Finale MaerzMusik 2025: I AM ALL EARS

The Main Stage of the Haus der Berliner Festspiele measures 19.6 metres in depth and 20 metres in width, with a stage tower rising 17 metres above it. Sound is a map; walking is listening. The walls are made of tinted black concrete, the floor is made of pitch pine wood. Walk softly and be mindful of how the floor cracks. To the left, the side stage extends beyond an immense ribbed iron curtain weighing several tons. The tones behind the curtain are drones and pulsations. The backstage area measures just 11.5 metres in depth, 15.8 metres in width and 7 metres in height. This space features nine suspended gongs with different pitches. Beneath the revolving stage, the lower stage is structured around a central concrete pillar and can be accessed via the side corridor. This inner ear of the theatre will listen and respond to the totality of sounds. All these spaces are open and permeable, yet separate. Stage workers shape them, and sound and light technicians inhabit them—at the centre, in the corners and in the spaces in between. The theatre becomes the score and you can read it by moving between different dimensions and layers of sound. 

This year’s finale attempts to redefine normative ways of presenting and experiencing music. It liberates the listener’s body by reversing roles and reshaping spatial relationships. The concert installation invites for multidirectional, deep, intimate, far, embodied or selective listening. It allows you to compose a personalised aural experience tailored to your own needs. The finale is composed for circa 200 listeners and 22 performers. Listen to what is behind the curtain and let the space guide you.

“[…] avoid directionality for the sound for the audience. No need to say ‘sit in the center, that’s where the sound is best.’ No, you can be in the smallest corner and hear the totality of what is going on. There is perhaps a slightly different story in each part of the room, but it is nonetheless a total story.” – Éliane Radigue