MaerzMusik

Upcoming Events

Library &amp; Exhibition

Now in its third year, the Library of MaerzMusik will be open throughout the festival as a place for collective reflection, facilitating encounters between artists, musicians and festival visitors, open to the public free of charge. It aims to create a space for the co-existence and exchange of knowledge(s) while fostering new and shared experiences.

This year’s Library will emphasise connections between the festival programme and the various aesthetics presented with a selection of reference materials – including books, music recordings, scores and films – that continue to resonate through the festival. As well as artist talks, there will be panels and conversations about many of the themes that occupy the artists’ minds, ranging from AI as a creative tool and new intertwining constellations of dance and music to works that question the role of societal and political engagement in the arts and stories about the considerable historical importance of brass instruments across many cultures. Pamela Z and Joan La Barbara are two pioneering figures in contemporary American vocal music and composition. In addition to their concerts, we also honour their work with two video installations in the Library of MaerzMusik, which can be found in the Upper Foyer of the Haus der Berliner Festspiele.The Library of MaerzMusik seeks to mediate between practice and theory and between situated and formative systems of knowledge. The Library’s purpose is therefore not merely to (re)present knowledge but also to suitably interweave history with referential practices. With the ongoing loss of third places in the public sphere, we wish to transform the Upper Foyer of the Haus der Berliner Festspiele into a space of informal conviviality: roam around, grab a cup of tea, find a moment’s peace, listen to some music, read a book, or just do nothing, lie down and take a break.– Hannes Wagner, Assistant Curator, Library of MaerzMusik

Ausstellung

Exhibition

MaerzMusik 2025

Haus der Berliner Festspiele, Radialsystem, silent green, daadgalerie

Library of MaerzMusik

Does power whisper? How are territories communicated? Is there a sensory vision of collective identity? In her first solo exhibition in Germany, Taiwanese artist Ting-Jung Chen explores these profound questions, crafting a scenario both conceptual and immersive. The exhibition resonates with the echoes of public political speeches as well as public monuments, offering a critical perspective on how narratives, power and identity are not only constructed but also expressed and contested within public and private spheres.

Upon entering the space, visitors are immediately confronted by large leaning objects positioned on the floor. Reminiscent of stranded buoys, they evoke a quasi, post-apocalyptic, dystopian scenario. The massive, architectonic sculptures, covered in a homogeneous gradient of grayscale colours and patterns, are loosely connected together by signal cables. Ostensibly decoupled from their original function as boundary markers and surveillance points, the locational information they communicate from sea is revealed as arbitrary. Drifted away from the context they are designed to serve, they take on the fluidity and unspecific character of monuments and territories. Constructed from blank white paper and newspapers sourced from diverse ideological, linguistic and geographical backgrounds, the buoys act as visual metaphors for the entanglement of competing ideologies. Encrusted with echoes of other times through their layering and compacting of materials and information, they evoke waves and loops of time, challenging our linear understanding of its passage. The materiality of the paper pulp creates the illusion that these oversized sculptures are fashioned from heavy materials like cement or granite, invoking associations to weapons, bunkers or temporary shelters. Upon closer inspection, however, it becomes evident that the sculptures are, in fact, constructed from fragile papier mâché.Sounds of varying intensity can be heard coming from inside these dysfunctional, identity-less objects. The hollow, pulp structures, which also double as large resonating chambers for amplifying individual sound frequencies, emit tones that echo, overlap and resonate together, but which also fall out of sync at times. Produced within the space is a cryptic dialogue that recalls vague signals from the past, amplifying the tension between the physical presence of the sculptures and the intangible, shifting sounds enveloping them. Overhead, an interactive sound installation of public speeches given by political figures fills the entire space and connects all parts of the exhibition together. Experimenting with various modes of reception, Chen explores the dynamic interplay between private and public auditory experiences, each of which shape the dissemination of information in distinct ways. Via headphones, each listener can experience their own personal soundtrack created by their unique path through the show.This intimate experience intermixes with sounds played in the space via speakers, creating a sensory connection bridging personal and collective realms of auditory engagement.In the front exhibition space, Ting-Jung Chen’s larger-than-human-sized buoy sculptures express the overwhelming, monumental nature of official narratives around collective identity. In the rear space, however, experiences of overload are transformed into a sensorial realm beyond the tangible and material world. Here, visitors enter a dark space configured from three pieces of black truck tarpaulin fabric, stretched taut and suspended from the ceiling. As the eyes adjust to the darkness, the sound initially heard via headphones is gradually overpowered by an intensifying noise, and a bright light suddenly floods the space, leaving viewers temporarily blinded. With the momentary loss of sight, the audible sound then shifts from noise to a single frequency, and finally to silence. Following the bright flash of light, visible traces of inverted colour are left hanging in the darkness.This mix of overstimulation and sensory deprivation makes visitors immediately aware of their senses as they are exposed to the contrasts and excessive information mirrored in the massive sculptures and snippets of ideological speech presented in the front space. Through the fluidity of sound, a “counter-monument” is generated that activates the agency of visitors, enabling them to generate potential noise and dissonance outside the harmonious systems. In this way, sound and events undergo multiple translations and are transformed into extended, plural narratives, thus opening up multiple time layers and envisaging alternative forms of bodily empowerment as well as the various ways in which boundaries are defined.

