The (RMF) is an international summer music festival in Germany, founded in 1987. It is mostly for classical music, but includes other genres. Concerts take place at culturally important locations, such as

Eberbach Abbey Eberbach Abbey (German: Kloster Eberbach) is a former Cistercian monastery in Eltville in the Rheingau, Germany. On account of its Romanesque architecture, Romanesque and Gothic (architecture), early Gothic buildings it is considered one of the m ...

and

Schloss Johannisberg Schloss Johannisberg is a Neoclassical architecture, neoclassical palace and historic winery located in the village of Johannisberg (Geisenheim), Johannisberg, west of Wiesbaden in Hesse, within the renowned Rheingau (wine region), Rheingau win ...

, in the wine-growing

Rheingau The Rheingau (; ) is a region on the northern side of the Rhine between the German towns of Wiesbaden and Lorch, Hesse, Lorch near Frankfurt, reaching from the Western Taunus to the Rhine. It is situated in the German state of Hesse and is part ...

region between

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden (; ) is the capital of the German state of Hesse, and the second-largest Hessian city after Frankfurt am Main. With around 283,000 inhabitants, it is List of cities in Germany by population, Germany's 24th-largest city. Wiesbaden form ...

and Lorch.

Initiative and realisation

The festival was the initiative of Michael Herrmann, who has served as its artistic director and chief executive officer. Like the

Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival The Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival (SHMF) is a classical music festival held each summer throughout the state of Schleswig-Holstein in Northern Germany. History The festival was founded in 1986 by German concert pianist and conductor Justus Fr ...

founded in 1986, the Rheingau festival was intended to add life to a region rich in musical heritage. The gothic church of Kiedrich houses the oldest playable organ in Germany, and has its own "dialect" of

Gregorian chant Gregorian chant is the central tradition of Western plainsong, plainchant, a form of monophony, monophonic, unaccompanied sacred song in Latin (and occasionally Greek language, Greek) of the Roman Catholic Church. Gregorian chant developed main ...

that dates back to 1333. In more recent times, the Rheingau has inspired composers such as

Johannes Brahms Johannes Brahms (; ; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor of the mid-Romantic period (music), Romantic period. His music is noted for its rhythmic vitality and freer treatment of dissonance, oft ...

, who composed his Symphony No. 3 in Wiesbaden and frequently stayed in Rüdesheim, and

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, essayist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most o ...

, who worked on in Biebrich. To test the festival idea, two concerts took place in Eberbach Abbey in the summer of 1987. In November 1987 the was founded by Michael Herrmann, Tatiana von Metternich-Winneburg, Walter Fink, Hans Otto Jung, Michael Bolenius, Hans-Clemens Lucht, Ulrich Rosin and Claus Wisser. The association organized the festival from the first season in 1988 which included 19 concerts until 1992. It has continued to support the festival since. The RMF receives significant financial help from sponsors who choose to fund their own concerts. The is under the patronage of the minister-president of Hesse. Michael Herrmann was awarded the Goethe-Plakette of Hesse in 2002. The RMF has grown to be one of Germany's important festivals presenting around 140 events every summer with international orchestras, ensembles and soloists. It is a member of the

European Festivals Association The European Festivals Association (EFA) is an umbrella group for various festivals in Europe and other countries. It supports artistic cooperation among festivals and offers programs for new festival and artistic managers. It represents more than ...

. For the 2023 season, 164 concerts at 29 locations were announced. On 17 June 2012, the 25th anniversary of the festival was celebrated at the Kurhaus, Wiesbaden.

Locations

The concerts of the first season took place at , in the hall and church of Schloss Johannisberg, at St. Martin in Lorch (part of the Rhine Gorge

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

), at the Rheingauer Dom in

Geisenheim Geisenheim is a town in the Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis in the ''Regierungsbezirk'' of Darmstadt (region), Darmstadt in Hessen, Germany, and is known as ''Weinstadt'' (“Wine Town”), ''Schulstadt'' (“School Town”), ''Domstadt'' (“Cathedral Town� ...

, and in Wiesbaden at the Marktkirche and the Kurhaus. Important locations have also included Schloss Vollrads, the Abbey St. Hildegard in Eibingen, the churches St. Valentin in Kiedrich, the romanesque Basilika St. Aegidius of Mittelheim and in

Wiesbaden-Frauenstein Frauenstein () is the westernmost borough of the city of Wiesbaden, located in the Rhine Main Area near Frankfurt and capital of the federal state of Hesse, Germany. The borough has a population of approximately 2,400. The formerly independent vill ...

