LEHNINER WINTER MUSIC

former Cistercian monastery in Lehnin.

The series kicks off on 29 November with the traditional Advent sing-along at the Lehnin Advent market, to which everyone is warmly invited. Well-known Advent carols will be sung together.

On the Sunday before Christmas Eve, the fourth Sunday of Advent, Johann Sebastian Bach’s Christmas Oratorio will be performed in the Lehnin monastery church – one of the most famous works in the history of music and, for many people, inextricably linked with the Christmas celebrations. With festive splendour and a lively joy in making music, the Lehnin Choir, vocal soloists and guests, together with the Berlin Baroque Ensemble, will perform the first and third cantatas of the work.

Christmas Eve on 24 December 26 will be accompanied by a festive concert in the Lehnin Monastery Church. Gerhard Oppelt will perform Olivier Messiaen’s ‘La Nativité du Seigneur’ (‘The Nativity of the Lord’), one of the most significant organ works of the 20th century, on the newly installed Wegscheider organ. Within the unique acoustics of the monastery church, Messiaen’s expressive musical language in the ‘Nine Meditations for Organ’ creates an intense listening experience, bridging musical vision and new sonic dimensions.

In early July 2026, Regional Church Music Director Gunter Kennel was installed as titular organist on the new Wegscheider organ. On Christmas Day, he will present a contemplative and festive programme that showcases the instrument’s extraordinary tonal diversity. The programme features works by G. Muffat, J. S. Bach, L. Boëllmann and Gunter Kennel himself.

This year’s Lehnin Winter Music Festival will conclude with the New Year’s Eve concert ‘Fireworks for Organ’. Gerhard Oppelt will perform works by Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck, Johann Sebastian Bach and other composers on the Wegscheider organ, bidding farewell to the year in the special atmosphere of St Mary’s Abbey Church.

PROGRAMME:

Sunday, 29 November 2026, 4.00 pm, Lehnin Advent Market

Advent carol singing

Sunday, 20 December 2026, Lehnin Monastery Church, 12 noon–1 pm

J. S. Bach, Christmas Oratorio, Cantatas 1 & 3

Soloists, Lehnin Choir and guests, Berlin Baroque, conducted by Gerhard Oppelt

Tickets: €18/€15 for numbered seats (front), €15/€12 for remaining seats (middle and back), €5 for young people

(aged 15–18), children free | Box office opens 1 hour before the concert begins | Advance bookings: 030 80 90 80 70

Christmas Eve, 24 December 2026, Lehnin Monastery Church, 10.00 pm – 10.50 pm, free admission!

Olivier Messiaen, *La Nativité du Seigneur*, Nine Meditations for Organ

At the Wegscheider organ: Gerhard Oppelt

Friday, 25 December 2026, Lehnin Monastery Church, 3–4 pm, free admission!

Organ concert featuring works by G. Muffat, J. S. Bach, L. Boëllmann and Gunter Kennel

On the Wegscheider organ: Titular organist Gunter Kennel

New Year’s Eve, 31 December 2024, Lehnin Monastery Church, 4–5 pm, free admission!

Fireworks for organ – works by J. S. Bach, J. P. Sweelinck, Ch.-M. Widor and others

On the Wegscheider organ: Gerhard Oppelt