Overview
Footage from The Bach Journey in May 2019.
Journeying to the places where Johann Sebastian Bach lived and worked is an experience as near to pilgrimage as the history of music offers.
Hearing his works in buildings which he frequented must rank among the highest delights available to music lovers. This unique festival provides the opportunity.
The festival is emphatically a journey. It starts, as did Bach, in the little towns and cities of the principality of Thuringia and finishes, again like Bach, in the free city of Leipzig.
To cater for different budgets, there is a choice of four packages which differ in the choice of hotels. Each option stays in hotels in three places, Eisenach or Mühlhausen, Weimar and Leipzig, and the concerts take place here and in three other towns.
Admission to the concerts is exclusive to those who take an arrangement which includes accommodation, flights from London (optional), coach travel, most dinners and some lunches, lectures and interval refreshments.
Discover the place
Less than a century elapsed between the first record of a Bach in Thuringia and the birth there of Johann Sebastian in 1685. By then the exceptional musical and procreative talents of the family had led to the prominence of several Bachs as professional musicians throughout the region. Not only was Johann Sebastian firmly embedded in the family tradition, for the first half of his working life he plied his trade in the same provincial German backwater as the rest of his clan.
Thuringia is – as it was in Bach’s time – a region of rolling hills, deciduous woodland, patchwork fields, compact red-roofed villages and proud little towns. Being then divided into some of the smallest city-states and princedoms of pre-unification Germany, and later only patchily affected by the ravages of industrialisation and war, its appearance remained little changed throughout the 20th century.
These are the towns where Bach grew up and where he plied his trade, the locations of his quotidian concerns as well as the exercise of his genius. Merely to walk the same streets and sit in the same pews is to enlarge and illumine one’s understanding of Bach’s music. To hear his compositions not only in the locale but in the very buildings where they were first performed is a life-enhancing experience.
Forty years in the chill embrace of the Communist state further impeded ‘progress’. All this gives rise to a strange paradox: though at the geographical centre of Germany, Europe’s economic powerhouse, Thuringia feels strangely provincial and peripheral.
For those who knew East Germany before 1989, the subsequent changes appear little short of miraculous – major transformation of infrastructure, buildings painted and restored, recrudescence of commercial and social life on a par with anywhere else in Europe. Yet the region has still not awoken fully from a half-century slumber which allowed much of the historic fabric of the towns and villages to slide into desuetude and dereliction.
Meet the musicians
Vox Luminis
Since its foundation in Namur (Belgium) in 2004, the vocal ensemble Vox Luminis – led by bass Lionel Meunier – has been internationally praised for its highly distinctive sound. Vox Luminis specialises in English, Italian and German repertoire from the 17th and early 18th centuries. Depending on the repertoire, a core of vocal soloists is supplemented with continuo, solo instruments or a complete orchestra.
The group has made nearly twenty recordings, and have won numerous prizes, including ‘Recording of the Year’ at the Gramophone Awards in 2012 and 2019, as well as ‘Klara Ensemble of the Year 2018’, BBC Music Magazine ‘Choral Award Winner 2018’, three Diapasons d’Or and several Preis der Deutschen Schalplattenkritik.
Every year Vox Luminis gives around 70 concerts at major concert halls and festivals worldwide, and is artist in residence at Concertgebouw Brugge. The ensemble has recently launched a collaboration with the Freiburger Barockorchester, which is also performing on the Bach Journey.
Tamsin Waley-Cohen
Born in London, Tamsin Waley-Cohen enjoys an adventurous and varied career. In addition to concerts with the Royal Philharmonic, London Philharmonic, Hallé and BBC orchestras, amongst others, she has twice been associate artist with the Orchestra of the Swan and works with numerous well-known conductors.
She is a founding member of the Albion string quartet, appearing regularly with them at venues including Wigmore Hall, Aldeburgh Festival, and the Concertgebouw. In 2016-2017 she was the UK recipient of the ECHO Rising Stars Awards, playing at all the major European concert halls. In the 2018-19 season she toured Japan and China, and gave her New York Debut recital at the Frick. Her love of chamber music led her to start the Honeymead Festival, now in its twelth year, from which all proceeds go to support local charities.
