Salonorchester Cantabile at Strünkede Castle Courtyard

Salonorchester Cantabile — Soundscape of the 1920s

The Salonorchester Cantabile is an ensemble that carries on the tradition of European salon music from the 1920s and 1930s — a genre that was once standard in Europe's grand hotels, spa halls, and city park pavilions. Strings, piano, and possibly clarinet and accordion create a characteristic, slightly melancholic sound magic that is experiencing its own renaissance today.

The Program: Opera, Operetta, Tango, Waltz, Evergreens

The three-hour concert on July 5, 2026, combines four repertoire pillars: instrumental arrangements of well-known opera and operetta melodies (Puccini, Mascagni, Lehár, Kálmán), Argentine tangos from the golden era of tango (early Piazzolla, Gardel tradition), Viennese and French waltzes (Strauss, Lanner), and evergreens of the 1920s and 1930s — light melodies from the international salon and film music tradition. A musical journey through Europe between the World Wars.

Strünkede Castle Courtyard — The Open-Air Stage

The concert venue is the Strünkede Castle Courtyard at Karl-Brandt-Weg 5 in Herne. Strünkede Castle is a 13th-century moated castle with a 17th-century baroque palace, now a museum and event venue for the city of Herne. The castle courtyard offers a historic setting for open-air concerts — in good weather, the audience sits under the open sky with their own blankets or folding chairs; in case of rain, the program moves to the castle park pavilion.

Strünkede Summer 2026: May 14 to September 13

The concert is part of the Strünkede Summer 2026, Herne's cultural summer program in Strünkede Castle and Park from May 14 to September 13. The program includes open-air cinema, a Cuba night, a medieval market, further concerts, theater, and family events. The motto of the Strünkede Summer is "Culture for All" — all events are free or at very low prices.

Herne in the Ruhr Area

Herne is an independent city in the Ruhr area with around 156,000 inhabitants, located between Bochum, Recklinghausen, and Castrop-Rauxel. Strünkede Castle is one of the city's most important cultural-historical monuments and houses the Emschertal Museum. The castle park is a popular park for Herne families, and the "Strünkeder Sommer" summer program is a flagship of the city's cultural policy.