Köthen Bach Festival
Köthener Bachfesttage

[CITY]
 Köthen … Germany

[SCHEDULE]
 2024:8.25 … 9.1(Held every other year)


  To the festival site ▷


About 50 km from Leipzig and about an hour by bus, Köthen is a small town with a population of less than 30,000. However, the city is well known to music fans as Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 – 1750) was responsible for the court music. Köthen Castle, where he worked, is now a museum, and the “Mirror Palace”, which was the venue for the performance, and the court chapel that hosted the wedding, have been renovated and opened to the public.

It was in 1717 that Bach was invited to Anhalt-Katen Leopold and moved to the city. Bach spent the city from the age of 32 to 38 until he headed to Leipzig, his last place in May 1723. It is in this city that he lost his first wife, Maria Barbara, and remarried Anna Magdalena. In this city, he also created masterpieces such as Brandenburg concertos and instrumental works without accompaniment.

The music festival was founded in 1967 during the former East Germany period. Held once every two years and lasts for about a week. The small music festival made its first leap at the start after Hans Georg Schaefer became the general director. He was the former general manager of the Berliner Philharmoniker and Ansbach’s Bach Week.

After then Authorities of Bach performances such as John Eliot Gardiner, Ton Koopman, Philippe Herreweghe, etc. have appeared one after another, and have grown into a presence that is also recognized by the general public. In 2016 the general director was retired, but “BachCollektiv” was founded as a resident ensemble. The venues include St. Jacob Church, St. Agnus Church, and Bach Hall that was born in Köthen Castle.

How about this?

  1. La Folle Journée
    La Folle Journée

  2. Prague Summer Nights
    Prague Summer Nights

  3. International Festival of Symphonic Music in El Jem
    Festival international de musique symphonique d’El Jem

  4. Klara Festival
    Klara Festival

  5. George Enescu Festival
    Enescu si Muzica LumiI

  6. PREMIERE [Staatsoper Hamburg]Carmen

  7. Chofu International Music Festival
    調布国際音楽祭

  8. Three Choirs Festival
    Three Choirs Festival

  9. Laus Polyphoniae
    Laus Polyphoniae

  10. Vernon Proms Classical Music Festival
    Vernon Proms Classical Music Festival

  11. Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival
    Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival

  12. Košická Music Spring
    Košická hudobná jar

  13. Festival of Sacred and Ancient Music of Badajoz
    Festival de Música Sacra y Antigua de Badajoz

  14. Confidencen Opera
    Opera på Confidencen

  15. Xalapa Early Music Festival
    Festival de Música Antigua “La Festa Antiqua”