She is Artistic Director of the Two Moors Festival, and has previously been Artistic Director of the Music Series at the Tricyle Theatre, London, and the Bargello festival in Florence.
Mahan Esfahani
Born in Tehran in 1984, Esfahani grew up in the United States and studied musicology and history at Stanford University. He was the first and only harpsichordist to be a BBC New Generation Artist (2008-2010) and a Borletti-Buitoni prize winner (2009).
As a concerto soloist he performs with major symphony and chamber orchestras and contemporary music ensembles under a starry range of conductors. Esfahani’s work with new music is particularly acclaimed, with high-profile solo and concertante commissions from many contemporary composers.
His richly-varied discography, which includes an ongoing series of the complete works of Bach for Hyperion, has been acclaimed in the press and has garnered multiple awards, including Gramophone award, two BBC Music Magazine Awards, a Diapason d’Or and ‘Choc de Classica’ in France.
He can be frequently heard as a commentator on BBC Radio 3 and Radio 4 and as a host for such programs as Record Review, Building a Library, and Sunday Feature.
Solomon’s Knot
Solomon’s Knot is an international collective of unconducted instrumentalists and singers who want to bring old music to new life by pushing the limits of what is possible on stage. Taking inspiration from innovative live theatre, their singers sing everything by heart, and combine scrupulous musical preparation with high-wire risk-taking and intense, direct delivery.
They have recently performed at the Tage Alter Musik, Regensburg (2021), Bachwochen Thüringen, Eisenach (2021), and at Wigmore Hall throughout their residency.
Their performance of the 1725 version of JS Bach’s Johannes-Passion at the Bachfest Leipzig and Wigmore Hall in 2019 was acclaimed as ‘setting new standards’ by the Leipziger Volkszeitung. In the same summer, they made their debut at the BBC Proms in the Royal Albert Hall with Bach cantatas for St Michael-and-All-Angels. Magnificat, a debut CD of festive music by Schelle, Kuhnau, and J. S. Bach was released in 2019, and their opera production L’ospedale is available on DVD.
Akademie Fur Alte Musik Berlin
Founded in Berlin in 1982, the Academy for Early Music Berlin (Akamus for short) is now one of the world leaders among historically informed chamber orchestras. The ensemble made a significant contribution to the rediscovery of the music of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach and Georg Philipp Telemann. Akamus gradually expanded its core Baroque and Classical repertoire into the 19th century, most recently with its highly acclaimed cycle ‘Beethoven’s symphonies and their models’.
Guest performances in their anniversary year took the orchestra to the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, the Wiener Musikverein and the Festspielhaus Baden-Baden. As Artist in Residence, Akamus could also be seen several times in London’s Wigmore Hall and at the Mozart Festival in Augsburg.
The now around one hundred recordings have received all the major record awards. The ensemble has received the Telemann Prize from the city of Magdeburg and the Bach Medal from the city of Leipzig.
Martina Pohl
Martina Pohl began playing music at the age of three and studied at the Hochschule für Kirchenmusik (College for Church Music) in Halle 1980–86. She focusses principally on the German Romantics and J.S. Bach. She accompanies soloists, instrumentalists and choirs on concert tours in Germany and elsewhere and on recordings. Since 2004 she has had charge of the Hildebrandt organ in Sangerhausen.
Freiburg Baroque Orchestra
The Freiburger Barockorchester (FBO) is one of today’s leading ensembles for historic performing practice. It has had a significant presence on the international music scene for more than 35 years.
Founded in 1987 by former students of the Freiburg College of Music, the FBO makes regular guest appearances at major international concert venues such as the Berlin Philharmonie, Wigmore Hall London, New York’s Lincoln Center, and Amsterdam Concertgebouw.
Following the principles of historic performing practice, the FBO usually plays without a conductor. But for selected projects calling for a large ensemble, it works with well-known conductors like Pablo Heras-Casado, Sir Simon Rattle or Teodor Currentzis.
The FBO’s exceptional musical diversity is documented on numerous recordings, which have been awarded many prizes, including several Echo Klassik awards, Grammy nominations and the Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik.
Arrive a day early
Sunday 3 September
Eisenach or Mühlhausen
We are offering the option of arriving at your hotel in Eisenach or Mühlhausen a day before the festival begins – see 'Practicalities' for accommodation and prices.