, the of the spa Schlangenbad, the Lutherkirche in

and the

Alte Oper Alte Oper (Old Opera) is a concert hall in Frankfurt am Main, Hesse, Germany. It is located in the inner city, Innenstadt, within the banking district Bankenviertel. Today's Alte Oper was built in 1880 as the city's opera house, which was destr ...

Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...

. Concerts have been staged in churches such as St. Jakobus, Rüdesheim, castles and former presshouses (). An annual is held at Schloss Johannisberg while other open-air concerts have taken place in wineries and vineyards, on river boats, in the cloisters of Eberbach, the courts of Vollrads and the .

Program

Most events are dedicated to classical music, but cabaret, jazz, readings, musical cruises, children's concerts, wine tastings or culinary events with music add to a diverse program.

Opening concert

The is traditionally opened in Eberbach Abbey by a concert of the hr-Sinfonieorchester, broadcast live. The first concert was on 23 June 1988 a performance of two works by C. P. E. Bach, his ''

Magnificat The Magnificat (Latin for "y soulmagnifies he Lord) is a canticle, also known as the Song of Mary or Canticle of Mary, and in the Byzantine Rite as the Ode of the Theotokos (). Its Western name derives from the incipit of its Latin text. This ...

'' and the oratorio '' Die Israeliten in der Wüste''.

Frieder Bernius Frieder Bernius (born 22 June 1947) is a German conductor, the founder and director of the chamber choir Kammerchor Stuttgart, founded in 1968. They became leaders for historically informed performances. He founded the Stuttgart festival of Baroq ...

conducted the Kammerchor Stuttgart and the Barockorchester Stuttgart, with soloists Nancy Argenta, Lena Lootens, Mechthild Georg, Howard Crook and Stephen Roberts. A cycle of the symphonies of

Gustav Mahler Gustav Mahler (; 7 July 1860 – 18 May 1911) was an Austro-Bohemian Romantic music, Romantic composer, and one of the leading conductors of his generation. As a composer he acted as a bridge between the 19th-century Austro-German tradition and ...

, conducted by

Paavo Järvi Paavo Järvi (; born 30 December 1962) is an Estonian conductor. He has been chief conductor of Zurich's Tonhalle since 2020. Early life Järvi was born in Tallinn, Estonia (then occupied by the Soviet Union), to Liilia Järvi and the Estoni ...

, continued in 2011 with the Fifth Symphony, programmed with Alban Berg's '' Sieben frühe Lieder'', sung by Elena Garanca. In 2013, Mahler's Sixth Symphony was preceded by Wagner's '' Wesendonck Lieder'', sung by Anne Sofie von Otter. In 2016,

Christoph Eschenbach Christoph Eschenbach (; born 20 February 1940) is a German pianist and conductor. Early life Eschenbach was born on 20 February 1940 in Breslau, Germany (now Wrocław, Poland) as Christoph Ringmann. His parents were Margarethe (née Jaross), a ...

conducted Schubert's

Unfinished Symphony An unfinished symphony is a fragment of a symphony that is left incomplete. The reason as of why and the state of the sketches themselves can vary considerably. The death of the composer is the most common cause for a symphony to be left unfi ...

and Bruckner's Sixth Symphony The 2019 festival was opened by Dvořák's Stabat Mater, with the MDR Rundfunkchor and the hr Sinfonieorchester conducted by Andrés Orozco-Estrada. Steinmeier reception

The 2020 festival had to be cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2021 festival was opened on 26 June, traditionally by the hr-Sinfonieorchester, and as the last program with Orozco-Estrada. Due to restrictions, the 650 listeners were placed like a checker board, 2 seats taken, and 2 seats empty; the program was played without intermission. Augustin Hadelich was the soloist in the

Violin Concerto A violin concerto is a concerto for solo violin (occasionally, two or more violins) and instrumental ensemble (customarily orchestra). Such works have been written since the Baroque period, when the solo concerto form was first developed, up thro ...

by Jean Sibelius, which was followed by Mendelssohn's Reformation Symphony. The concert was at the same time a charity concert of President

