Westphalian Music Festival Hamm

Westphalian Music Festival Hamm 2026 — Three Weeks of Classical Music for the 800th City Anniversary

From June 13 to July 5, 2026, the city of Hamm will be the classical music capital of Westphalia for three weeks. The Westphalian Music Festival Hamm is one of North Rhine-Westphalia's most ambitious classical festivals, and in 2026 it celebrates Hamm's 800th city anniversary with an exceptional program — around 12 concerts in the city's most beautiful and unusual halls and locations.

Opening: Open-Air Film Music on the Market Square (June 13, 2026)

The festival opens with an open-air film music concert on the Hammer Marktplatz (Hamm Market Square) — free for everyone. Classical film music by John Williams, Hans Zimmer, Ennio Morricone, and other greats will fill the city center — a festival opening for the entire city that has already attracted thousands of visitors.

Closing: Beethoven's 9th Symphony (July 5, 2026)

The closing concert evening on July 5 is dedicated to Ludwig van Beethoven's 9th Symphony — "the most solemn composition in classical music," as the festival itself puts it. The venue is the Alfred Fischer Hall, an expressionist architectural gem from the 1920s, one of Westphalia's most beautiful concert halls. With a large orchestra and choirs.

Venues 2026 — Hamm as the Stage

The festival utilizes the diversity of Hamm's architecture:

• Marktplatz (Market Square) — Open-air opening
• Alfred Fischer Hall — Expressionist concert hall, large-scale works
• Schloss Heessen — Baroque moated castle in the Heessen district
• Gut Kump — Historic manor house with a concert hall
• St. Agnes Church — Sacred music, acoustically brilliant
• CreativRevier — Industrial backdrop on the former colliery site
• Kurhaus Bad Hamm — Classic spa town hall

This diversity — from the Gothic church and the Baroque castle to the industrial loft — is the festival's hallmark.

Program Highlights

Opening June 13 — Market Square

• Open-air film music concert
• Free for all
• In case of bad weather, an alternative venue at the Heinrich-von-Kleist-Forum

Main Concerts (Selection)

• June 13 — Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie — Opening concert at Kurhaus Bad Hamm
• Chamber music evenings at Schloss Heessen and Gut Kump
• Sacred music at St. Agnes Church (Bach, Mendelssohn, contemporary works)
• Modern program at CreativRevier (contemporary composition meets industry)
• Solo recitals by young talents

Closing July 5 — Beethoven's 9th Symphony

• Alfred Fischer Hall
• Large orchestra and choir
• Grand finale for the 800th city anniversary

Young Talents and the Klassik_Sommer_Musikpreis

The festival has a special tradition: The audience chooses its favorite artist during the festival days. The winner receives the Klassik_Sommer_Musikpreis (Classical Summer Music Prize) and will perform at the opening concert the following year. This creates continuity, offering young artists a real career opportunity and actively involving the audience in the festival.

Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie

The Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie, based in Herford, is one of the most important symphony orchestras in Ostwestfalen-Lippe and a regular guest at the Westphalian Music Festival Hamm. With around 60 musicians and a broad repertoire ranging from classical to modern, it is the festival's central orchestral partner.

Hamm — 800 Years of City History 2026

The city of Hamm was founded in 1226 and celebrates its 800th city anniversary in 2026. Known as one of Europe's largest railway marshalling yards, Hamm has reinvented itself as a center for culture and education in recent decades. Alongside the KulturFest h4, the KulturNacht, and the Maximilianpark, the Westphalian Music Festival is one of the key pillars of Hamm's cultural life.