Enjoy Bratislava's cultural summer in July also

Youth music, summer cinemas, live libraries and a silent disco in a deconsecrated church. The city is hosting the Bratislava Cultural Summer, the city's biggest festival. Here are some tips for July events worth seeing.

The multi-genre summer festival is organised by the Bratislava Cultural and Information Centre (BKIS) in association with 14 city districts, 7 city organisations and dozens of cultural organisers.

Rendezvous with the City tours for adults and families with children

You can discover some of the history of the city in the all-year-round cycle of walks around Bratislava called Rendezvous with the City. Guides from BKIS lead the tours on interesting topics every Saturday at 5:00 pm for adults and on Sundays at 10:00 am for families with children. Another regular tour will be added in summer - you will be able to explore the city every Wednesday at 5:00 pm during the summer holidays. The tours are free, all you need to do is sign up at BKIS ↗︎. In addition to the historic centre, the guides will take you to the city districts also. On Wednesday 19 July, guide Ivan Chylák will reveal the history of the Slávičie údolie cemetery and on Sunday 30 July, guide Iveta Šimove will show children and their parents the playful Janko Kráľ Park.

Breaking down barriers and promoting mental health

BKIS has prepared three live libraries in the summer reading-room at the Red Crayfish. The storytelling project of the Eduma non-profit organisation will present the stories of six people who face disadvantages or face prejudices and stereotypes in society. At the first of the upcoming events on Thursday, July 13, you will find out what the adopted children, now adult women and mothers Dominika and Natália, experienced, and how they perceive life in a foster family. An authentic story about life in poverty will be told by Marcel, a half-Roma man growing up in generational poverty. Capacity is limited; you can sign up at tootoot ↗︎.

At the same venue, BKIS, together with the City Library and the Mental Health League, has prepared a series of talks with mental health experts entitled Discussions for the Soul. The first one is scheduled for Thursday, July 6 at 6:00 pm. Martin Staňa will host psychologist Radovan Kyrinovic. He will answer questions about what to do and where to turn to when we do not feel well. He will introduce the Ten Commandments of Mental Health, the principles of relaxation and ways of coping with stress. The discussions will be interpreted into Slovak sign language and will be videotaped.

Fridays in Janko Kráľ Park will be dedicated to the music of young people

The programme of this year's Bratislava Cultural Summer was opened to artists aged 15 to 26 within the Open Call ↗︎ - Mladí v Sade. Out of 42 applications, the organisers have selected those who will be given the opportunity to present themselves on selected summer Fridays on the Cultural Stage in Janko Kráľ Park. There will be ten musical performances over the five summer evenings - a variety of musical genres and DJ sets. The first of them, on Friday, 7 July, will feature Vlado Nosal & The Avedons, who you may be familiar with from Queer Jane. At 9 p.m. on the same night, DR TWYNKEE will play his drum and bass set. On other Fridays in July, the Park will host The Anyone, Ktovie, DJ Martin Cehelský and DJ NUMA BE.

Live podcast, swap and silent disco

The programme of the Bratislava Cultural Summer is designed for all ages and is truly diverse. "Our aim is to bring culture to unconventional places or an unconventional programme to conventional places. In this way, residents can enjoy summer culture and rediscover their city at the same time," says Katarína Hulíková, Director of BKIS. On Wednesday, July 19, you can experience the live recording of the podcast "Rendezvous with the City" at Rómer's House. The Host, Ludwig Bagin, will leave the recording studio and with his guest, guide Andrej Groll, will talk about Bratislava native and Enlightenment inventor, Wolfgang Kempelen.

On Saturday afternoon, July 22, you are invited to renew your wardrobe at the swap event at Klarisky and enjoy an evening of culture on the city walls. The band Silky Ďžon will perform and electronic music producer BULP will play in an unconventional venue below Bratislava Castle. Bratislava winemakers will present their products and at 8:30 p.m. you can watch the film "Love Your Robot" in association with Film Europe. On Friday, 28 July, a silent disco will take place in the Klarisky concert hall: a real club vibe in an unconventional setting in an unconventional place, where you can choose from the evening sets of two DJs.

All BKIS events are free. The latest programme of the 48th edition of the Bratislava Cultural Summer Festival is available at Kultúrne leto ↗︎.

The Bratislava Cultural and Information Centre (BKIS) is the city’s contributory organisation that implements and dramaturgically covers important city-wide cultural and social events (Bratislava Christmas, Bratislava City Days, Bratislava Cultural Summer, etc.). It creates the conditions for organising cultural events through open calls. BKIS also covers the oldest Tourism Guide Training Course in Slovakia, devoted to Bratislava. It organises a series of thematic guided walks, the Rendezvous with the City, and makes a podcast of the same name. It manages the Klarisky concert and exhibition hall and is responsible for restoration of the former Zora cinema.