Frank-Walter Steinmeier Frank-Walter Steinmeier (; born 5 January 1956) is a German politician who has served as President of Germany since 2017. He was previously Minister for Foreign Affairs (Germany), federal minister for foreign affairs from 2005 to 2009 and again f ...

who spoke at the beginning with a focus on the support and encouragement of music students to follow their calling even in critical times. After the concert, he invited to a reception at various areas of the property, addressing each group there. The opening concert in 2023 was focused on French music with the

Te Deum The ( or , ; from its incipit, ) is a Latin Christian hymn traditionally ascribed to a date before AD 500, but perhaps with antecedents that place it much earlier. It is central to the Ambrosian hymnal, which spread throughout the Latin ...

by Berlioz, conducted by Alain Altinoglu.

Anniversaries

Every year, composers' anniversaries are celebrated. In 2009, six concerts were given each to music by Handel, including '' Israel in Egypt'' with the Monteverdi Choir under

John Eliot Gardiner Sir John Eliot Gardiner (born 20 April 1943) is an English conductor, particularly known for his performances of the works of Johann Sebastian Bach, especially the Bach Cantata Pilgrimage of 2000, performing Church cantata (Bach), Bach's church ...

; by Haydn, including '' The Creation'' conducted by Enoch zu Guttenberg; and by Mendelssohn, including ''

Elijah Elijah ( ) or Elias was a prophet and miracle worker who lived in the northern kingdom of Israel during the reign of King Ahab (9th century BC), according to the Books of Kings in the Hebrew Bible. In 1 Kings 18, Elijah defended the worsh ...

'' with the Collegium Vocale Gent under

Philippe Herreweghe Philippe Maria François Herreweghe, Knight Herreweghe (born 2 May 1947) is a Belgian conductor and choirmaster. Herreweghe founded La Chapelle Royale and Collegium Vocale Gent and is renowned as a conductor, with a repertoire ranging from ...

. In 2010,

Robert Schumann Robert Schumann (; ; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and music critic of the early Romantic music, Romantic era. He composed in all the main musical genres of the time, writing for solo piano, voice and piano, chamber ...

and

Frédéric Chopin Frédéric François Chopin (born Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin; 1 March 181017 October 1849) was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist of the Romantic period who wrote primarily for Piano solo, solo piano. He has maintained worldwide renown ...

were celebrated in 16 concerts, such as and piano music by Chopin with

Daniel Barenboim Daniel Moses Barenboim (; born 15 November 1942) is an Argentines, Argentine-Israeli classical pianist and conductor based in Berlin, who also has Spain, Spanish and State of Palestine, Palestinian citizenship. From 1992 until January 2023, Bare ...

. Seven concerts were devoted to Mahler and

Hugo Wolf Hugo Philipp Jacob Wolf (; ; 13 March 1860 – 22 February 1903) was an Austrian composer, particularly noted for his art songs, or Lieder. He brought to this form a concentrated expressive intensity which was unique in late Romantic music, so ...

, such as . Christian Gerhaher and Gerold Huber performed Mahler's (Seven Songs of Latter Days) and songs from . In 2011 they performed the composer's , and . 2014 remembers three anniversaries of birth, 450 of Shakespeare, 300 of C.P.E. Bach and 150 of

Richard Strauss Richard Georg Strauss (; ; 11 June 1864 – 8 September 1949) was a German composer and conductor best known for his Tone poems (Strauss), tone poems and List of operas by Richard Strauss, operas. Considered a leading composer of the late Roman ...

. Bach's oratorio was performed by Hermann Max conducting the Rheinische Kantorei and , with soloists Veronika Winter, Markus Schäfer and Matthias Vieweg.

Theme

Every year, some concerts are grouped around a theme; in 2010, , in eight concerts, including one of the

ensemble amarcord Amarcord is a German male classical vocal ensemble based in Leipzig, founded in 1992 by five former members of the Thomanerchor. They primarily perform Medieval music and Renaissance music, as well as collaborating with Contemporary classical mus ...

, in 2011 the opposite: . The theme of 2014 was (Lovers). The theme of 2016, (Strong women), was expressed in a concert of Mad Songs of the time of

English restoration The Stuart Restoration was the reinstatement in May 1660 of the Stuart monarchy in Kingdom of England, England, Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland, and Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland. It replaced the Commonwealth of England, established in January 164 ...

