Höfefestival Kreis Wesel

17 Concerts on Lower Rhine Farmsteads

The Höfefestival Kreis Wesel is one of North Rhine-Westphalia's most unusual festival formats: over two weeks, Kulturprojekte Niederrhein transforms a total of 17 farmsteads and historic courtyards in the Lower Rhine region into concert venues. Contemporary music — Jazz, World Music, Blues — meets centuries-old farm architecture, rural landscapes, and the predominantly rural audience of the Kreis Wesel. The concept connects two worlds that are otherwise separate: "rural areas and industrial conurbations", as Kulturprojekte Niederrhein itself puts it. In 2026, the festival will take place from August 24 to September 7 — two full weeks of concert programming spread across farmsteads in several municipalities.

2026 Program — The Participating Artists

The musical selection for 2026 spans a wide range of Jazz, World Music, and Blues:

• The Five Guys Quartett — Jazz ensemble
• NeckarGanga — Crossover between Indian music and European traditions
• Nawab Khan & The Mantra — World music with roots in the Indian subcontinent
• Andreas Günther Quartett — Jazz ensemble
• NumaQam AkusTika — acoustic music with a specific sound profile

Additional acts will be announced on the festival calendar at kulturprojekte-niederrhein.de.

New Farmsteads for 2026 — Schermbeck and Hünxe

The following have been newly added to the 2026 festival program:

• Bauer Graaf in Schermbeck — a traditional Lower Rhine farmstead serving as a concert venue for the first time
• Schulte-Drevenacks-Hof in Hünxe — historic courtyard with a special ambiance

Venues Spread Across Kreis Wesel

In total, the festival will take place at farmsteads in the following municipalities:

• Schermbeck (Bauer Graaf — new)
• Hünxe (Schulte-Drevenacks-Hof — new)
• Wesel
• Xanten
• Hamminkeln
• Voerde
• Sonsbeck
• Alpen
• Rheinberg (via cooperation with WIR4Kultur)

Some concerts also take place at Schloss Ringenberg — a historic moated castle that has enriched the concert series for years.

Concept: Accessible, Sustainable, Rural

The festival has a clear programmatic profile:

• Easily accessible — Free admission or voluntary contribution, barrier-free access
• Sustainability in catering and logistics — regional products, short distances
• Connection between rural and industrial areas — Kreis Wesel is the border region between the industrial Ruhr area and the rural Lower Rhine; the festival utilizes this transitional situation productively

Funding and Organization

The organizer is Kulturprojekte Niederrhein, a cultural policy initiative that develops the cultural infrastructure of the Lower Rhine region. The festival is funded by the Ministry of Culture of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, regional savings banks, and the Kreis Wesel. This constellation of state funding, municipal sponsorship, and regional sponsorship secures the financial basis for the unusually elaborate setup of the concert series.

Lower Rhine as a Cultural Region

Kreis Wesel encompasses the area between the northern Ruhr area and the Dutch border region — a region historically shaped by the Rhine delta, the industrialization of the Ruhr area, and the agriculture of the Lower Rhine. The farmsteads of the Lower Rhine — often several hundred years old, with the classic T-shape, half-timbering, and hipped roofs — form a characteristic landscape that the Höfefestival highlights. Those who combine the festival with a weekend trip can include the Lower Rhine Cycle Route, the Roman city of Xanten, or Anholt Castle.