kontakt – the cultural festival

20 Years of Alternative Culture in Bamberg

Since 2005, a volunteer plenum of artists, cultural practitioners, and citizens has been organizing the kontakt – the cultural festival in Bamberg. From an initiative for more free spaces for subculture, it has developed over two decades into one of the largest free cultural festivals in Bavaria. Around 20,000 visitors come annually – a success that is remarkable given the completely volunteer-based organizational model.

The Metalluk Grounds

The venue is the Metalluk grounds in the Bamberg city area – a former industrial site that is transformed into a festival space for four days each year: with several stages, art installations, a performance area, a workshop zone, and a catering area. The festival has been fighting for the long-term preservation of the grounds for years; following an agreement with the City of Bamberg, its continuation in 2026 is secured.

Diversity as the Programme

kontakt sees itself as a deliberately broad cultural project – no commitment to a single genre. The 2026 programme includes:

• Bands from Bamberg, Franconia, and beyond
• DJ sets from Techno, House, Drum & Bass, and electronic avant-garde
• Theatre and Performance
• Dance
• Art installations throughout the grounds
• Workshops – creative, political, participatory
• Talks and discussions

Local bands that have played the festival in recent years include, among others, Pippa, Schmitts Katze, Paralyzed, Sorah, and Fatigue.

Motto "kontakt through space and time"

The motto of the 2026 anniversary edition is programmatic: a look back at 19 past editions, venues, and mottos – combined with a "door to the future". The festival takes its own history seriously and makes it the subject of the programme: workshops on the festival's history, exhibitions on past venues, reflection formats on cultural policy issues.

Volunteer-Run and Free – A Political Statement

kontakt operates without a main commercial sponsor line. Admission is free, and the festival relies on donations, beverage sales, and volunteer work. In doing so, it makes a conscious statement against the commercialization of the festival landscape. The website states: "Unfortunately, kontakt doesn't happen by magic, but through unused space and volunteer time invested."

Bamberg as a Festival City

Bamberg, a UNESCO World Heritage city in the Upper Franconian Main Valley, is home to a university, an archbishopric, and numerous cultural institutions. With around 78,000 inhabitants, the city is manageable – over two decades, kontakt has shaped a specific Bamberg subculture identity that clearly distinguishes itself from the Bavarian beer festival tradition.