, performed by Dorothee Mields and the Lautten Compagney, combining folk songs and art songs mostly by

Henry Purcell Henry Purcell (, rare: ; September 1659 – 21 November 1695) was an English composer of Baroque music, most remembered for his more than 100 songs; a tragic opera, Dido and Aeneas, ''Dido and Aeneas''; and his incidental music to a version o ...

. In 2023, the festival announced themes including works by

, Bach's Goldberg Variations and Stravinsky's Le Sacre du Printemps, both these works in several interpretations.

Treffpunkt Jugend

Soloists still in their teens are presented at the regular series (meeting point youth). They play in two Marathon concerts chamber music and concertos with orchestra.

Work cycles

Some performances are presented over several years, such as the piano sonatas of Ludwig van Beethoven by Rudolf Buchbinder. From 2003 to 2011, Eliahu Inbal conducted a series of the complete symphonies of Bruckner at

with the WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne, concluding with the unfinished Ninth Symphony.

Marienvesper

Every year on 15 August the

Assumption of Mary The Assumption of Mary is one of the four Catholic Mariology#Dogmatic teachings, Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Pope Pius XII defined it on 1 November 1950 in his apostolic constitution as follows: It leaves open the question of w ...

is celebrated by a (

Vespers Vespers /ˈvɛspərz/ () is a Christian liturgy, liturgy of evening prayer, one of the canonical hours in Catholic (both Latin liturgical rites, Latin and Eastern Catholic liturgy, Eastern Catholic liturgical rites), Eastern Orthodox, Oriental O ...

for the Virgin Mary), in 2010 Monteverdi's was performed to mark the 400th anniversary of the work, with the RIAS Kammerchor and the , conducted by Hans-Christoph Rademann. In 2011 the ensemble Concerto Romano, conducted by Alessandro Quarta, performed a combination of works by composers from Rome, Vincenzo Ugolini (), Paolo Tarditi (c.1580–1661, ), Domenico Massenzio (d.1650, ""), and in particular Lorenzo Ratti (c.1589–1630). In 2013 Monteverdi's Vespers were performed again, this time by the

with additional singers, and the Lautten Compagney conducted by Wolfgang Katschner.

Organ concert

Organ concerts have been played on the historic instruments of the region by organists such as Marie Claire Alain, Gabriel Dessauer, Edgar Krapp and Ignace Michiels.

Rendezvous

In 2010 a new series started, presenting artists before their concerts in a separate :

, the percussionist Martin Grubinger and

Menahem Pressler Menahem Pressler (; 16 December 1923 – 6 May 2023) was a German-born Israeli-American pianist and academic teacher. He was known for his work with the Beaux Arts Trio that he co-founded in 1955, playing until its dissolution in 2008, in hund ...

. The guests in 2011 were

Andreas Scholl Andreas Scholl (born 10 November 1967) is a German countertenor, a male classical singer in the alto vocal range, specialising in Baroque music. Born into a family of singers, Scholl was enrolled at the age of seven into the Kiedricher Chorbube ...

and Christian Gerhaher.

Portraits of living composers

A special feature of the RMF is the annual , the presentation of a living composer in talk and music. It was initiated by Walter Fink and has been sponsored by him. From the beginning in 1990 the core of this portrait has been the invitation of a composer for an interview with chamber music. The modern ESWE Atrium was a fitting venue, but since a larger audience got interested the talks were moved to Schloss Johannisberg. In later years more concerts were added, sometimes in different locations, sometimes showing the works of the featured composer in relation to other music, concentrating on large scale works since 2005. Some composers have played or conducted themselves. Songs by Wolfgang Rihm on texts by Goethe were performed, juxtaposed with Goethe-settings by Schubert, by Christian Gerhaher and Gerold Huber on 3 August 2014, just before a performance at the

Salzburg Festival The Salzburg Festival () is a prominent festival of music and drama established in 1920. It is held each summer, for five weeks starting in late July, in Salzburg, Austria, the birthplace of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Mozart's operas are a focus of ...

. They included the second performance of ''Harzreise''.