Chen’s multi-layered installation explores the interplay between sound and the sensory emotions it evokes, paying attention to how power structures exploit these elements to consolidate control. Chen questions the systems and stories that define our shared histories. Her work critically examines the “ideal” narratives and imagery often embedded in political rhetoric and memorial sites. These idealised forms, generalised and abstracted, are propagated by those in power and designed to influence the perception and transmission of communicated information, ultimately shaping collective identity and national consciousness.

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Here On the Edge of the Sea We Sit – Ausstellung

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MaerzMusik versteht sich als Ort für künstlerische Erfahrungen, für Begegnungen und für gemeinsames Nachdenken. Entwickelt aus der Perspektive des Hörens und getragen von der Musik der Gegenwart, öffnet das Festival mit Konzerten, Performances, Installationen, Musiktheater, Filmpräsentationen und Diskursformaten einen Raum, in dem Leben, Kunst und Theorie konvergieren können.

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The 2025 MaerzMusik will take place from 21 to 30 March 2025. The programme will be published in January.

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Key Visual MaerzMusik 2025

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Concerts, Performances, Installations, Discourse Formats

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MaerzMusik 2024: Impressionen

Jazzfest Berlin 2023: Impressions

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Impressions

MaerzMusik 2024

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MaerzMusik 2025: Impressionen Startseite