The price includes the flight, transfer from Frankfurt to Eisenach or Mühlhausen and an extra night at your festival hotel. Lunch or afternoon tea during the coach journey are included (dinner is independent).
Day 1
Monday 4 September
Eisenach or Mühlhausen
We have booked seats on a number of flights from Heathrow to Frankfurt. You choose, though each option is linked to your choice of town for the first two nights.
J.S. Bach was born in Eisenach in 1685 and he was raised here until the death of his father ten years later. He was baptised in the Gothic church of St George – the font remains in use – and the interior is as Bach would have known it. Eisenach is dominated by the Wartburg castle, a unesco World Heritage Site where Martin Luther stayed while working on his translation of the Bible.
Mühlhausen is where Bach held the post of organist at the church of St Blasius 1707–8. The town is a delight, a dense matrix of streets and alleys and little open spaces threaded between half-timbered and stone buildings. Six Gothic churches rise heavenwards, and all is bounded by a complete circuit of walls.
The first festival event is dinner in your hotel or nearby restaurant.
Overnight in Eisenach or Mühlhausen.
Day 2
Tuesday 5 September
Mühlhausen, Eisenach
The first of the talks by Nicholas Kenyon precedes a solo violin recital in Mühlhausen Town Hall, a charming set of rooms which is little changed since Bach’s time.
Recital, 11.30am & 9.00pm:
Mühlhausen, Town Hall
Solo Suites & Partitas
Tamsin Waley-Cohen violin
The modest size of the main hall requires the audience to be split and the event repeated – which brings the benefit of appropriate intimacy to the hearing of these earthy yet spiritually charged works.
London-born Tamsin Waley-Cohen is one of the most charismatic and accomplished violinists of our time. She plays the Partita No.2 in D minor (BMV 1004), which culminates in the sublime, monumental Chaconne, and partners it either with the Sonata No.2 in A minor (BMV 1003) or Partita No.3 in E (BMV 1006) – the choice to be made nearer the time!
Lunch is provided for all participants.
There is time in Eisenach to visit the excellent Bach Museum. The new wing wraps around a house which used to be believed to be his birthplace.
Concert, 3.30pm:
Eisenach, Church of St George
The Bach Dynasty
Vox Luminis, Lionel Meunier director
In the church where Johann Sebastian was baptised, there is a concert of cantatas by older members of the Bach family, presenting the sound world into which he was born. These are great uncle Johann Bach (1604–73) and uncles Johann Michael (1648–94) and Johann Christoph (1642–1703, also organist at this church). It finishes with a motet from Johann Sebastian, the famous Jesu meine Freude (BWV 227).
Having performed to great acclaim in the last three MRT Bach Jouneys, Vox Luminis returns not only for this, a version of the programme they have performed for us in the past, but also for two other concerts later in the week. With a distinctive and engaging sound and personality, this largely Belgian ensemble has emerged as one of the very finest in the world for northern Baroque repertoire.
Dinner for all participants, and overnight in Eisenach or Mühlhausen.
Day 3
Wednesday 6 September
Ohrdruf, Arnstadt, Weimar
Leave Eisenach and Mühlhausen and drive to Ohrdruf.
After the death of his father, Johann Sebastian lived at Ohrdruf for five years with his eldest brother, Johann Christoph, organist to the local lord. The recital takes place in the refurbished hall of the rambling ducal Schloss on the edge of the tiny town, home to the brother’s employer.
Recital, 11.00am:
Ohrdruf, Schloss Ehrenstein
Goldberg Variations
Mahan Esfahani harpsichord
The Goldberg Variations constitute a peak of keyboard writing in the 18th century. Staggeringly clever in conception, a treasury of numerical and musical games of which even the most acute listener is scarcely aware, they also possess a remarkable emotional range. They don’t merely stir, they shake.
Born in Iran, Mahan Esfahani is one of the most celebrated harpsichordists of our time. The winner of multiple awards, he is the first harpsichordist in a generation whose work spans virtually all the areas of classical music-making including working with contemporary composers.
Drive on to Arnstadt, arriving in time for lunch. Bach’s first significant employment (1707–08) was as organist here.