Composers in residence

* 2013

Fazıl Say Fazıl Say (; born 14 January 1970) is a Turkish pianist and composer who has worked internationally. Life and career Say was born in Ankara in 1970. His father, Ahmet Say, was an author and musicologist. His mother, Gürgün Say, was a pharm ...

* 2014 Jörg Widmann * 2015 Lera Auerbach Beginning in 2013 a new format presents a composer in residence, first Fazıl Say, who was also awarded the of 2013. He appeared in a (workshop concert) after preparing three compositions with seven students of the . He introduced to the pieces and after each work answered questions from the audience. In two sonatas composed in 2012, with Turkish place names as movement titles, he played the piano, first a cello sonata in four movements, then a clarinet sonata in three movements, both including elements of Turkish music as well as jazz. The program ended with his wind quintet Op. 31. Jörg Widmann, Composer and Artist in Residence in 2014, appeared four times, as a clarinet soloist in two chamber music concerts playing the clarinet quintets by

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

and Brahms with the Arcanto Quartet and works by Stravinsky, Schumann and Bartók with his sister, Carolin Widmann, and Dénes Várjon, in a and a with students of the . In the workshop, he presented four of his chamber music works, playing in two of them, ''Fieberphantasie'' for string quartet, clarinet and piano, and a quintet for piano and winds, the scoring of Mozart's quintet K. 452. The other works were ''Air'' for horn solo, and the String Quartet No. 3 ''Jagdquartett''. The composer in residence of 2015 was Lera Auerbach, who performed her works as a pianist in several concerts, including a ''Werkstattkonzert'' (workshop concert) of chamber music with students of the Frankfurt Musikhochschule.

Artists in residence

* 2013 Sol Gabetta * 2014 Frank Peter Zimmermann * 2016 Isabelle Faust * 2017 Igor Levit * 2018

Annette Dasch Annette Dasch (born 24 March 1976) is a German soprano. She has performed in opera and concerts internationally, often portraying List of operas by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Mozart characters such as Elvira in ''Don Giovanni'' at La Scala, Aminta ...

* 2019 Daniil Trifonov * 2020 ''Cancellation Rheingau Musik Festival 2020'' * 2021 Khatia Buniatishvili * 2023 Sarah Willis, Daniel Hope, Sol Gabetta (again), Martin Grubinger In 2017, two pianists were artists in residence, Igor Levit and

Michael Wollny Michael Wollny (born 25 May 1978) is a German jazz pianist and a professor at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Leipzig. He has played with international musicians including Joachim Kühn, Tamar Halperin, Marius Neset, Andreas Schaerer, Émil ...

, who both played several concerts. Wollny invited for a concert at the Kurhaus Wiesbaden the vocalist Andreas Schaerer, the saxophonist Émile Parisien and the accordionist Vincent Peirani.

Closing choral concert

The festival usually concludes with a choral concert in Eberbach Abbey, including rarely performed works. In 2005

conducted Penderecki's '' Polish Requiem'', Helmuth Rilling conducted ' in 2001 and works entitled ''Messiah'' by both Sven-David Sandström and

Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel ( ; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well-known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concerti. Born in Halle, Germany, H ...

in 2009.

Artists

Artists have included Anne-Sophie Mutter, Alfred Brendel,

Mstislav Rostropovich Mstislav Leopoldovich Rostropovich (27 March 192727 April 2007) was a Russian Cello, cellist and conducting, conductor. In addition to his interpretations and technique, he was well known for both inspiring and commissioning new works, which enl ...

, the Alban Berg Quartet,

Zubin Mehta Zubin Mehta (born 29 April 1936) is an Indian conductor of Western classical music. He is music director emeritus of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra (IPO) and conductor :wikt:emeritus, emeritus of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Mehta's father ...

, and

Riccardo Muti Riccardo Muti (; born 28 July 1941) is an Italian conductor. He is current music director of the Orchestra Giovanile Luigi Cherubini. Muti has previously held posts at the Maggio Musicale in Florence, the Philharmonia Orchestra in London, the ...

Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (; 28 May 1925 – 18 May 2012) was a German lyric baritone and conductor of classical music. One of the most famous Lieder (art song) performers of the post-war period, he is best known as a singer of Franz Schubert's ...

has appeared as a recitator, and Giora Feidman and

Bobby McFerrin Robert Keith McFerrin Jr. (born March 11, 1950) is an American singer, songwriter, and conductor (music), conductor. His Vocal pedagogy, vocal techniques include singing fluidly but with quick and considerable jumps in Pitch (music), pitch—fo ...

included their audience in their performance. In 2001,

Dave Brubeck David Warren Brubeck (; December 6, 1920 – December 5, 2012) was an American jazz pianist and composer. Often regarded as a foremost exponent of cool jazz, Brubeck's work is characterized by unusual time signatures and superimposing contrasti ...

and his quartet appeared with the

Jacques Loussier Jacques Loussier (26 October 1934 – 5 March 2019) was a French pianist and composer. He arranged jazz interpretations of many of the works of Johann Sebastian Bach, such as the '' Goldberg Variations''. The Jacques Loussier Trio, founded in 1 ...

Trio.

Chick Corea Armando Anthony "Chick" Corea (June 12, 1941 – February 9, 2021) was an American jazz pianist, composer, bandleader and occasional percussionist. His compositions "Spain (instrumental), Spain", "500 Miles High", "La Fiesta", "Armando's Rhumba" ...

visited in 2009 and jammed with

Roy Haynes Roy Owen Haynes (March 13, 1925 – November 12, 2024) was an American jazz drummer. In the 1950s, he was given the nickname "Snap Crackle" for his distinctive snare drum sound and musical vocabulary. He is among the most recorded drummers in ja ...

, whose band had opened the concert. Other artists of 2009 included

Colin Davis Sir Colin Rex Davis (25 September 1927 – 14 April 2013) was an English conductor, known for his association with the London Symphony Orchestra, having first conducted it in 1959. His repertoire was broad, but among the composers with whom ...

, Ludwig Güttler,

Martha Argerich Martha Argerich (; ; born 5 June 1941) is an Argentine classical concert pianist. Born and raised in Buenos Aires, Argerich gave her debut concert at the age of eight before receiving further piano training in Europe. At an early age, she won sev ...

, Frank Peter Zimmermann, Anne Sofie von Otter and Olga Scheps.

Lorin Maazel Lorin Varencove Maazel (; March 6, 1930 – July 13, 2014) was an American conductor, violinist and composer. He began conducting at the age of eight and by 1953 had decided to pursue a career in music. He had established a reputation in t ...

conducted the

Vienna Philharmonic Vienna Philharmonic (VPO; ) is an orchestra that was founded in 1842 and is considered to be one of the finest in the world. The Vienna Philharmonic is based at the Musikverein in Vienna, Austria. Its members are selected from the orchestra of ...

in Bruckner's '' Symphony No. 3'' and Stravinsky's . In 2011, the

Thomanerchor The Thomanerchor (English: St. Thomas Choir of Leipzig) is a boys' choir in Leipzig, Germany. The choir was founded in 1212. The choir comprises about 90 boys from 9 to 18 years of age. The members, called ''Thomaner'', reside in a boarding scho ...

sang a concert of mostly

motet In Western classical music, a motet is mainly a vocal musical composition, of highly diverse form and style, from high medieval music to the present. The motet was one of the preeminent polyphonic forms of Renaissance music. According to the Eng ...

s, including Bach's in Eberbach Abbey, part of the choir's tour in its 800th year.

, born in the Rheingau, made his debut at the festival in three events, an interview, a trip () to three churches with different concert programs, and an opera recital with his sister Elisabeth in Eberbach Abbey. The Lautten Compagney performed in concert Handel's opera '' Rinaldo'', 300 years after its premiere. The ensemble Le Concert Spirituel, conducted by Hervé Niquet, performed music for up to 40 voices by

Alessandro Striggio Alessandro Striggio (c. 1536/1537 – 29 February 1592) was an Italian composer, instrumentalist and diplomat of the Renaissance. He composed numerous madrigals as well as dramatic music, and by combining the two, became the inventor of madrigal ...

, together with music of Orazio Benevoli, Francesco Corteccia, Stefano Fabbri and

Claudio Monteverdi Claudio Giovanni Antonio Monteverdi (baptized 15 May 1567 – 29 November 1643) was an Italian composer, choirmaster and string instrument, string player. A composer of both Secular music, secular and Church music, sacred music, and a pioneer ...