MaerzMusik 2025: Impressionen

MaerzMusik 2025

MaerzMusik will take place from 21 to 30 March 2025 under the artistic direction of Kamila Metwaly. The 24th festival edition will open with the multimedia music theatre production <a href="${link:{uuid:{f8e2f59f-baea-44c9-9162-3afee63c40ab},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/melencolia}}}">“MELENCOLIA – A Show Against the Indifference of the Universe”</a> by Brigitta Muntendorf and Moritz Lobeck at Haus der Berliner Festspiele. The work, commissioned by the Bregenz Festival and Ensemble Modern, will celebrate its German premiere at MaerzMusik in cooperation with the Staatsoper Unter den Linden. Immersed in 3D soundscapes, performers from Ensemble Modern and the Apollo Choir of the Staatsoper Unter den Linden take listeners into a deep exploration of enigmatic, melancholic worlds where reality and virtuality are combined on stage.Over the following nine festival days, further multidisciplinary projects and concerts will be presented that transcend traditional dualisms, presenting new interrelational perspectives that underscore the profound interconnectedness of social, technological and ecological systems. Here, music and sound move beyond binary frameworks, reshaping our understanding of relational experience and opening pathways to a more unified perception of existence and listening.Central to this artistic exploration is Enno Poppe’s new composition “Streik“ for ten drum sets, which poses the question: What happens when a solo instrument is multiplied many times? Another perspective on percussion as well as a reflection on the power of breath is offered by the work “POETICA” by Chaya Czernowin, composed for Steven Schick and Les Percussions de Strasbourg. “Minor Characters” by Jennifer Walshe and Matthew Shlomowitz will be presented by Ensemble Nikel in their festival debut, alongside “Limina / Sensation 1” by Mark Barden and Ligia Lewis. And we are looking forward to the new work “Drifting to the Rhythms at the Southeast of Nowhere” by the Berlin-based duo Nguyễn + Transitory, which will be developed this winter in Thailand in collaboration with dance artists from Chiang Mai.MaerzMusik 2025 will also present works by Jad Atoui, Wojtek Blecharz, Raven Chacon, Susie Ibarra, Mazen Kerbaj, Panayiotis Kokoras, Kuba Krzewiński, Joan La Barbara, Catherine Lamb, George Lewis, Liza Lim, Wadada Leo Smith, Ute Wassermann, Pamela Z and others, alongside ensembles that include Percussion Orchestra Cologne, Synaesthesis, Yarn/Wire and The Monochrome Project. Together, composers, artists and musicians will push the boundaries of sound, inviting audiences to explore new, transformative possibilities in contemporary music.Tickets for “MELENCOLIA” are available now. Advance ticket sales for further programme highlights start on 9&nbsp;January. The complete festival programme will be published in February.

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Since the 1950s Yoko Ono has been ahead of her time, leaving her mark on visual arts, music and activism. To honour her groundbreaking work, Gropius Bau presents a comprehensive solo exhibition.

YOKO ONO: MUSIC OF THE MIND

Key Visual Neu

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Marking twenty years since artist, writer and performer Vaginal Davis made Berlin her home, Gropius Bau presents the first comprehensive solo exhibition of her work in Germany. In her expansive oeuvre, punk meets glamour, queer activism meets Black counter-culture and resistance meets desire.

Vaginal Davis: Fabelhaftes Produkt

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The programme for the 62nd&nbsp;Theatertreffen is online. The 10&nbsp;most remarkable productions of the season will be accompanied by a framing programme of contributions by alumni of the International Forum, which is celebrating its 60th&nbsp;anniversary. Advance ticket sales start on 17&nbsp;April.

Theatertreffen

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Musikfest Berlin 2025 brings together guest performances by the world’s best symphony orchestras and choirs from the Netherlands, France, Belgium and Italy, which are rarely heard in Berlin. The full programme is online and tickets are available now.

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More Berliner Festspiele

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Tickets for the 62nd Theatertreffen are now on sale. The 10 most remarkable productions of the season will be accompanied by a framing programme of contributions by alumni of the International Forum, which is celebrating its 60th anniversary.