Spreading across a hillside, Arnstadt has retained much of its ancient centre, a picturesque mélange stretching back to the Middle Ages. Among the places of interest is a small Bach museum and the Romanesque-Gothic Liebfrauenkirche (Church of Our Lady).
Concert, 4.00pm:
Arnstadt, Bachkirche
St John Passion
Solomon’s Knot
The story of Christ’s Passion is both sublimely numinous and deeply human, and in no other manifestation of human creativity is the drama so potently and movingly presented as in Bach’s surviving settings. Of the two, the St John is the earlier and the more compact and dramatic. A performance in an appropriate liturgical space can be a transcendent experience.
Solomon’s Knot is an international if largely British ensemble which has won widespread acclaim for their innovative and highly engaging performances of Baroque masterpieces. One of the ways in which they enhance musical and verbal communication is for the singers to learn their parts by heart.
The venue is the church where Bach was organist early in his career. The interior is as close to lavish as a Lutheran parish church dared get, with walls and galleries wrapped in white and gold panelling.
Drive on to Weimar, where two nights are spent.
Day 4
Thursday 7 September
Weimar
Adorned with a magnificent range of classical architecture and landscaped parks, Weimar is the loveliest of Thuringian towns as well as the liveliest.
It has few rivals among the smaller cities of Europe for its importance in the history of literature and music. Bach worked at the court here in 1703 and again 1708–17. Liszt’s period of residence (1842–61) attracted many musical visitors including Wagner, Brahms, Smetana and Borodin, and turned Weimar into an international centre of the musical avant-garde. Richard Strauss was court Kapellmeister 1889–94.
Weimar is also revered as a centre of literature and Enlightenment thought, largely owing to the sixty-year residence and service at court of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. Herder, Schiller and Nietzsche are among the other great names to have spent time here. As the last home of Lucas Cranach and the first site of the Bauhaus school, the city also has significance in the history of the visual arts.
There is time to wander through the enchanting streets and squares and for exploring one or two of the many museums.
Concert, 11.00am:
Weimar, Schiesshaus
Concerti for Oboe & Violin
Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin
Xenia Löffler oboe
Georg Kallweit violin & director
These fresh interpretations of violin and oboe concertos show Bach’s bravura adaptation of the Italian concerto style and his inventiveness in every aspect of his music. The oboe was clearly one of the composer’s favourite instruments. The programme also features the double concerto for both instruments, excerpts from The Art of Fugue and a symphony by his second son Carl Philipp Emanuel which reveals the sound of the next generation.
Founded in 1982, the Academy for Early Music Berlin is one of the world leaders among historically informed chamber orchestras. Oboe player Xenia Löffler and violinist Georg Kallweit are among the stars of the ensemble and also have solo careers in their own right.
The clubhouse of the local shooting society, the Greek Revival Schiesshaus was opened in 1805. The occasion for rebuilding was the wedding of Prince Karl Friedrich, heir to the dukedom of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, to a daughter of the Russian Tsar. In the 20th century it fell into disrepair and has been recently restored.
Concert, 5.00pm:
Weimar, Church of St Peter & Paul
Bach’s Magnificat
Vox Luminis, Lionel Meunier director
The Magnificat is the greatest and most glorious of Bach’s shorter choral works; we hear the lesser known version in E flat. The 2022 recording by Vox Luminis was selected by BBC Radio 3 as one of the five finest Bach recordings of all time. In this concert it will be joined by a couple of other cantatas yet to be decided.
The most important church in Weimar, St Peter and Paul (Herderkirche) was where four of Bach’s children were baptised. Its present appearance has changed little since the 18th century, and a striking altarpiece by Lucas Cranach dominates the chancel.
Dinner is independent today.
Second of two nights in Weimar.
Day 5
Friday 8 September
Sangerhausen, Leipzig
Leave Weimar for Sangerhausen, a small town which has retained much of its historic fabric and possesses a fine organ of Bach’s time.
Recital, 11.15am:
Sangerhausen, Church of St James
Organ Recital
Martina Pohl organ
The instrument for today’s recital of pieces for organ by J. S. Bach was built in 1726 by Zacharias Hildebrandt, pupil and rival of Gottfried Silbermann and occasional collaborator with Bach.
