Music In Berlin

Classical Music

The Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra is one of the world’s finest orchestras and it performs regularly at the beautiful Philharmonie, with its awe-inspiring architecture and fantastic acoustics. Chamber orchestras perform in the smaller Kammermusiksaal attached to the bigger hall.

Konzerthaus Berlin, formally known as the Schauspielhaus, is another important venue for classical music having been magnificently restored after World War II.

Opera lovers will find themselves well catered for in Berlin as there are three major opera houses.

The Staatsoper Unter den Linden’s impressive, yet conservative repertoire includes traditional German classics and Italian opera, while the Komische Oper is known for its broad range of lighter opera and, because its operas frequently have a long run, there are often last-minute tickets available. The Deutsche Oper on Bismarckstrasse is housed in a somewhat plainer building than the other opera venues, but it boasts performances ranging from Mozart to Wagner.

MUSIC FESTIVALS

The Berliner Festwochen takes place throughout the month of September and top orchestras and performers come from all over the world to put on classical music concerts around the city.

Also in September, pop fans will love Popkomm, one of Europe’s biggest music festivals, which hosts a mix of talks, parties and concerts in venues throughout Berlin.

Jazzfest Berlin takes place in July and tends to attract lovers of more traditional styles of jazz, but it also focuses on the more experimental and innovative styles of the genre in its accompanying Total Music Meeting.

ROCK, POP & JAZZ

Whether it is a major event by a world-famous band or a small-scale evening of jazz improvisation, you need not look too far to find what you want. The biggest concerts tend to take place in sports halls and stadiums, like the Max-Schmeling-Halle and the Olympiastadion, whilst smaller venues like Café Swing and SO 36 play host to the best new talent in popular music. In addition, a lot of the action tends to take place in the city’s many bars, discos and clubs or, if you are looking for particularly atmospheric concerts, why not try those put on at the Passionskirche, a converted church in Kreuzberg.

Jazz clubs abound in Berlin, as the style remains very popular amongst locals. The A-Trane and b-flat are classical jazz bars where you can listen to small bands just about every night of the week, and Quasimodo is renowned for its schedule of local and touring jazz, soul and world music performers.

Apart from the typical classical jazz clubs, jazz can also be heard in many of the city’s smaller bars, like Schlot. If it is a mixture of soul, rap and jazz you want to listen to, then head for the Junction Bar in Kreuzberg. The pipapo, near Nollendorfplatz, is a worthy choice on a Sunday and the Badenscher Hof Jazzclub is always a good bet.

World Music

Berlin is home to a wide variety of world music. The Haus der Kulturen der Welt organizes all kinds of concerts at its own Café Global and Kulturbrauerie has become the main venue for world-class artists.

Latin American discos are becoming ever more popular and Havanna in Schureberg is one of the city’s best. Irish music is also well represented in Berlin’s pubs – Wild at Heart is very popular, although it does not play Irish music all the time.

Classical And Modern Dance

There are three major ballet groups in Berlin and they work within Berlin’s opera houses. The Komische Oper has a modern repertoire, whilst the Staatsoper Unter den Linden focuses on more classical work.

The Hebbel Am Ufer (HAU) stages avant-garde pieces and welcomes troupes from all over the world and also organizes the dance festival “Tanz” every August.

The seating at all three theatres is rather limited, so you need to book well in advance.

Tanzfabrik, based on Muckernstrasse in Kreuzberg, is an excellent stage for all kinds of modern dance and it also organizes dance workshops as well as popular body-work courses.