Musikfest Berlin
29 August – 27 September 2020
Musikfest Berlin, organised by the Berliner Festspiele in association with the Berliner Philharmoniker Foundation starts on 29 August. In 34 events in the Philharmonie, the Chamber Music Hall and the Zoo Palast cinema, 100 works by around 30 composers will be presented, performed by 23 instrumental and vocal ensembles and 45 soloists from the international and Berlin music scene.
Homage to Beethoven
Beethoven originally wanted to dedicate his “Eroica” to Napoleon – until his decision to have himself crowned emperor aroused the composer’s republican anger. From then on, the name was erased and the title of the symphony remained general: Sinfonia Eroica ... composta per festeggiare il sovvenire di un grand Uomo. Around 150 years later, this was still too much for Arturo Toscanini. He decided brusquely: “For some it is Napoleon; for others it is Alexander the Great; yet others say it is a philosophical discourse. For me it’s simple: Allegro con brio.” In this Beethoven anniversary year, Musikfest Berlin celebrates no heroes, titans or other mythological figures. But it is a welcome occasion to make the Philharmonie a place where Ludwig van Beethoven’s music can be heard together with works by composers of our time: the opening concert itself with the Concertgebouw Orchestra links the Eroica with the music of Rebecca Saunders and Wolfgang Rihm.
In focus: Rebecca Saunders
We are presenting a portrait of Rebecca Saunders, winner of the 2019 Ernst von Siemens Music Prize: 14 of her works will be performed in seven concerts at Musikfest Berlin. The programme also includes world premieres and recent works by Georges Aperghis, Milica Djordjević, Heiner Goebbels, Sofia Gubaidulina, Arnulf Herrmann, Christian Jost, Olga Neuwirth, Enno Poppe and Wolfgang Rihm.
World-class orchestras
Beethoven’s Missa solemnis with John Eliot Gardiner's Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique and the Monteverdi Choir will be performed on period instruments, as will the Pastoral with François-Xavier Roth’s ensemble, Les Siècles. The Fourth, Fifth and Eighth Symphonies will be performed on modern instruments. The choir and orchestra of Deutsche Oper Berlin present Leonore, the original version of the opera Fidelio, and Igor Levit plays the complete catalogue of the 32 piano sonatas in eight performances. In addition to the orchestras from Amsterdam, London and Paris, guest performers at Musikfest Berlin 2020 include the orchestra and choir of the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia from Rome with its music director Sir Antonio Pappano, the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig with Andris Nelsons and the Bamberg Symphony with Jakub Hrůša.
Beethoven Cycle with Igor Levit
Sir John Eliot Gardiner 
Antonio PappanoAll concerts of the Musikfest Berlin 2019
Saturday,
29 Aug 2020,
19:00
Philharmonie
Musikfest Berlin
Sat, 29 Aug 2020, 19:00
Philharmonie
Concertgebouworkest
François-Xavier Roth conductor
Pekka Kuusisto violin
Works by Ludwig van Beethoven, Wolfgang Rihm and Rebecca Saunders
Sunday,
30 Aug 2020,
11:00
Chamber Music Hall
Musikfest Berlin
Sun, 30 Aug 2020, 11:00
Chamber Music Hall
Igor Levit piano
Works by Ludwig van Beethoven
Monday,
31 Aug 2020,
20:00
Philharmonie
Musikfest Berlin
Mon, 31 Aug 2020, 20:00
Philharmonie
Bamberger Symphoniker
Jakub Hrůša conductor
Anja Petersen soprano
Works by Arnulf Herrmann and Josef Suk
Tuesday,
01 Sep 2020,
20:00
Chamber Music Hall
Musikfest Berlin
Tue, 01 Sep 2020, 20:00
