Name: Arolser Barock-Festspiele 2026
Start: 2026-05-13T00:00:00+00:00
End: 2026-05-17T00:00:00+00:00
Location: Residenzschloss Bad Arolsen (Fürstliche Reitbahn, Steinerner Saal), Stadtkirche, Rauch-Museum

Arolser Barock-Festspiele

About Arolser Barock-Festspiele

From May 13th to 17th, 2026, the 40th anniversary edition of the Arolser Barock-Festspiele will take place in Bad Arolsen. Motto: 'Cycles'. Artistic Director: Prof. Dorothee Oberlinger. Venues: Fürstliche Reitbahn and Steinerner Saal in the Residenzschloss, Stadtkirche, Rauch-Museum. Opening with the Freiburger Barockorchester (already sold out), Bach cantatas with the Neues Orchester, mandolin program 'La Mandolina Espanola', finale 'Invisibili' with Xavier Sabata and fireworks in front of the palace.

Dates 13 May — 17 May 2026

Venue Bad Arolsen (06635)

Prices 6.60€ — 80.00€

Status Confirmed

Edition 2026

Arolser Barock-Festspiele — edition 2026

Tickets →

The 40th edition of the Arolser Barock-Festspiele runs from Wednesday, May 13th (day before Ascension) to Sunday, May 17th, 2026, in Bad Arolsen. Motto: 'Cycles'. Artistic Director Prof. Dorothee Oberlinger. Venues: Fürstliche Reitbahn and Steinerner Saal in the Residenzschloss, Stadtkirche, Rauch-Museum.

Five festival days with around a dozen concerts in the various halls of the Residenzschloss and the Stadtkirche. Tickets available via ReserviX and the Bad Arolsen Tourist Service.

Highlights Arolser Barock-Festspiele 2026

40th Anniversary Edition
Artistic Direction Dorothee Oberlinger
Freiburger Barockorchester for the opening (sold out)
Xavier Sabata with 'Invisibili' for the finale
Fireworks in front of the Residenzschloss
Late-Night on Friday at 10:30 PM
Tickets from €6.60

Programme Arolser Barock-Festspiele 2026

Wednesday, May 13th, 2026 — Opening (Day before Ascension)

Evening — Opening concert in the Fürstliche Reitbahn: the Freiburger Barockorchester with Dorothee Oberlinger (recorder) and Sreten Manojlović (bass-baritone), program from Rebels Chaos to Vivaldi and Handel — already sold out

Thursday, May 14th, 2026 (Ascension Day)

Concert by Ensemble Sempreviva
Further chamber music programs in the palace halls

Friday, May 15th, 2026

Main concert: Das Neue Orchester with Bach Cantatas (dialogue cantatas)
10:30 PM — Late-Night in the Fürstliche Reitbahn (traditional format)

Saturday, May 16th, 2026

Daytime — Musical treasure hunt through the Residenzschloss with Dorothee Oberlinger, Alon Sariel (mandolin), and the musicians of Los Temperamentos
Main concert 'La Mandolina Espanola' with Alon Sariel and Los Temperamentos

Sunday, May 17th, 2026 — Finale

Closing concert 'Invisibili': Catalan countertenor Xavier Sabata with the Ensemble Vespres d'Arnadí – program on forgotten composers between the Baroque and early Classical periods
Following the concert — festive fireworks display in front of the Residenzschloss

Supporting Program

Musical cabaret
Palace tours with musical interludes
Culinary offerings in the palace courtyard

Prices Arolser Barock-Festspiele 2026

Tickets from €6.60 (single concerts), premium concerts and opening are in a higher category. Tickets via ReserviX and Bad Arolsen Tourist Service (Phone +49 5691 801-233). Opening concert on May 13th already sold out.

Practical information

Practical information — Arolser Barock-Festspiele

Getting There

By car: A44 exit Bad Arolsen-Volkmarsen, then into the town center. By train: Bad Arolsen station on the Korbach–Warburg line. Parking available at the palace and in the town center.

Tickets

Tickets from €6.60 via the Bad Arolsen Tourist Service (Phone +49 5691 801-233) or online via ReserviX. Opening concert on May 13th already sold out.

Tip

Those who want to experience the festival completely should plan to arrive on Ascension evening and depart on Sunday. Accommodation in Bad Arolsen's guesthouses and hotels – book early, as the festival fills the town. Friday's Late-Night at 10:30 PM in the Fürstliche Reitbahn is a must for insiders. The finale on Sunday features fireworks in front of the palace after the 'Invisibili' concert.

40 Years of Early Music in the Palace

The Arolser Barock-Festspiele has been Hesse's most important Early Music festival and one of Germany's most distinguished since 1986. In 2026, the festival celebrates its 40th anniversary over five days for Ascension Day – from May 13th to 17th, 2026 – in a setting that could hardly be better: the Residenzschloss Bad Arolsen, one of the most beautiful preserved Baroque residences in Hesse, former seat of the Princes of Waldeck and Pyrmont.

Motto: Cycles

The 2026 festival motto is 'Cycles' – a programmatic statement. Grand dramaturgical arcs, exceptional concert programs, and strong artistic signatures characterize the anniversary program. The thematic spectrum ranges from Jean-Féry Rebel's revolutionary Chaos and Bach's dialogue cantatas to Renaissance carnival songs.

Dorothee Oberlinger as Artistic Director

Since 2009, Prof. Dorothee Oberlinger has been the artistic director – the renowned recorder player and Echo Klassik award winner, who regularly performs herself and brings the international network of the Early Music scene with her. Over the past 17 years, she has developed the festival into an established brand in the German festival landscape, in a league with the major Early Music festivals.

Venues – the Palace Ensemble

The concerts take place in three main locations: the Fürstliche Reitbahn (large hall with special acoustics), the Steinerner Saal of the Residenzschloss (intimate, magnificent), the Stadtkirche (sacred programs), and – as a special feature in 2026 – the Rauch-Museum with sculptures by Christian Daniel Rauch. This spatial diversity is part of the concept.

Opening with the Freiburger Barockorchester

The opening concert on Wednesday, May 13th, 2026, is already sold out: the renowned Freiburger Barockorchester performs with Dorothee Oberlinger and bass-baritone Sreten Manojlović in the Fürstliche Reitbahn, with a program from Rebels Chaos to Vivaldi and Handel.

Further Highlights

The Ensemble Sempreviva, the Neues Orchester (with Bach cantatas), the musical treasure hunt with Dorothee Oberlinger, mandolinist Alon Sariel, and the musicians of Los Temperamentos through the rooms of the Residenzschloss (Saturday), the mandolin program 'La Mandolina Espanola', and the closing concert 'Invisibili' with the Catalan countertenor Xavier Sabata and his Ensemble Vespres d'Arnadí – a program presenting forgotten composers between the Baroque and early Classical periods. Following the closing concert: a festive fireworks display in front of the palace.

Late-Night and Supporting Program

An Arolsen tradition is the Friday Late-Night at 10:30 PM in the Fürstliche Reitbahn – a more experimental, relaxed format after the main concerts. The supporting program includes musical cabaret, palace tours with musical interludes, and culinary offerings in the palace courtyard.