Usedomer Musikfestival

At the centre of the Baltic Sea region

Since 1994, The Usedom Music Festival has been dedicated to the sounds of the Baltic Sea: for three weeks, from September to October, unique music from annually changing guest countries such as Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Poland and Sweden is performed. Guests include renowned performers from violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter and pianists Rafal Blechacz and Anne Vinnitskaya to the internationnly celebrated Wagner singer Egils Silins and countertenor Jakub Josef Orlinksi. Alongside classical concerts, the festival also include jazz, folk, avant-garde music, visual arts and readings with well-known actors such as Corinna Harfouch and Ulrich Noethen.

As a bilingual island, Usedom connects Germany and Poland, making international cultural exchange and international understanding a central concern of the Usedom Music Festival. Symphony concerts in Swinemünde and workshops for Polish music students deepen the cultural connection between the two countries.

The Pennemünde Concerts

The former military project in Pennemünde is now a memorial for peace and remembrance. The Usedom Music Festival and the NDR initiated the "Pennemünde Concerts" in the Turbine Hall of the Pennemünde Museum, where music events with a historical connection take place every year. With the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra and the Baltic Sea Philharmonic, these concerts are a sign of hope.

The concerts series began in 2002 with the NDR Symphony Orchestra under Mstislav Rostropovich and Benjamin Britten's War Requiem in the Turbinenhalle. Since then, well-known conductors such as Krzysztof Penderecki, Christoph von Dohnanyi, Alan Gilbert, Andris Nelsons, Thomas Hengelbrock and Kurt Masur have conducted there, establishing a successful tradition that promises further musical hilights.

New York Philharmonic as guest

In May 2022, The Usedom Music Festival experienced a special highlight: the world-famous New York Philharmonic gave a guest performance under the motto "Liberty Island Usedom" in the historic setting of the Peenemünde rocket testing facility, nos the Historisch-Technisches Museum. Jan Lisiecki shone as a soloist under the baton of Jaap van Zweden in Beethoven's Piano Concerto No.5, followed by an impressive performance of Shostakowitsch's Ninth Symphony together with musicians from the Baltic Sea Philharmonic. Another highlight was the European premiere of Nina Shekar's "Lumina".