. Other artists of 2011 included Freddy Cole,

Yo-Yo Ma Yo-Yo Ma (born October 7, 1955) is a French-born American Cello, cellist. Born to Chinese people, Chinese parents in Paris, he was regarded as a child prodigy there and began to study the cello with his father at age four. At the age of seven, ...

, Mitsuko Uchida, Waltraud Meier, Sabine Meyer, Heinrich Schiff, Frank Peter Zimmermann, Arabella Steinbacher, Daniel Müller-Schott,

Xavier de Maistre Xavier de Maistre (; 10 October 1763 – 12 June 1852) of Savoy (then part of the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia) was a French military man and author. The younger brother of Joseph de Maistre, a noted philosopher and counter-revolutionary, X ...

Omara Portuondo Omara Portuondo Peláez (born 29 October 1930) is a Cuban singer and dancer. A founding member of the popular vocal group Cuarteto d'Aida, Portuondo has collaborated with many important Cuban musicians during her long career, including Julio G ...

, Dianne Reeves, Nils Landgren, The King's Singers, the Münchner Philharmoniker with Olli Mustonen and Herbert Blomstedt, and the Windsbacher Knabenchor, among others. In 2013,

Andris Nelsons Andris Nelsons (born 18 November 1978) is a Latvian conductor. He is currently music director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra and ''Gewandhauskapellmeister'' of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra. He was previously music director of the Lat ...

conducted the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra with soloist Sol Gabetta in a program including Elgar's

Cello Concerto A cello concerto (sometimes called a violoncello concerto) is a concerto for solo cello with orchestra or, very occasionally, smaller groups of instruments. These pieces have been written since the Baroque era if not earlier. However, unlike instru ...

and Dvořák's Eighth Symphony. In 2014,

Maurizio Pollini Maurizio Pollini (5 January 1942 – 23 March 2024) was an Italian pianist and conductor. He was known for performances of Beethoven, Chopin, Debussy, and the Second Viennese School, among others. He championed works by contemporary composers ...

made his debut at the festival, playing in the Kurhaus Wiesbaden Chopin's '' Preludes'' (Op. 28) and Book 1 of Debussy's '' Preludes''.

25 years in 2012

Rheingau Musik Festival 25 Wiesbaden 17 June 2012

On 17 June 2012, the 25th season of the festival was celebrated at the , with speeches by Volker Bouffier, Roland Koch and Enoch zu Guttenberg. A concert was played by the and violinist Frank Peter Zimmermann, conducted by

. The 25th season of the festival is celebrated by concerts of "" ("Companions along the way"), artists who have appeared regularly from the beginning, such as the , conducted by Ludwig Güttler, the , conducted by

who had performed the very first concert of the festival, the piano duo Anthony & Joseph Paratore, the boys choir Windsbacher Knabenchor, percussionist Babette Haag, pianists Ewa Kupiec, Gerhard Oppitz, Justus Frantz, Tzimon Barto,

and Oleg Maisenberg, actor Walter Renneisen, the Gächinger Kantorei and Bach-Collegium Stuttgart with Helmuth Rilling, and Enoch zu Guttenberg with his ensembles. Other themes of the anniversary season were "" (Festive Music), "" (Violin Circle) and "" (Organ Dimensions). The was a sequence of works by Alessandro Melani, performed by and the , conducted by Hermann Max, with soloists Veronika Winter, Franz Vitzthum, Hans Jörg Mammel and Markus Flaig, among others. The music was juxtaposed to Monteverdi's ', with James Gilchrist (tenor), James Gilchrist.

Rheingau Musik Preis

In 1994 the festival initiated the that has been awarded annually for musical achievements, to * 1994 Volker David Kirchner, composer * 1995 Alexander L. Ringer, musicologist * 1996 Gidon Kremer, violinist * 1997 ensemble recherche, chamber ensemble for contemporary music * 1998 Toshio Hosokawa, composer * 1999 Tabea Zimmermann, viola player * 2000 Helmuth Rilling, chorale conductor * 2001 Artemis Quartet, string quartet * 2002 , actor, cabarettist, comedian * 2003 Stefan-Peter Greiner, violin maker * 2004 , Society for music in medicine * 2005 Niki Reiser, composer of film music * 2006 Hugh Wolff, conductor * 2007 Windsbacher Knabenchor, boys choir * 2008 Heinz Holliger, oboist and composer * 2009 Christian Gerhaher, baritone * 2010 , opera company * 2011 , musical comedians * 2012 Lautten Compagney, ensemble * 2013