Chamber Music Hall
Les Siècles
François-Xavier Roth conductor
Chouchane Siranossian violin
Works by François-Joseph Gossec, Etienne-Nicolas Méhul, Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges and Ludwig van Beethoven
Wednesday,
02 Sep 2020,
20:00
Chamber Music Hall
Musikfest Berlin
Wed, 02 Sep 2020, 20:00
Chamber Music Hall
Klangforum Wien
Emilio Pomarico direction
Neue Vocalsolisten Stuttgart
Works by Rebecca Saunders and Georges Aperghis
Thursday,
03 Sep 2020,
20:00
Philharmonie
Musikfest Berlin
Thu, 03 Sep 2020, 20:00
Philharmonie
Ensemble Modern Orchestra
Vimbayi Kaziboni conductor
Heiner Goebbels stage lighting
Norbert Ommer sound direction
Heiner Goebbels A House of Call. My Imaginary Notebook (German Premiere) commissioned by Ensemble Modern, Berliner Festspiele /Musikfest Berlin, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, musica viva/Bayerischer Rundfunk, Kölner Philharmonie, Wien Modern/Wiener Konzerthaus and beuys2021
Friday,
04 Sep 2020,
20:00
Philharmonie
Musikfest Berlin
Fri, 04 Sep 2020, 20:00
Philharmonie
Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique
John Eliot Gardiner conductor
Lucy Crowe soprano
Elisabeth DeShong contralto
Allan Clayton tenor
Morris Robinson bass
Ludwig van Beethoven Missa solemnis in D major, op. 123
Saturday,
05 Sep 2020,
19:00
Philharmonie
Musikfest Berlin
Sat, 05 Sep 2020, 19:00
Philharmonie
Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Vladimir Jurowski conductor
Anne Schwanewilms soprano
Kinderchor der Staatsoper Unter den Linden Berlin childrens' choir
Vinzenz Weissenburger chorus master
Works by Anton Webern, Alban Berg and Alfred Schnittke
Saturday,
05 Sep 2020,
21:30
Chamber Music Hall
Musikfest Berlin
Sat, 05 Sep 2020, 21:30
Chamber Music Hall
Igor Levit piano
Works by Ludwig van Beethoven
Sunday,
06 Sep 2020,
17:00
Chamber Music Hall
Musikfest Berlin
Sun, 06 Sep 2020, 17:00
Chamber Music Hall
Nicolas Altstaedt cello and violoncello piccolo
Works by Johann Sebastian Bach
Sunday,
06 Sep 2020,
20:00
Philharmonie
Musikfest Berlin
Sun, 06 Sep 2020, 20:00
Philharmonie
Konzerthausorchester Berlin orchestra
Christoph Eschenbach conductor
Christian Tetzlaff violin
Works by Christian Jost and Anton Bruckner
Monday,
07 Sep 2020,
20:00
Philharmonie
Musikfest Berlin
Mon, 07 Sep 2020, 20:00
Philharmonie
Soloists of the Lucerne Festival Alumni percussion
Orchestra of the Lucerne Festival Alumni
Ilan Volkov conductor
Nicolas Hodges piano
Christian Dierstein percussion
Dirk Rothbrust percussion
Works by Rebecca Saunders
Tuesday,
08 Sep 2020,
20:00
Philharmonie
Musikfest Berlin
Tue, 08 Sep 2020, 20:00
Philharmonie
Gewandhausorchester
Andris Nelsons conductor
Works by Richard Wagner, Sofia Gubaidulina and Ludwig van Beethoven
Wednesday,
09 Sep 2020,
20:00
Chamber Music Hall
Musikfest Berlin
Wed, 09 Sep 2020, 20:00
Chamber Music Hall
Ensemble Musikfabrik
Peter Rundel conductor
Florentin Ginot double bass
Juliet Fraser soprano
Works by Rebecca Saunders
Thursday,
10 Sep 2020,
20:00
Philharmonie
Musikfest Berlin
Thu, 10 Sep 2020, 20:00
Philharmonie
Orchestra dell' Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia Rom
Antonio Pappano conductor
Coro dellʼAccademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia choir
Igor Levit piano
Piero Monti chorus master
Works by Ludwig van Beethoven, Arnold Schoenberg and Ferruccio Busoni
Friday,
11 Sep 2020,
20:00
Philharmonie
Musikfest Berlin
Fri, 11 Sep 2020, 20:00
Philharmonie
Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Vladimir Jurowski conductor
