BERLINER FESTIVAL ALTER MUSIK

 

From 26 to 29 November 2026, the BERLINER FESTIVAL ALTER MUSIK makes its debut under the motto “Fascination Renaissance”. At Villa Elisabeth, St. Elisabeth-Kirche, Sophienkirche, St. Matthäus-Kirche, and the Museum of Applied Arts, Berlin-based and international ensembles open up the diverse soundscapes of an era whose ideas still resonate today. In the heart of Berlin, early music becomes a world of awakening, artistic daring and trust in the creative power of humankind. 

The festival programme features nature-inspired music, modern analogue synthesizers leading into Italianate madrigals by Johann Hermann Schein, Venetian frottole amid glass masterpieces at the Kunstgewerbemuseum, music bringing to life the painted figures of Lucas Cranach the Elder, a Renaissance dance party, a shadow-puppet performance for families, promenade concerts highlighting both an intimate viol consort and a brilliant wind ensemble, the captivating world of the Italian madrigal, Renaissance flute and drum in a convivial atmosphere, the polyphony of the recently discovered Leuven Chansonnier, Jacob Obrecht’s monumental Missa Maria zart, musical discoveries surrounding the little-known composer Caspar Kittel, and an opulent programme showcasing music by Heinrich Schütz. 

At the BERLINER FESTIVAL ALTER MUSIK, the Renaissance appears not as a closed chapter of history, but as an invitation to ask questions – through music that tells of the past, inspires the present, and points to the future.