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Polyverse Consortium launches ‘Singing Across Faiths’, a manifesto to acknowledge the power of music as a driver for interfaith dialogue
The manifesto lays the groundwork for the creation of an original interfaith composition inspired by the musical traditions of Christianity, Judaism and Islam.
Brussels, 23 June 2025. In a resounding call for unity and understanding, the Polyverse consortium proudly announces the launch of the Polyverse Manifesto “Singing Across Faiths”. The document acknowledges the profound power of music to foster dialogue and understanding among cultures and religions and sets forth the guiding principles for the creation of an original interfaith music composition as part of the two-year cooperation project, Polyverse – Promoting multicultural dialogue and religious heritage by creating a European Interreligious Choir, funded by the Creative Europe programme of the European Union.
The manifesto was drafted as a result of the Polyverse Transnational Seminar that took place in Leuven (Belgium) on 7 May 2025, with participation of the five project partners: the Jewish Community of Athens (Greece), the Evangelical Church and Community of Lehnin Monastery (Germany), the Islamic Cultural Centre of Italy – Grand Mosque of Rome (Italy), Future for Religious Heritage (Belgium), and the Società di Conservazione della Basilica di Aquileia (Italy), as the leading partner.
Over the past six months, a series of local focus groups, seminars have explored the multifaceted challenges facing interreligious dialogue, and the nature of music as a universal language, transcending boundaries and connecting communities. Discussions also addressed the rich cultural tapestry of the four religious sites where the future Polyverse Interfaith Choir will perform from spring 2026: the Basilica of Aquileia (Italy), the Beth Shalom Synagogue in Athens (Greece), the Lehnin Monastery Church (Germany) and the Grand Mosque of Rome (Italy).
With the presentation of the “Singing Across Faiths” manifesto, the Polyverse consortium is thrilled to enter the creative phase of the project. This phase will start with an artistic residence in Athens in September 2025, in which three selected composers will draw upon the rich musical heritages of Christianity, Judaism and Islam to craft a new composition that reflects a collective spirit of peace and harmony.
The full manifesto is available on the Polyverse website www.polyverseproject.eu. We encourage musicians, artists and cultural enthusiasts to explore our content and join us in the new and exciting stage of this remarkable initiative through our Instagram and Facebook pages.
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Note for the editors
“POLYVERSE – Promoting multicultural dialogue and religious heritage by creating a European Interreligious Choir” is a two-year cooperation project funded under the Culture strand of the Creative Europe Programme of the European Commission.
Its aim is to harness the unifying potential of culture and art, particularly music, to promote interreligious and intercultural dialogue. Our milestone is the creation of the first European Interreligious Choir, bringing together the musical traditions of Christianity, Judaism and Islam in a new, original musical composition.
The project consortium is composed of the Società di Conservazione della Basilica di Aquileia (Italy) as leader of the project, the Jewish Community of Athens (Greece), the Evangelical Church and Community of Lehnin Monastery (Germany), the Islamic Cultural Centre of Italy – Grand Mosque of Rome (Italy) and Future for Religious Heritage (European).
More information on www.polyverseproject.eu
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