Marco Blaauw trumpet
Works by Richard Strauss, Rebecca Saunders, Anton Webern and Ludwig van Beethoven
Saturday,
12 Sep 2020,
19:00
Chamber Music Hall
Musikfest Berlin
Sat, 12 Sep 2020, 19:00
Chamber Music Hall
Igor Levit piano
Works by Ludwig van Beethoven
Saturday,
12 Sep 2020,
19:00
Philharmonie
Serie: C
Sat, 12 Sep 2020, 19:00
Philharmonie
Berliner Philharmoniker
Daniel Harding conductor
Andrew Watts countertenor
Works by Olga Neuwirth and Gustav Mahler
Sunday,
13 Sep 2020,
19:00
Chamber Music Hall
Musikfest Berlin
Sun, 13 Sep 2020, 19:00
Chamber Music Hall
Igor Levit piano
Works by Ludwig van Beethoven
Sunday,
13 Sep 2020,
20:00
Philharmonie
Serie: F
Sun, 13 Sep 2020, 20:00
Philharmonie
Berliner Philharmoniker
Daniel Harding conductor
Andrew Watts countertenor
Works by Olga Neuwirth and Gustav Mahler
Tuesday,
15 Sep 2020,
20:00
Philharmonie
Musikfest Berlin
Tue, 15 Sep 2020, 20:00
Philharmonie
Orchester der Deutschen Oper Berlin
Chor der Deutschen Oper Berlin choir
Donald Runnicles conductor
Flurina Stucki soprano
David Butt Philip tenor
Albert Pesendorfer bass
Markus Brück baritone
Philipp Jekal bass
Elena Tsallagova soprano
Ya-Chung Huang tenor
Michael Kim tenor (1st Prisoner)
Padraic Rowan bass-baritone (2nd Prisoner)
Jeremy Bines chorus master
Ludwig van Beethoven Leonore, Urfassung der Oper Fidelio
Wednesday,
16 Sep 2020,
20:00
Philharmonie
Musikfest Berlin
Wed, 16 Sep 2020, 20:00
Philharmonie
Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen
Justin Doyle conductor
RIAS Kammerchor Berlin
Sarah Aristidou soprano
Olivia Vermeulen mezzo-soprano
Dominik Köninger baritone
N.N. speaker
Works by Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Rihm and Luigi Cherubini
Thursday,
17 Sep 2020,
20:00
Philharmonie
Serie: A
Thu, 17 Sep 2020, 20:00
Philharmonie
Berliner Philharmoniker
Kirill Petrenko conductor
Frank Peter Zimmermann violin
Works by Iannis Xenakis, Alban Berg and Josef Suk
Friday,
18 Sep 2020,
19:00
Chamber Music Hall
Musikfest Berlin
Fri, 18 Sep 2020, 19:00
Chamber Music Hall
Igor Levit piano
Works by Ludwig van Beethoven
Friday,
18 Sep 2020,
20:00
Philharmonie
Serie: D
Fri, 18 Sep 2020, 20:00
Philharmonie
Berliner Philharmoniker
Kirill Petrenko conductor
Frank Peter Zimmermann violin
Works by Iannis Xenakis, Alban Berg and Josef Suk
Saturday,
19 Sep 2020,
19:00
Philharmonie
Serie: N
Sat, 19 Sep 2020, 19:00
Philharmonie
Berliner Philharmoniker
Kirill Petrenko conductor
Frank Peter Zimmermann violin
Works by Iannis Xenakis, Alban Berg and Josef Suk
Saturday,
19 Sep 2020,
19:00
Chamber Music Hall
Musikfest Berlin
Sat, 19 Sep 2020, 19:00
Chamber Music Hall
Igor Levit piano
Works by Ludwig van Beethoven
Monday,
21 Sep 2020,
20:00
Philharmonie
Musikfest Berlin
Mon, 21 Sep 2020, 20:00
Philharmonie
Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin
Robin Ticciati conductor
GrauSchumacher PianoDuo
Works by Edward Elgar, Wolfgang Rihm and Ludwig van Beethoven
Tuesday,
22 Sep 2020,
20:00
Chamber Music Hall
Karajan Academy
Tue, 22 Sep 2020, 20:00
Chamber Music Hall
Scholars of the Karajan Academy
Enno Poppe conductor
Alexander Arai-Swale double bass
Works by Rebecca Saunders, Milica Djordjević and Enno Poppe
Wednesday,
23 Sep 2020,
20:00
Chamber Music Hall
Chamber Music | Serie: W - Artist in Residence
Wed, 23 Sep 2020, 20:00
Chamber Music Hall
Artist in Residence
Tabea Zimmermann viola
Christian Gerhaher baritone
Jörg Widmann clarinet
Tamara Stefanovich piano
Members of the Berliner Philharmoniker
Stanley Dodds direction
Works by Wolfgang Rihm