, pianist and composer * 2014

, conductor * 2015

, singer * 2016 Walter Renneisen, actor * 2017 Enoch zu Guttenberg, conductor, and Chorgemeinschaft Neubeuern, choir * 2018 Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor * 2019 Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen,

* 2020

and West–Eastern Divan Orchestra * 2021 Nils Landgren * 2022 Herbert Blomstedt * 2023 Tenebrae (choir), Tenebrae * 2024 Julia Fischer * 2025 Thomas Quasthoff

Broadcast and recordings

Many concerts have been conducted in collaboration with broadcasting stations, namely Hessischer Rundfunk. Selected events were recorded, including: * Beethoven: ''Piano Sonata No. 1 (Beethoven), Sonate f-moll'', Schumann: ''Kreisleriana'', Sergei Rachmaninoff, Rachmaninoff: Prèludes et Etudes, Andreas Haefliger, 1994 * Canzoni & Concerti of Girolamo Frescobaldi,

, Antonio Vivaldi, George Frideric Handel – Guillemette Laurens, Il Giardino Armonico, 1995 * Tschaikovsky: ''Manfred Symphony'', Saint Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, conductor Yuri Temirkanov, live in Kurhaus Wiesbaden, 1997 * Dvořák: ''Biblical Songs'' op. 99, Symphony No. 9 (Dvořák), New World Symphony – Liliana Bizineche-Eisinger, WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne, Kölner Rundfunk-Sinfonie-Orchester, conductor: Gerd Albrecht, live in Kurhaus Wiesbaden, 1997 * Haydn: ''The Seasons (Haydn), The Seasons'', Anna Korondi, Markus Schäfer, Dietrich Henschel, Chorgemeinschaft Neubeuern; Orchester der KlangVerwaltung München, Enoch zu Guttenberg, Eberbach Abbey, 30 July 1998 * Charles Gounod: ''Mors et Vita'', Barbara Frittoli, Lidia Tirendi, Zoran Todorovich, Davide Damiani, Budapest Radio Choir, hr-Sinfonieorchester, Marcello Viotti, 4 July 1999, Eberbach Abbey * Carl Orff –

, Gert Henning-Jensen, Zeljko Lucic, Orfeón Donostiarra, hr-Sinfonieorchester, conductor: Hugh Wolff, live in Eberbach Abbey, 2002 * Mahler: ''Symphony No. 2 (Mahler), Symphony No. 2'', Brigitte Geller, Iris Vermillion, Festival Chor und Orchester Stuttgart, Helmuth Rilling, 30 August 2003, Eberbach Abbey * Handel: ''Messiah (Handel), Messiah'', Anna Korondi, Annette Markert, Werner Güra, Sebastian Noack, Cappella Istropolitana, Choir of the Bamberger Symphony, Rolf Beck, Eberbach Abbey, 21 August 2004 * Mozart: ''Great Mass in C minor'', Version of Robert D. Levin, Diana Damrau, Juliane Banse, Lothar Odinius, Markus Marquardt, Gächinger Kantorei, Bach-Collegium Stuttgart, Helmuth Rilling, 2006 * Mahler: ''Symphony No. 3 (Mahler), Symphony No. 3'', Waltraud Meier, Limburger Domsingknaben, MDR Rundfunkchor, hr-Sinfonieorchester,

, Eberbach Abbey, 23 June 2007 * ''Unergründliches Geheimnis'' (''Enigmatic Secret''), Sacred choral music of Brahms, Bruckner, Mendelssohn and Reger, Windsbacher Knabenchor, Marktkirche Wiesbaden, 18 July 2008 * ''Rheingau Musik Festival 2009, Best of Vol. III'', Baiba Skride, Nikolaj Znaider, Alfredo Perl,

, Christian Gerhaher, Windsbacher Knabenchor, 2009

References

External links

*
Entries for Rheingau Musik Festival
on WorldCat, recordings, books and articles *
Rheingau Musik Festival mit 86 Prozent Auslastung
(in German) musik-heute.de 3 September 2021 {{Authority control Music festivals established in 1987 Classical music festivals in Germany 1987 establishments in West Germany Rheingau Frankfurt Radio Symphony