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Over the following nine festival days, further multidisciplinary projects and concerts will be presented that transcend traditional dualisms, presenting new interrelational perspectives. Ensemble Nikel makes its festival debut at Radialsystem with two performative concerts: <a href="${link:{uuid:{d9293055-6d55-491e-acd8-0a479ed7b16d},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/minor-characters}}}">“Minor Characters”</a> by Jennifer Walshe and Matthew Shlomowitz is a “song cycle for the 21st century” that examines how the internet communicates reality to us, while Mark Barden’s composition <a href="${link:{uuid:{681adb03-4854-4754-8ff8-c3338d208006},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/limina-sensation-1}}}">“limina”</a> can be experienced in combination with the German premiere of the dance solo <a href="${link:{uuid:{681adb03-4854-4754-8ff8-c3338d208006},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/limina-sensation-1}}}">“Sensation 1”</a> by American choreographer Ligia Lewis. <a href="${link:{uuid:{f439d55e-00f3-46f2-b568-457ef24ff5bd},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/drifting-to-the-rhythms-at-the-southeast-of-nowhere}}}">“Drifting to the Rhythms at the Southeast of Nowhere”</a> by Nguyễn + Transitory is being developed this winter in Thailand in collaboration with dance artists from Chiang Mai, Khon Kaen and Trang. The new work by the Berlin-based duo references a range of Southeast Asian folk-dance forms – combining them with experimental electronic music. Also at Radialsystem, the percussion and piano quartet from New York <a href="${link:{uuid:{dd5489de-9639-4329-8810-8dd52fd056ab},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/yarn-wire}}}">Yarn/Wire</a> makes its Berlin debut with four commissioned works by the composers Sarah Davachi, Jad Atoui, Clara Iannotta and Catherine Lamb.Two performances at the Sophiensæle put animal worlds on stage while blurring genre boundaries. In Ute Wassermann’s <a href="${link:{uuid:{d8547050-f74a-435f-a49e-3ccb6b765bf8},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/the-art-of-camouflage-the-urban-tale-of-a-hippo}}}">“The Art of Camouflage”</a> the performers interact with resonances from aquaria filled with bilious green luminescent water and produce mutations of human and amphibian voices. This is followed by the music theatre production <a href="${link:{uuid:{d8547050-f74a-435f-a49e-3ccb6b765bf8},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/the-art-of-camouflage-the-urban-tale-of-a-hippo}}}">“The Urban Tale of a Hippo”</a> by composer Panayiotis Kokoras, choreographer Andrius Katinas, and stage and lighting designer Nanni Vapaavuori, that explores posthuman states through instrumental and electronic sounds performed by the Lithuanian ensemble Synaesthesis.At the Haus der Berliner Festspiele, the composer and vocalist <a href="${link:{uuid:{7c122669-83dd-4ae8-95fa-aa9a96d3d616},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/voice-is-the-original-instrument}}}">Joan La Barbara</a>, already acclaimed as an icon of contemporary music, will present a programme of her own works that explore the human voice as a multi-faceted instrument in her own unique way. Two current compositions that are performed by large ensembles at the Haus der Berliner Festspiele delve deeper into the riches of the percussion arsenal: Chaya Czernowin composed her work <a href="${link:{uuid:{abbe52d8-0f92-4465-87e9-0466bde1908e},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/poetica}}}">“POETICA”</a> for Steven Schick and Les Percussions de Strasbourg. Here the Israeli US-American composer illuminates both the nature of percussive sounds and the art of breathing. What happens when a solo instrument is multiplied several times? This is the experiment Enno Poppe conducts in his new composition <a href="${link:{uuid:{6c05cc9d-f15a-4555-b4a0-fb42143eb230},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/streik}}}">“Streik”</a> (Strike) for ten drum sets, an exploration of the sonic and narrative spectrum of this special instrument played by musicians of the Percussion Orchestra Cologne.The full festival programme will be announced in February 2025.

MaerzMusik will take place from 21 to 30 March 2025. Tickets have now been released for nine highlights selected from the programme.The 24th edition of the festival opens with the experimental music theatre show <a href="${link:{uuid:{f8e2f59f-baea-44c9-9162-3afee63c40ab},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/melencolia}}}">“MELENCOLIA”</a> by Brigitta Muntendorf and Moritz Lobeck at the Haus der Berliner Festspiele in cooperation with the Staatsoper Unter den Linden. In a series of immersive soundscapes, the musicians of the Ensemble Modern and the Apollo Choir take the listeners with them to explore the creative and transformative power of melancholy worlds.

First Highlights of the Programme on Sale Now

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Trailer MaerzMusik 2025, Design: 3pc

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Find out more about some of MaerzMusik’s artists: talks, interviews and a portrait will be published regularly in the Berliner Festspiele Media Library.