Martina Pohl has been organist at the Church of St James (Jakobikirche) since 2004, and has a busy schedule of performances throughout Germany.
After lunch in Sangerhausen, the journey continues to Leipzig.
Bach was employed by the city council at Leipzig in 1723 with the brief to take charge of music at the principal churches. Toghether with his various additional responsibilities, he effectively became director of music for the city until his death in 1750.
Concert, 6.00pm:
Leipzig, Altes Rathaus (former Town Hall)
Concertos & Orchestral Suites
Freiburg Baroque Orchestra
Gottfied von der Goltz violin & director
Bach is joined by his Italian peers Albinoni, Marcello and Vivaldi for a joyful programme of concertos for violins, flute, oboe, horn and harpsichord, finishing with Brandenburg No.5.
Performing with passion and precision and deep understanding of the music, the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra has a reputation as the finest period-instrument orchestra in Europe. Their partnership with MRT goes back a quarter of a century.
The venue is the former Town Hall, one of the more important buildings of the Renaissance in Germany, the top-floor hall where the concert takes place now being part of the city museum. (The only authenticated portrait of Bach is on display in a side room.)
Dinner follows the concert.
First of two nights in Leipzig.
Day 6
Saturday 9 September
Leipzig
Leipzig is the only large city of the Journey – though with a population of just half a million, and a historic centre which can be traversed in fifteen minutes, it is not a metropolis. After the degradation of the GDR years, the subsequent transformation of the city seems little short of miraculous. Restoration and rebuilding have gone hand in hand with the emergence of pavement cafés, smart shops and good restaurants.
There are excellent museums here including an outstanding collection of musical instruments at the Grassi Museum, an impressive display of paintings at the Museum of Fine Arts, a well-refurbished apartment where Mendelssohn lived and the enthralling museum attached to the Bach Archive.
The day is free until dinner and the final concert.
Concert, 8.00pm:
Leipzig, Nikolaikirche
(Church of St Nicholas)
Mass in B Minor
Vox Luminis, Lionel Meunier conductor
Bach’s B-Minor Mass is among the greatest achievements in the history of music. Compiled and completed towards the end of his life, Bach may have regarded it as a summation of his life’s work. Whatever its enigmas – was it intended to be performed in its entirety? why did this stalwart Lutheran steer so close to Catholic tradition? – it remains a work of exceptional potency and beauty.
Vox Luminis are working towards a recording of the B-Minor Mass.
One of the four Leipzig churches where Bach was in charge of music, the Nikolaikirche is a Gothic construction of the early-16th century which underwent a spectacular Neo-Classical transformation in the late 18th century.
Final night in Leipzig.
Day 7
Sunday 10 September
Leipzig
Depending on your flight option there may be further free time in Leipzig.
Sir Nicholas Kenyon
Managing Director of the Barbican Centre since 2007; former Controller of BBC Radio 3 and Director of the BBC Proms. He has been music critic for The New Yorker and The Observer, music editor of The Listener and editor of Early Music. He is author of the Faber Pocket Guides to Bach and Mozart, and edited Authenticity & Early Music and The City of London: a companion guide. Twitter: @NickRKenyon
The festival package
– Access to the concerts is exclusive to those who take the festival package, the price for which includes:
– All nine concerts
– Hotels for six nights – you choose between four options.
– Choice of flights between London and Germany (reduced price if you arrange your own).
– Travel by coach, five dinners, three or four lunches (depending on flight option), all tips
– Talks by Sir Nicholas Kenyon
– The assistance of festival staff and a detailed programme book.
Accommodation and prices
The audience stays in three different towns during the course of the festival.
Choose between four different hotel options, A–D.
If you intend to share a twin room with a friend, the best options are C and D (due to visibility of the bathroom from the bedroom area at the Park and Radisson Blu hotels in Leipzig).
Mühlhausen or Eisenach
3 or 4–6 September (two nights, or three if arriving a day early)
Depending on which hotel option you choose (A–D), you stay for the first two or three nights in either Mühlhausen or Eisenach.
Mühlhausen has few hotels. Categories A & B stay in the same 3-star hotel. The bathrooms have showers only. Twin and double beds are usually two mattresses on a single base. The hotel does not have air conditioning.
