Who led a seven-minute silence before PJ Harvey's 2024 Pyramid Stage performance?

Marina Abramović led a seven-minute silence before PJ Harvey’s 2024 Pyramid Stage performance at Glastonbury. The unusual pre-show intervention made the set notable even before Harvey began singing.

Abramović is a Serbian performance artist famous for testing endurance, presence and the relationship between performer and audience. A collective silence fits her artistic practice, in which stillness and sustained attention can become the central event rather than a pause between conventional performances.

PJ Harvey played the Pyramid Stage on Sunday, 30 June 2024, before Paul Heaton and SZA’s headline set. The moment should not be confused with a silent performance by Harvey herself: Abramović led the audience beforehand, and Harvey then delivered her scheduled concert with musicians including John Parish and James Johnston.