In the Media Library

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Now in its third year, the Library of MaerzMusik will be open throughout the festival as a place for gatherings and collective reflection, facilitating encounters between artists, audiences and a range of content. Offering interactive formats, talks and artistic interventions, it aims to create a space for the exchange of knowledge and shared experiences that is open to the public free of charge.

88 pages, German an English“Towards Sonic Manifolds” is the title of the magazine that accompanies this year’s MaerzMusik while it also reads like a motto for the entire festival. The magazine brings together essays, artists’ conversations and different positions on the themes and protagonists of the programme. Delve deeper into the background and sonic spectrum of MaerzMusik.Please note: The pdf is not barrier-free.<a href="https://berlinerfestspiele.1kcloud.com/ep167d9b37800d48/" target="_blank" title="Full screen view in new window">Full screen view in new window</a><a href="${link:{uuid:{2fc2c1f3-9dfb-4e9e-8b0b-e1a3c6e0c71d},repository:{dam},path:{/bfs-de/indizierte-pdfs/EN/MaerzMusik/mm25_magazin.pdf}}}">Download magazine</a>&nbsp;(pdf, 2.1 MB)

Festival Magazine 2025

The 2026 MaerzMusik will take place from 20 to 29 March. The programme will be published in January.

MaerzMusik 2026

MaerzMusik sees itself as a place to exchange artistic knowledge(s) through new encounters and collective experiences. The festival is rooted in the multimodality of listening, contemporary music, and sound, employing concerts, performances, installations, music theatre, film screenings, and discursive formats to open up a space where life, art, and theory can co-exist.

About MaerzMusik

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For its 50th birthday, the GRM’s Acousmonium is visiting MaerzMusik. Find out more about the loudspeaker orchestra designed by François Bayle in our multimedia story, check out interviews with artists such as KMRU, Eiko Ishibashi and Jim O'Rourke, and listen to a selection of pieces by composers like Beatriz Ferreyra, Iannis Xenakis and Eve Aboulkheir.

The Loudspeaker Orchestra: Acousmonium

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Missed a concert? After the festival, you can log on to the Berliner Festspiele media library to experience some of this year's events as audio or video. You can also check out interviews with artists such as Jessica Ekomane and Ensemble Musikfabrik, who provide insight into their work – from public interventions with carillons to the elaborate reconstruction of instruments by composer Lucia Dlugoszewski.

MaerzMusik in the Media Library

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“Contemplations into the Radical Others” is an attempt to tell the story of composer and instrument inventor Lucia Dlugoszewski (1925–2000). In the last two years, MaerzMusik and collaborators engaged in extensive research on her work. Find out more about the research project here.

Contemplations into the Radical Others: The Life of Lucia Dlugoszewski

Mehr zur MaerzMusik 2024

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The festival commences with an immersive auditory experience, reviving a pivotal moment in the history of new and experimental music through INA grm – Groupe de Recherches Musicales’ Acousmonium. To celebrate the 50th anniversary of François Bayle’s invention, we will showcase compositions for the loudspeaker orchestra by composers such as Beatriz Ferreyra, Eve Aboulkheir, François Bayle and others. EnsembleKollektiv Berlin explores the realm of conscientious listening with works by Helmut Lachenmann as well as Michelle Lou and Ashkan Behzadi. The intergenerational narrative unfolds with Simon Steen-Andersen’s interpretation of Karlheinz Stockhausen’s “Musik im Bauch” performed by Les Percussions de Strasbourg. In this edition, we will continue our focus from last year on composer and artist Lucia Dlugoszewski: we have curated scores, including some unfinished ones, with Marco Blaauw and Christine Chapman that have been reconstructed by Ensemble Musikfabrik, rebuilt Dlugoszewski’s percussive instruments, and restaged works conducted for dance, performed by Berlin-based dancers in collaboration with Katherine Duke and the Erick Hawkins Company. Spread throughout the city, the series “Topographies of Hearing” features installations and interventions by Christina Kubisch, Jessica Ekomane, Audrey Chen and others. In navigating the uncharted territories of our collective futures, this year’s edition embraces the ongoing processes that are underway rather than fixating on conclusive ideas.We look forward to experiencing MaerzMusik 2024 with you!

