurodiverse, partially deaf and untrained musician with new approaches to tactile sound, we will aim to create music together that is accessible, engaging, and meaningful across diverse abilities.

Please note that the capacity for this workshop is limited, and places will be reserved on a first come, first serve basis with priority given to those who identify as D/deaf, Hard of Hearing, and/or Disabled or Neurodiverse.

No prior knowledge required, and all equipment is provided. Please email info@varia.zone if you have any questions.

Ali Robertson, an award-winning improvising musician from Edinburgh, has been active in the experimental music scene for over twenty-five years, touring across three continents and becoming a regular on the international music festival circuit. His work exists on the periphery of what can be described as music, incorporating elements of improvisation, noise, composition, chance, comedy, spoken word, visual art, and storytelling. Best known for his work in the free improv performance duo Usurper, which he and cartoonist Malcy Duff performed as between 2003 and 2023, and for his work with the inclusive ensemble Sonic Bothy, as both a player and a workshop facilitator, Ali also performs solo and has collaborated with countless artists worldwide. Since 2000, he has operated the imprint Giant Tank, releasing dozens of CDs, cassettes, LPs, and publications, and hosting an ongoing series of concerts in Edinburgh under the Tfeh banner, alongside his co-curator Firas Khnaisser.

This event is made possible with the kind support of Popunie Rotterdam, Fonds Podiumkunsten, Stichting Volkskracht, Gemeente Rotterdam and Stimuleringsfonds Creatieve Industrie.