In Eisenach, both Categories C & D stay in a well-appointed 4-star hotel in the centre. Bathrooms are almost all baths with shower fitments. Twin and double beds are usually two mattresses on a single base.
Weimar
6–8 September (two nights)
Weimar has a very good range of 3-, 4- and 5-star hotels. A small city, the hotels we have selected are no more than 10 or 15 minutes’ walk or a 15 minute’s drive from the venues. There is no air-conditioning in the Elephant (Option D), nor at the Anna Amalia (Option A) but windows can be opened.
Leipzig
8–10 September (two nights)
Leipzig, as a trade fair city, has a good selection of hotels of all categories though some lack charm and individuality. We have selected ones within the periphery of the medieval core of the city; none is more than 15 or 20 minutes on foot from the venues. All have air-conditioning.
Option A
Mühlhausen: Brauhaus zum Löwen. An old timber-framed building of great character in the centre of town. Rooms are in the modern annex, 3 minutes walk from the main building. While the buildings are less characterful, rooms have been redecorated in recent years and have either a modern or a more rustic feel. All rooms are spacious and there is a lift.
Weimar: Anna Amalia. A family-run hotel in a quiet cobbled street in the centre of town. Rooms are simply furnished with cream walls and light wood furniture. Bedrooms vary in size.
Leipzig: Park. This is a modern and comfortable hotel. The quirky design uses plenty of wood and is vaguely nautical. Bedrooms are a good size. There is a glass panel in the wall separating bathrooms and bedrooms. There is a good restaurant.
Prices, per person
Arriving 3 September:
£3,320 sharing a twin or double
£3,490 double for single use
Arriving 4 September:
£3,250 sharing a twin or double
£3,390 double for single use
Option B
Mühlhausen: Brauhaus zum Löwen. The same hotel as for option A, but with rooms in the main building. Bedrooms are simple and mostly spacious. Some overlook the (quiet) street; most are not served by a lift, but porters are available.
Weimar: Dorint am Goethepark. Comprising two historic houses connected by a new addition, this is now a modern hotel pleasantly situated by the park and a short walk from the town centre. Décor is a little austere, but the rooms elegant and comfortable. There is a restaurant in the hotel.
Leipzig: Radisson Blu. A modern hotel, purpose-built in 1964 and completely renovated in 2006. It is situated on the Ring overlooking Augustusplatz and the Gewandhaus. Geared more to the business market, its interior of cool elegance is nevertheless comfortable. Beds can be divided into twins, but there is no more than 15cm of space between them. Bathrooms are separated from the bedrooms by a glass wall (though the lavatory cannot be seen).
Prices, per person
Arriving 3 September:
£3,770 sharing a twin or double
£4,060 double for single use
Arriving 4 September:
£3,680 sharing a twin or double
£3,960 double for single use
Option C
Eisenach: Steigenberger Thüringer Hof. A large, centrally-located hotel with a Neo-Classical façade. Bedrooms are bright and simply decorated. Two restaurants, a bar, as well a spa with sauna, exercise room and rooftop terrace. There is no air-conditioning.
Weimar: Russischer Hof. An elegant hotel dating to 1805 and furnished in a partially modernised, opulent Russian Neo-Classical style. Impressive public areas and restaurants, comfortable rooms with luxurious bathrooms, excellent location.
Leipzig: Marriott. A traditional hotel decorated in marble, wood and brass. Rooms are spacious with cosy, country-style furnishings and all mod cons. Centrally-located but quiet. There is a swimming pool.
Prices, per person
Arriving 3 September:
£4,050 sharing a twin or double
£4,410 double for single use
Arriving 4 September:
£3,960 sharing a twin or double
£4,260 double for single use
Option D
Eisenach: Steigenberger Thüringer Hof. The same hotel as for option C.
Weimar: The Elephant. Famous, historic establishment blending classical gravity with contemporary understatement. Bedrooms are spacious and very well equipped and there are two restaurants, including the finest in Weimar.
Leipzig: Steigenberger Grandhotel Handelshof. A 5-star hotel in a converted former exhibition building, , next to the Old Stock Exhange. Rooms are decorated in a clean and contemporary style. Views are of the internal courtyard or the city. There is a spa and fitness area. There are some slightly ostentatious modern design features.
