Lausitz Festival 2026 — Opening Görlitz

Görlitz as Opening City

The 7th edition of the Lausitz Festival begins on August 25, 2026, in Görlitz's Peterskirche. This late Gothic hall church on the Neisse river, built between 1423 and 1497 — with a view of Polish Zgorzelec on the other side of the river — forms the backdrop for the festive festival opening. Görlitz, Germany's easternmost city and a German-Polish twin city since 2009, is one of the 37 venues for the 2026 festival edition.

Bach and the First Credo Prize

The central event of the opening is the inaugural presentation of the newly established Credo Prize. French composer and conductor Sylvain Cambreling will lead the evening; the parts «Kyrie» and «Gloria» from Johann Sebastian Bach's B minor Mass BWV 232 will be performed, sung by the British Tenebrae Choir, whose members will also take on the solo parts. The «Missa», which Bach submitted in Dresden in 1733 to obtain the position of court composer from Elector August III, thus plays a doubly symbolic role: as a historical application piece for Saxony and as the opening of a festival dedicated to the question of what «creative» means today.

Further Görlitz Program Points

Görlitz will feature two additional program points during the festival. At the Kulturforum Görlitzer Synagoge, Corinna Harfouch will read from Lithuanian literature — the evening is part of the accompanying program that focuses on Eastern European literature and theatre in 2026. A second concert by the Tenebrae Choir will also take place in Görlitz — a rare opportunity to experience the renowned British vocal ensemble in Germany's easternmost city.

Lausitz Festival — Bridges Between Countries

Founded in 2020, the Lausitz Festival sees itself as a cultural platform for the bilingual Lower and Upper Lusatia — the region between Cottbus, Görlitz, Hoyerswerda, and Bautzen, where Germans and Sorbs have lived together for centuries. With venues in Brandenburg and Saxony, in major cities like Cottbus and Görlitz, and in villages like Domsdorf or Herrnhut, the festival creates a dense network of artistic encounters. Festival motto 2026: «creative» — a reflection on humans as creatures and creators.