Festival Alte Musik Knechtsteden

Early Music in Romanesque Splendor

The Festival Alte Musik Knechtsteden is one of the most renowned festivals for historically informed performance practice in Germany. The venue is the Romanesque monastery basilica Knechtsteden in Neuss-Hackhausen, a former Spiritan monastery dating back to the 12th century. The excellent acoustics of the three-nave nave and the mystical atmosphere of the fresco-painted apse make every concert a sonic and visual event. The association has been hosting the annual festival since 1991.

35th Edition – “Unheimlich. Fantastisch.”

The 35th festival edition in 2026 runs from September 19th to 26th under the motto “Unheimlich. Fantastisch.” (Uncanny. Fantastic.). It is a tribute to the 250th birthday of E.T.A. Hoffmann (born 1776) – writer, composer, lawyer, and originator of the German art fairy tale. The festival follows his aesthetic program: the marvelous, the fantastic, the ambiguous in music and literature. A season full of soundscapes, shadow plays, and literary cross-references.

Dorothee Oberlinger – Artist in Residence

The award-winning recorder player Dorothee Oberlinger is the artist in residence. She is an Echo Klassik award winner and is considered a leading figure in the historically informed recorder scene. In Knechtsteden, she curates several programs – including the night concert production “Unheimlich. Fantastisch.” with the Freiburger Barockorchester and baritone Sreten Manojlovic, as well as the literary-musical theater production “Traumstoff” (Dream Stuff) together with countertenor Andreas Scholl, actor Matthias Brandt, and lutenist Edin Karamazov at the Globe Neuss.

Opening on September 19th – Hoffmann's Miserere

The opening concert on September 19th, 2026, connects two composers of the Viennese Classical period: the Rheinische Kantorei and Concerto Köln under Edzard Burchards will perform E.T.A. Hoffmann's Miserere in B-flat minor – a precious, rarely performed sacred composition by the writer-composer – combined with Mozart's Davide penitente. A programmatic combination that lays the thematic foundation for the festival.

Cappella Pratensis & Grammy Repertoire

On Friday, September 25th, 2026, Cappella Pratensis – Grammy Award winners 2024 – will perform Nicolas Champion's Missa de Sancta Maria Magdalena, complemented by Gregorian chants. An impressive example of Franco-Flemish vocal polyphony from the Burgundian school. An optional workshop with the ensemble is also available.

Closing Concert on September 26th – Leipzig Motet Tradition

The closing concert on Saturday, September 26th, 2026, will again be performed by the Rheinische Kantorei under Edzard Burchards. Program: 300 years of Leipzig motet tradition – from Schein and Schütz to Telemann and Bach. A sonic journey through German motet history of the 17th and 18th centuries.

Further Concerts – Salons, Sound Spaces, Special Locations

The festival doesn't just take place in the basilica. Schloss Arff (Köln-Roggendorf) becomes a salon for pianist Christine Schornsheim with a literary-musical program centered around Hoffmann's character Johannes Kreisler. The Zollfeste Zons hosts the TAMUZ Ensemble with Beethoven chamber music. The Curious Bards, featuring mezzo-soprano Ilektra Platiopoulou, dedicate their performance to Norse mythology.

MOVIMENTO – Festival by Bicycle

A Knechtsteden tradition: the MOVIMENTO concert on September 13th, 2026 (Day of the Open Monument) – a 39 km long concert bicycle tour connecting historical sites in the region with music. A sporty-musical prelude to the main festival.

Knechtsteden – A Monastery Center with History

Knechtsteden Monastery was founded in 1130 by the Premonstratensian order, destroyed and rebuilt several times. Today, it is an educational and conference center for the Spiritans, including a grammar school. The basilica houses a unique Romanesque fresco cycle in the apse. Knechtsteden belongs to the Rhein-Kreis Neuss district and is located about 12 km south of Neuss city center, on the border with Dormagen.