Prices, per person
Arriving 3 September:
£4,470 sharing a twin or double
£4,970 double for single use
Arriving 4 September:
£4,370 sharing a twin or double
£4,790 double for single use
Travel options
Flights from London Heathrow are included in the price – all options fly into Frankfurt and back from Berlin.
If you select hotel option A or B, you can travel on flight options 1, 3 or 5.
If you select hotel option C or D, you can travel on flight options 2, 4 or 6.
There is the option to fly out on the 3 September, the day before the festival begins – see above for accommodation details and prices.
Making your own arrangements
You can take the package without flights and make your own arrangements for joining and leaving the festival. You are welcome to join our airport transfers from Frankfurt and back to Berlin, though we cannot wait for you should you be delayed.
There is a reduction in the price of £210 per person for this option.
Arriving 3 September (a day early)
Option 1 – for hotel options A or B.
3 September: depart Heathrow 09.30, arrive Frankfurt 12.05 (LH 901).
10 September: depart Berlin 11.45, arrive Heathrow 12.50 (BA 983).
Option 2 – for hotel options C or D.
3 September: depart Heathrow 11.30, arrive Frankfurt 14.05 (LH 903).
10 September: depart Berlin 13.55, arrive Heathrow 14.55 (BA 993).
Arriving 4 September
Option 3 – for hotel options A or B.
4 September: depart Heathrow 09.30, arrive Frankfurt 12.05 (LH 901).
10 September: depart Berlin 11.45, arrive Heathrow 12.50 (BA 983).
Option 4 – for hotel options C or D.
4 September: depart Heathrow 10.30, arrive Frankfurt 13.05 (LH 903).
10 September: depart Berlin 13.55, arrive Heathrow 14.55 (BA 993).
Option 5 – for hotel options A or B.
4 September: depart Heathrow 11.30, arrive Frankfurt 14.05 (LH 905).
10 September: depart Berlin 16.35, arrive Heathrow 17.30 (BA 985).
Option 6 – for hotel options C or D.
4 September: depart Heathrow 11.30, arrive Frankfurt 14.05 (LH 905).
10 September: depart Berlin 16.35, arrive Heathrow 17.30 (BA 985).
The concerts
Private events. All the concerts are planned and administered by Martin Randall Festivals, and the audience consists exclusively of those who have taken the full festival package. The concerts are private.
Seating. Specific seats are not reserved. You sit where you want. Seating in the churches may be a little uncomfortable; consider bringing a cushion.
Acoustics. This festival is more concerned with locale and authenticity than with acoustic perfection. Some venues have idiosyncrasies or reverberations of the sort not found in modern concert halls.
Capacity. There will be up to 200 participants on the festival. At venues which cannot accommodate this number the audience is divided and the concerts repeated.
Changes. Musicians fall ill, venues may close for repairs, airlines alter schedules: there are many circumstances which could necessitate changes to the programme. We ask you to be understanding should they occur.
Fitness for the festival
This is a physically demanding festival and fitness is essential.
Within the towns and cities, you will be expected to walk for anything up to 25 minutes and at a pace which is unlikely to slow others down when moving together. Many surfaces are uneven or cobbled and there are some ascents and descents. You will need to climb stairs at some venues and hotels, check in and out of three hotels and be comfortable travelling considerable distances by coach, particularly on the first and last days.
We ask that you assess your fitness, before you commit to a booking, by trying the simple exercises on the following page:
Are you fit enough to join the tour?
Travel advice
Before booking, please refer to the FCDO website to ensure you are happy with the travel advice for the destination(s) you are visiting
'Beyond superb! The perfromances, the choice of repertoire, the venues…all perfect in my opinion!'
'The JS Bach tour was immensly enjoyable; it was hugely stimulating, I feel enriched. To have heard music of the calibre and in the very place where those works were performed was a real joy.'
‘This was a very special holiday. Congratulations on organising it so well – it was a complex operation!’
‘Sublime. I am still on a high. I loved the St. John and the Mass particularly.'
‘Organised with MRT perfection, music performed brilliantly by a great variety of performers and an interesting programme.’