Elbphilharmonie Hamburg's New Season Debuts This Weekend

This weekend marks the opening of the Elbphiharmonie's first regular season. Cosmopolitan and full of contrast, Hamburg's new concert hall will be backing its claim to be a house for everyone.

In the 2017/2018 season, music lovers from across the globe will be able to enjoy a packed programme, with more than 600 top-class concerts taking place on the premises of this new cultural flagship in Northern Germany. The Elbphilharmonie, Hamburg's new landmark, is thus all set to continue its amazing success story. Since the Elbphlilharmonie's grand opening in January 2017, more than 500,000 people have experienced a concert in the new house on the River Elbe. With more than 3 million visitors to the Plaza, the concert hall's public viewing platform, the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg is now among Germany's most popular tourist attractions.

In Hamburg, the start of the Elbphilharmonie's new season is being met with excitement. Every night since 27 August, hundreds of music lovers have been gathering at the Elbphilharmonie to enjoy a special music experience even before the official start of the season on Sunday: as part of the Elbphilharmonie's Concert Cinema programme, selected live events are being shown on a large open-air screen at the square in front of the Elbphilharmonie. With these free of charge live streamings from the Grand Hall, the Elbphilharmonie is inviting Hamburg's locals and guests to experience sold-out concerts free of charge. Tonight's concert will be performed by the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra, the Elbphilharmonie's residence orchestra: a programme with works by Ludwig van Beethoven will conclude this summer's public screenings and ring in the new season.

World-class music performances, with more than 600 concerts: Elbphilharmonie Hamburg kicks off the new season

Ever since its official opening, the Elbphilharmonie has put Hamburg's music world in a state of emergency - with exceptional quality, diversity and courage. Now Hamburg's new concert hall is starting its first regular season. The programme for the 2017/18 season will be once again packed with highlights - ensuring continuity at the highest level, while at the same time developing individual artistic and dramaturgical approaches. This Sunday's, 3 September 2017, opening concert alone is going to be extraordinary, as Belgian choreographer Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker will be presenting Johann Sebastian Bach's Six Cello Suites as a music and dance performance - together with her Rosas dance company and French cellist Jean-Guihen Queyras. And yet the opening concert is but a foretaste of the Elbphilharmonie's highly diverse perspective on culture that is reflected in its entire programme: until June next year, 600 concerts from the realms of classical music, jazz, electronic music, world music and pop will be performed here - with more than 20 top-class orchestras and outstanding soloists from around the world.

The new programme will include guest performances by world-renowned orchestras from cities such as Cleveland, Philadelphia, Montreal, London, Amsterdam, Rome, and Saint Petersburg - alongside selected pop highlights such as The National. Themed festivals such as "Czech it out!", "Caucasus" and "Winter Journeys" will be flanked by musical portraits of e.g. Peter Eötvös, Daniil Trifonov, Bryce Dessner and Yaron Herman. The highlight of the season will be the 3rd Hamburg International Music Festival from 27 April to 29 May 2018, a collaboration between major music venues and concert organisers in Hamburg.

Some 850,000 tickets will be issued for the Elbphilharmonie's 2017/18 season. Most of the concerts have already been sold out. However, additional concerts will be added throughout the season, which will increase the number of fresh tickets available.

Success in figures: More than 3 million visitors to the Plaza, 500,000 concert guests, and a 5 percent rise in overnight stays in Hamburg

The wave of enthusiasm for Hamburg's new landmark on the Elbe is unbroken, and the figures speak for themselves: since its opening in November 2016, more than 3 million people have visited the Elbphilharmonie's Plaza to enjoy the stunning view over the city and the port from a height of 37 metres. Since its festive opening on 11 and 12 January 2017, some 500,000 music lovers have filled the new concert hall with life. And this success story also reflects Hamburg's tourism development at large: with 6.5 million overnight stays, Hamburg Tourismus GmbH recorded an increase of 5 percent in the first half of 2017 compared with the same period last year - and even a 9 percent increase in overnight stays by international guests. The most recent statistics confirm the positive effects of Hamburg's new landmark on the city's appeal and its international visibility: with the Elbphilharmonie at the forefront, Hamburg continues its successful journey towards becoming a top-class destination and one of the world's premium music locations.

The Elbphilharmonie is firmly anchored in Hamburg: European XFEL, Hamburg Cruise Days, and the Reeperbahn Festival

In its role as Hamburg's new landmark, the Elbphilharmonie is an integral part of the city's urban life. Several major events are lined up for September alone: today will see the launch of the European XFEL - the world's largest X-ray laser facility. To welcome the new facility, there is currently a laser beam from the Elbphilharmonie to the XFEL's location in the district of Schenefeld. During the 2017 Blueport Hamburg (1-10 September), the façade of the Elbphilharmonie will be bathed in blue light, and visitors to the Hamburg Cruise Days festival (08-10 September) will be able to experience the Elbphilharmonie as part of a themed island that will include free public screenings under the open sky. Whether it is the Harbour Front literature festival, the Elbjazz Festival or the Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival: especially when it comes to cultural events, the Elbphilharmonie has become a central point of reference. And also at the upcoming Reeperbahn Festival (20-23 September), the Elbphilharmonie will be the festival's most sought-after music venue. Innovative and courageous, versatile and classic: the Elbphilharmonie has established itself as the new landmark of Hamburg - a city that is shaping its future based on contrast.

To learn more about the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg and to view the full programme for the 2017/18 season, visit www.elbphilharmonie.com. For further information on the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, visit www.elbphilharmonie.de, or follow on Facebook: www.facebook.com/elbphilharmonie.hamburg, Twitter: www.twitter.com/elbphilharmonie, and Instagram: www.instagram.com/elbphilharmonie.

The Elbphilharmonie Hamburg is situated right on the River Elbe, at the tip of the HafenCity district and in the immediate vicinity of the UNESCO World Heritage site "Speicherstadt with Kontorhaus district and Chilehaus". The Elbphilharmonie serves as a focal point at the interface of the city and port and as the new landmark of Hamburg - the music capital of the north. Rising to a height of 110 metres, the spectacular wave-like glass façade seems to be almost floating above the Kaispeicher, the historic red-brick base of the building structure. Designed by Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron, the Elbphilharmonie comprises three concert halls, one large music education area, several bistros and cafés, a hotel, as well as the Plaza, a public viewing platform at a height of 37 metres. In the course of the first six months, more than 2.5 million visitors enjoyed the stunning panoramic view over the city and the port. The opening of the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg on 11 and 12 January 2017 attracted great international attention, and in the first season alone, nearly 500,000 people attended some 300 high-calibre concerts from various genres.

Hamburg is the second-biggest city in Germany with 1.8 million inhabitants. With 5 million inhabitants, the Hamburg metropolitan region is one of the most prosperous and affluent regions in Europe. As a port and trading centre for centuries, Hamburg has relationships spanning the globe. In addition to its thriving trade and booming logistics industry, Hamburg is Germany's media capital. The city ranks as the greenest metropolis in Europe - one fifth of its surface area consists of water and is shaped by two rivers, the Elbe and the smaller Alster, which has been dammed to form a lake in the city centre. Around these two rivers spreads a city with maritime flair, which extends from the leafy and genteel borough of Blankenese to lively, hip urban districts. Ambitious urban development projects like the HafenCity Hamburg, a wide range of cultural events and the high quality of life on the water's edge have attracted more and more tourists to the city in northern Germany in recent years, so that it has now become one of the top ten city destinations in Europe.

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