The final concert with Brahms, who wrote probably the most conciliatory setting of the Requiem. Like scarcely any other piece of music, it conveys the feeling of having arrived and a primordial trust in the face of death and loss.
Sat. 3.10.2026
19:30, Beethovenhalle, Great Hall
Closing Concert: Brahms Requiem
- Orchestra, Vocal
- € 129 / 109 / 79 / 59 / 39 / 19
Contributors
- BBC Symphony Orchestra
- Audi Jugendchorakademie
- Julia Grüter soprano
- Joshua Hopkins baritone
- Anja Bihlmaier conductor
Programme
Lili Boulanger
Psalm 24 »La Terre Appartient à L’Éternel« for Tenor, Mixed Choir, Organ, Harp, Timpani and Brass
Psalm 24 »La Terre Appartient à L’Éternel« for Tenor, Mixed Choir, Organ, Harp, Timpani and Brass
Johannes Brahms
A German Requiem, to Words of the Holy Scriptures for Soprano, Baritone, Mixed Choir and Orchestra, op. 45
The concert at a glance
What can I expect?
What does it sound like?
Pre-concert talk
18:45, Great Hall: Pre-concert talk (in German)
Today in the Festival Salon
Opening hours: 18:00–23:00
18:00 Happy Hour – with everything that makes you happy
19:00 Meet Your Band – with music groups from the region
21:30 Open Stage – with festival artists and anyone who wants to join
Description
Conductor Anja Bihlmaier returns to Beethovenfest for the third year in a row to perform Brahms’s German Requiem on the Day of German Unity – with the BBC Orchestra featuring a phenomenal cast. Brahms selected texts from the Luther Bible to tell, with poignant depth, about man’s reconciliation with death. Lili Boulanger’s short psalm setting forms a delightful contrast.
Radio recording by WDR
