Four decades of music festival history - and yet in its anniversary year, the Kissinger Sommer is fresher, bolder and more inspired than ever. From June 11 to July 18, 2026, Bad Kissingen celebrates a cultural festival that listens deeply to the European music tradition and at the same time opens its eyes wide: under the motto "Mazel Tov!" - a cheerful, heartfelt congratulations and at the same time a tribute to the rich Jewish culture that has shaped the once sophisticated world spa for centuries.

The festival takes the anniversary as an opportunity to reflect on its own history as well as the historical topography of the town. For a long time, Bad Kissingen was home to one of the most important Jewish communities in Bavaria; its summer guests - including Albert Einstein, Max Liebermann and Oscar Straus - helped to write European cultural history. Special guided tours, readings and a top-class symposium bring this tradition to the fore. In the concerts, a widely ramified musical cosmos unfolds, ranging from klezmer to cabaret, from Fanny Hensel to Kurt Weill, from Mahler to Weinberg. A feast for the ears, heart and mind.

Budapest Festival Orchestra © Ákos Stiller

However, the Kissinger Sommer remains above all a place of great musical events. The top international orchestras will once again be performing in the Max Littmann Hall: the Budapest Festival Orchestra with Iván Fischer, the BBC Symphony Orchestra under Sakari Oramo, the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, the hr-Sinfonieorchester and the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra - they all form an impressive orchestral dramaturgy over the course of the five festival weeks. Anne-Sophie Mutter, Julia Fischer, Lisa Batiashvili, Christian Tetzlaff and Kian Soltani provide the festive highlights.
A special highlight is the big anniversary concert: Sir Simon Rattle conducts Orff's "Carmina Burana" as a monumental open-air experience in front of the historic tournament building - an event that is already considered legendary. And to crown the festival finale, Cecilia Bartoli returns to Bad Kissingen for three evenings, including a semi-staged performance of Gluck's Orfeo ed Euridice.

Ann Sophie Mutter © The Japan Art Association, The Sankei Shimbun

As always, the Kissinger Sommer proves to be a festival for all generations and all musical temperaments. From chamber music with international stars to jazz, techno and klezmer, from the "Symphonic Mob" to the popular outdoor prelude concerts. Discussion formats, exhibitions and city tours deepen the content; matinees, lounges and after-concert meeting points create places for exchange.
The fact that all of this rests on a foundation of extraordinary venues - from the acoustically brilliant Max Littmann Hall to the Kurtheater and the Erlöserkirche - makes the Kissinger Sommer 2026 a total work of art. A festival that draws on history, shines in the present and at the same time points far into the future.
June 11 to July 18, 2026
www.kissingersommer.de