MaerzMusik 2024 is positioning itself as an open-ended experience centred on conscientious listening, while also highlighting the constantly evolving tapestry of musical interplay among different generations and movements. With the ensembles, artists, musicians and composers invited, the festival examines the multi-layered potential of music through a programme that dovetails with the performing arts, sound, artistic interventions and more.

MaerzMusik 2024

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Trailer MaerzMusik 2024, Design: 3pc

Over ten days composers will explore soundscapes and narratives in works crafted for unique constellations of instruments, ensembles and performers. The festival opens with the German premiere of <a href="${link:{uuid:{f8e2f59f-baea-44c9-9162-3afee63c40ab},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/melencolia}}}">“MELENCOLIA”</a> by Brigitta Muntendorf and Moritz Lobeck in cooperation with Staatsoper Unter den Linden and Ensemble Modern. <a href="${link:{uuid:{6c05cc9d-f15a-4555-b4a0-fb42143eb230},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/streik}}}">“Streik”</a> for ten drum sets by Enno Poppe and <a href="${link:{uuid:{abbe52d8-0f92-4465-87e9-0466bde1908e},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/poetica}}}">“POETICA”</a> by Chaya Czernowin featuring solo percussionist Steven Schick delve deeper into the riches of the percussion arsenal. Diverse compositions for brass instruments by <a href="${link:{uuid:{892af5f5-19e3-4780-b9b6-47657cca8275},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/silent-green-3}}}">Liza Lim</a>, <a href="${link:{uuid:{06659eb0-0a73-4d10-be12-aec39da9e44f},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/silent-green-4}}}">Raven Chacon</a>, <a href="${link:{uuid:{7d2794f1-3f58-4225-b43c-57ff4e6f66b8},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/silent-green-2}}}">Wadada Leo Smith</a> and many others were commissioned as part of the projects Global Breath and The Monochrome Project, both initiated by Marco Blaauw. They stretch classical paradigms, inviting audiences into evolving performative realities.Various projects with multidisciplinary approaches unfold through dismantled hierarchies in music and beyond. Ensemble Nikel presents Mark Barden’s composition <a href="${link:{uuid:{681adb03-4854-4754-8ff8-c3338d208006},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/limina-sensation-1}}}">“limina”</a> in combination with the German premiere of the dance solo <a href="${link:{uuid:{681adb03-4854-4754-8ff8-c3338d208006},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/limina-sensation-1}}}">“Sensation 1”</a> by choreographer Ligia Lewis. <a href="${link:{uuid:{d9293055-6d55-491e-acd8-0a479ed7b16d},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/minor-characters}}}">“Minor Characters”</a> by Matthew Shlomowitz and Jennifer Walshe is a “song cycle for the 21st century” that examines how the internet communicates reality to us, while <a href="${link:{uuid:{f439d55e-00f3-46f2-b568-457ef24ff5bd},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/drifting-to-the-rhythms-at-the-southeast-of-nowhere}}}">Nguyễn + Transitory’s collaboration with Thai dancers</a> embodies vulnerability through an interactive, touch-sensitive instrument.<a href="${link:{uuid:{d8547050-f74a-435f-a49e-3ccb6b765bf8},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/the-art-of-camouflage-the-urban-tale-of-a-hippo}}}">Works by Ute Wassermann and others</a> challenge thresholds of perception, the <a href="${link:{uuid:{13ce3ecd-9ea8-4a5e-974f-54593f82f6b5},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/salon-of-touch}}}">“Salon of Touch”</a>, conceived by Bastian Zimmermann, discovers immersive sound and tactile experiences, and the works presented by <a href="${link:{uuid:{dd5489de-9639-4329-8810-8dd52fd056ab},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/yarn-wire}}}">Yarn/Wire</a> on their Berlin debut focus on micro-listening. A cross-generational perspective on the voice is present in performances by <a href="${link:{uuid:{9ec82998-bf65-4034-a959-9bd38bc3c60b},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-mediathek/maerzmusik/2025/voice-is-the-original-instrument}}}">Joan La Barbara</a>, <a href="${link:{uuid:{d1113296-11d8-4853-8fb5-37e9e60c4122},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/other-rooms}}}">Pamela Z</a>, <a href="${link:{uuid:{00d6b7e2-2417-4c44-adfd-a60afc42dab4},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/silent-green-1}}}">Ty Bouque</a> and <a href="${link:{uuid:{892af5f5-19e3-4780-b9b6-47657cca8275},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/silent-green-3}}}">Laura Bowler</a>. Each encounter explores the unique textures and expressive potential of the voice, pushing the limits of its artistic use. <a href="${link:{uuid:{abb72d84-6499-4951-b299-1537af83371c},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/finale-maerzmusik-2025}}}">The festival finale</a>, co-curated by Wojtek Blecharz, explores listening as a relational practice and redefines normative ways of presenting music.We look forward to welcoming you to the festival!&nbsp;Kamila Metwaly Artistic Director MaerzMusikMatthias Pees Director Berliner Festspiele

