Khabat Abas is a cellist, composer, and interdisciplinary artist from Kurdistan-Iraq,  who reimagines the cello as a multifaceted instrument—one that embodies power, colonial history, cultural identity, and personal limitation. Her work explores time, space, and memory through music, everyday sounds, and noise, pushing the boundaries of traditional sound-making. Abas delves deeply into how we experience sound, particularly within complex geopolitical contexts, using it as a force for political critique and self-expression.

Khabat has performed with various ensembles, including the Iraqi National Symphony Orchestra, Sulaymaniyah string orchestra, Gothenburg Academic Symphony Orchestra, and the Non-Ensemble for experimental music in Sweden, London Improvisation Orchestra and ONe_Orchestra New, Noise women.  She has also collaborated with curators, artists and musicians in Kurdistan-Iraq, Sweden, Germany, and the UK, Aba’s electro-acoustic cello  piece was performed in Slemani-Kurdistan as a part of the Global Listening Biennial . She  performed in   Irtijal festival  in Beirut  Lebanon,  Space21 festival in Slemani in Iraq Kurdistan, Breach in Nicosia, Cyprus ,  Borderline Festival Athens,Soundout festival Caberra Australia, EAR WE ARE Festival Sweitzerland, Zero Parameter  festival in Dai Hall Huddersfield Uk, and she participated in the project  (Abandoned space) collaboration between the Sonorities festival in Belfast and Space21 festival in Kurdistan and her composition played in Klangwerkstatt, Festival for New Music in Berlin and Space21 festival n Kurdistan and London new jazz festival in London. Artist residency at Ame in Huddersfield. She is co-founder of Duo Moment; together with Hardi Kurda, they released two albums, “Broken Resonance” on Space21 Label and “Illegal Performance” at Café Oto 2021. She has been awarded a grant from Salam culture house in Iraqi Kurdistan and the Swedish art council community, and Stim Forward Fund in Sweden.

 

Contact:

Khabat.abas@gmail.co