Building bridges & exploring sounds: EIGHT BRIDGES 2024
Ready for a sonorous adventure in the heart of Cologne? The ACHT BRÜCKEN Festival | Music for Cologne is just around the corner again and promises an exciting journey through the world of music. 🎶 We give you a taste of what to expect this year!
EIGHT BRIDGES FESTIVAL? THIS IS WHAT IT'S ALL ABOUT!
ACHT BRÜCKEN | Musik für Köln is opening its doors wider than ever before to build new bridges and invite you to become part of this festival. From ⏰ May 4 to 12, the music festival at the Kölner Philharmonie and other venues in the city center will offer you around 30 concerts by talented artists. From early until late, you can listen to the sounds of contemporary music and be inspired by its many facets. You can find an overview of all the concerts at the ACHT BRÜCKEN FESTIVAL here! 👀
© Jörg Hejkal
ACHT BRÜCKEN | Musik für Köln
WHAT IS SPECIAL ABOUT THIS YEAR?
There are subtle differences in pitches and tonal systems, virtuosity and musical traditions, and of course in the biographies of the people on, behind and in front of the stage. This year's festival edition of ACHT BRÜCKEN takes a look at diverse forms of microtonality. It is about creating connections and questioning what is taken for granted in culture. Under the motto "Fine Differences", ACHT BRÜCKEN will turn the Western European musical tradition on its head and question our tonal system. The view of "FineDifferences" not only expands our listening and playing habits, but also questions and breaks them, points out alternatives and thus combines the "new music" of Western European and North American practice in a surprising way with traditional music from a wide variety of cultural areas.
© Frederike Wetzels (Portrait of Florentin Ginot, concert on May 09)
MICROTONALITY EXPLAINED SIMPLY!
When musicologists talk about microtonality, they mean the use of tone intervals smaller than half a tone, such as quarter-tone steps or even smaller intervals. Imagine not only playing the keys on a piano, but also the spaces between the keys. An example of this is the use of quarter-tone pianos or special instruments such as the Arabic oud, which have microtonality in their musical tradition. One master of microtonality is in the spotlight: Enno Poppe. But there's more to discover! Over nine days, you can immerse yourself in the world of new music and explore sounds from different cultures, this year especially from the Eastern Mediterranean and India. With 18 world premieres and 30 events, there is something for everyone at the ACHT BRÜCKEN FESTIVAL. Kurdish music, Korean films, Indian ragas, big band rhythms, installations and performances in the Kölner Philharmonie, the Stadtgarten and many other locations in Cologne.
© Jörn Neumann (Portrait of Enno Poppe, concert on May 06)
PAY AS MUCH AS YOU WANT!
Yes, you read that right! ACHT BRÜCKEN gives you the opportunity to decide for yourself how much you want to pay for each concert. Whether you just want to have a look around or are ready to support the culture: There's an option for every budget. So you can be there, maybe build bridges or even show solidarity! And it gets even better: at the start of the festival on the first Saturday in May, all concerts are completely free! So, mark ⏰ May 4 in your calendar, because that's the day the festival kicks off with ACHT BRÜCKEN Freihafen. Experience today's music up close and live, all with Free admission to the Kölner Philharmonie and the WDR Funkhaus!
© Christian Wiediger