MaerzMusik cherishes a legacy of boundary-crossing creativity, thriving between the familiar and the unfamiliar, the classical and the postmodern, fixed genres and genre-bending. This year, the festival also responds to socio-political, cultural and ecological urgencies, demanding new ways of co-existing. In a moment where continuation in old forms is in question, how do we compose otherwise, in a way that is viable for the future?

Crossing Boundaries, Composing Futures

MaerzMusik cherishes a legacy of boundary-crossing creativity, thriving between the familiar and the unfamiliar, the classical and the postmodern, fixed genres and genre-bending. This year, the festival also responds to socio-political, cultural and ecological urgencies, demanding new ways of co-existing. In a moment where continuation in old forms is in question, how do we compose otherwise, in a way that is viable for the future? Over ten days composers will explore soundscapes and narratives in works crafted for unique constellations of instruments, ensembles and performers. The festival opens with the German premiere of <a href="${link:{uuid:{f8e2f59f-baea-44c9-9162-3afee63c40ab},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/melencolia}}}">“MELENCOLIA”</a> by Brigitta Muntendorf and Moritz Lobeck in cooperation with Staatsoper Unter den Linden and Ensemble Modern. <a href="${link:{uuid:{6c05cc9d-f15a-4555-b4a0-fb42143eb230},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/streik}}}">“Streik”</a> for ten drum sets by Enno Poppe and <a href="${link:{uuid:{abbe52d8-0f92-4465-87e9-0466bde1908e},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/poetica}}}">“POETICA”</a> by Chaya Czernowin featuring solo percussionist Steven Schick delve deeper into the riches of the percussion arsenal. Diverse compositions for brass instruments by Liza Lim, Raven Chacon, Wadada Leo Smith and many others were commissioned as part of the projects <a href="${link:{uuid:{00d6b7e2-2417-4c44-adfd-a60afc42dab4},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/silent-green-1}}}">Global Breath</a> and <a href="${link:{uuid:{7d2794f1-3f58-4225-b43c-57ff4e6f66b8},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/silent-green-2}}}">The Monochrome Project</a>, both initiated by Marco Blaauw. They stretch classical paradigms, inviting audiences into evolving performative realities.Various projects with multidisciplinary approaches unfold through dismantled hierarchies in music and beyond. Ensemble Nikel presents Mark Barden’s composition <a href="${link:{uuid:{681adb03-4854-4754-8ff8-c3338d208006},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/limina-sensation-1}}}">“limina”</a> in combination with the German premiere of the dance solo <a href="${link:{uuid:{681adb03-4854-4754-8ff8-c3338d208006},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/limina-sensation-1}}}">“Sensation 1”</a> by choreographer Ligia Lewis. <a href="${link:{uuid:{d9293055-6d55-491e-acd8-0a479ed7b16d},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/minor-characters}}}">“Minor Characters”</a> by Matthew Shlomowitz and Jennifer Walshe is a “song cycle for the 21st century” that examines how the internet communicates reality to us, while <a href="${link:{uuid:{f439d55e-00f3-46f2-b568-457ef24ff5bd},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/drifting-to-the-rhythms-at-the-southeast-of-nowhere}}}">Nguyễn + Transitory’s collaboration with Thai dancers</a> embodies vulnerability through an interactive, touch-sensitive instrument.