by Erik Higgins, Artistic Director (ehiggins@NebraskaMusicFest.org)
& Kinan Azmeh, 2025 Festival Curator
Welcome to the 2025 Nebraska Crossroads Music Festival!
We are so excited to welcome you to this year’s festival, which is an exciting mix global and local musicians, spanning genre, culture and style. The artists are all headed to Nebraska as I write this and tomorrow night the festival launches with our first ever Lincoln Showcase at the Sheldon Sculpture garden, followed by a week of 11 more performances in both Lincoln and Omaha that you will not be able to hear anywhere else in the world.
As always, everything is free and everyone is welcome. We can’t wait to see you there.
Finally, I’m going to hand the word over to our dear friend and guest curator Kinan Azmeh who will say a few words to get you ready for this incredible week. See you at the show!
Erik Higgins – Artistic Director
Hello and welcome to your Nebraska Crossroads Music Festival and it is my great honor to be your guest-curator for this edition.
This year’s festival is inspired by artists who beleive that music is a continuum.
These are individuals who perform, compose, improvise, experiment with tradition, and—perhaps most importantly—create without being prisoners of the past, nor fearful of the future.
This edition will shine a light on artists who embrace the fluidity of musical identity. These global musicians move effortlessly across genres, cultures, and borders, unbound by convention yet deeply rooted in traditions. In essence, this is music born from a multitude of traditions, but never confined by them.
The stories of laughter, friendship, and profound connections that I share with each artist fill me with immense pride. Thank you Erik Higgins for your trust and friendship and I hope that you will welcome all these artists with the same love you have given me over the past few years.
Kinan Azmeh – Guest Curator
