［CITY］
Magdeburg … Germany
［SCHEDULE］
2026：3.13 … 3.22（Held every two years）
To the festival site ▷
When talking about baroque music in the first half of the 18th century, two composers born in the same year attract attention. Bach (1685 – 1750), who was active in the center of the church, and Handel (1685 – 1759), who succeeded in opera over London. But at the time, the most popular composer was Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1767).
He was born in the family of a Protestant minister in Magdeburg. He is precocious, such as composing an opera at the age of 12, and has a wealth of ideas. He continued to succeed in various parts of the world.
And he became the music director of Hamburg in 1721, when he was 40 years old. For 46 years until his death, he was active in his composition, his business, and the publication of his work in this booming city of free Hanseatic.
There is an interesting story. In 1722, Leipzig tried to welcome Telemann to the music director of St. Thomas Church and was not dealt with by him. Leipzig lamented, “I have to put up with an intermediate musician.” And instead, it was Bach who was invited. It’s a story that tells us how big Telemann was.
The music festival at his birthplace is held once every two years. Magdeburg is a city with a population of about 230,000, located in the northeastern part of Germany, approximately halfway between Berlin and Hannover. The predecessor music festival was founded in the East German era and became the current style in 1992.
The music festival begins around March 14th, Telemann’s birthday, with an opera performed at the Magdeburg Opera House, which has less than 800 seats, and various concerts throughout the city. It is also a valuable opportunity to pick up works that you rarely hear.