<a href="${link:{uuid:{d8547050-f74a-435f-a49e-3ccb6b765bf8},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/the-art-of-camouflage-the-urban-tale-of-a-hippo}}}">Works by Ute Wassermann and others</a> challenge thresholds of perception, the <a href="${link:{uuid:{13ce3ecd-9ea8-4a5e-974f-54593f82f6b5},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/salon-of-touch}}}">“Salon of Touch”</a>, conceived by Bastian Zimmermann, discovers immersive sound and tactile experiences, and the works presented by <a href="${link:{uuid:{dd5489de-9639-4329-8810-8dd52fd056ab},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/yarn-wire}}}">Yarn/Wire</a> on their Berlin debut focus on micro-listening. A cross-generational perspective on the voice is present in performances by <a href="${link:{uuid:{9ec82998-bf65-4034-a959-9bd38bc3c60b},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-mediathek/maerzmusik/2025/voice-is-the-original-instrument}}}">Joan La Barbara</a>, <a href="${link:{uuid:{d1113296-11d8-4853-8fb5-37e9e60c4122},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/other-rooms}}}">Pamela Z</a>, Ty Bouque and Laura Bowler. Each encounter explores the unique textures and expressive potential of the voice, pushing the limits of its artistic use. <a href="${link:{uuid:{abb72d84-6499-4951-b299-1537af83371c},repository:{website},path:{/bfs-de/maerzmusik/programm/2025/kalender/finale-maerzmusik-2025}}}">The festival finale</a>, co-curated by Wojtek Blecharz, explores listening as a relational practice and redefines normative ways of presenting music.We look forward to welcoming you to the festival!&nbsp;Kamila Metwaly Artistic Director MaerzMusikMatthias Pees Director Berliner Festspiele

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A Show Against the Indifference of the Universe

MaerzMusik 2025 opens with “MELENCOLIA”, an experimental music theatre show by Brigitta Muntendorf and Moritz Lobeck. In immersive soundscapes, musicians from Ensemble Modern and the Apollo Choir of the Staatsoper Unter den Linden invite the audience to explore the creative and transformative power of melancholic worlds. Tickets are available now.

MELENCOLIA

Choose several events from the programme and save up to 25 % off the individual ticket prices. This offer applies to tickets at both full and reduced prices. The allocation is limited. The offer does not include the music theatre show “MELENCOLIA”.

Up to 25 % Off When You Attend Several Events

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MaerzMusik sees itself as a venue for experiencing art: for new encounters and collective reflection. Devised from the perspective of listening and sustained by contemporary music, the festival uses concerts, performances, installations, music theatre, film presentations and discursive formats to open up a space where life, art and theory can converge.

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MaerzMusik 2025 took place from 21 to 30 March.

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The Berliner Festspiele organise a range of festivals and art exhibitions, concerts, dance and theatre performances, readings, lectures, debates and much more throughout the year. These events are presented at a range of locations across Berlin but are concentrated primarily at their own two venues: the Gropius Bau and the Haus der Berliner Festspiele.

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