History of Klassik am Odeonsplatz

Facts

Venue: Odeonsplatz, Munich
Organizers: City of Munich and Bayerischer Rundfunk

Cast:
Munich Philharmonic (www.mphil.de)
Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra (www.br-so.de)

Capacity:
16,000 attendees (8,000 seats per event day)
Munich’s largest annual open-air classical music festival
14,000 attendees (7,000 seats per event day) since 2025 (expected to continue through 2027) due to renovations at the Feldherrnhalle

Stage:
Feldherrnhalle
Since 2025 (expected to continue through 2027):
transparent round-arch stage in front of the Feldherrnhalle

Performance frequency: Annually since 2000 (with the exception of 2001 and 2020)

Fundamentals

• Klassik am Odeonsplatz was initially founded by the state capital of Munich as a millennium concert to mark German-French reconciliation in 2000.
• With its high-profile performers, state-of-the-art technical equipment, exceptional atmosphere, and location, Klassik am Odeonsplatz is a unique annual event in Germany.
• The event has now become an annual cultural highlight and is an integral part of Munich's cultural life.
• The state capital Munich and Bayerischer Rundfunk present great classical music at reasonable prices.
• In addition to the high-caliber artistic lineup, the extraordinary backdrop contributes to the unique flair of the event: the Feldherrnhalle and the surrounding historic buildings transform Odeonsplatz into an open-air arena with excellent acoustics. The stylish illumination completes the exclusive setting.
• Since 2000, Klassik am Odeonsplatz has quickly established itself as a brand and set new records every year with steadily increasing visitor numbers—in recent years, both concert events have regularly been sold out.
• Due to the season, Klassik am Odeonsplatz also enjoys ideal weather conditions: of the 48 event days since its inception, only one concert (on July 17, 2010) had to be canceled due to inclement weather. The "success rate" of Klassik am Odeonsplatz is therefore an incredible 98 percent.
• Since 2010, the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra's concert has been broadcast live or delayed on BR television (or Das Erste, 3sat, ARD alpha, www.br-klassik.de). Since 2016, the Munich Philharmonic's concert has also been broadcast on various channels (ZDF, 3sat, ARD alpha, www.br-klassik.de, and www.medici.tv). Both concerts are broadcast live or delayed on BR-KLASSIK radio. The broadcasters' respective streaming services (available live and on demand) complement the TV and radio coverage.
• Klassik am Odeonsplatz has achieved very high TV ratings in recent years. The event also reached a large number of users via streaming and radio broadcasts.

Data / History

Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra

Conductors:
Lorin Maazel (2000) – Principal Conductor
Semyon Bychkov (2002)
Mstislav Rostropovich (2003)
Mariss Jansons (2004 / 2007 / 2010 / 2014) – Principal Conductor
, Leonard Slatkin (2005)
, Esa-Pekka Salonen (2006)
, Christoph Eschenbach (2008)
, Andris Nelsons (2009 / 2012)
Daniel Harding (2011 / 2016 / 2021)
Yannick Nézet-Séguin (2013)
Pablo Heras-Casado (2015)
Manfred Honeck (2017)
Cristian Măcelaru (2018)
Alan Gilbert (2019)
Franz Welser-Möst (2025)
Daniel Harding (2021)
Sir Simon Rattle (2022 / 2024) – Principal Conductor
Christian Thielemann (2023)

Soloists:
Julian Rachlin (2000)
Tatiana Mitchko (2003)
Vadim Repin (2004)
Lea Salonga, John Barrowman (2005)
Frank Peter Zimmermann (2006)
Lang Lang (2007)
Rudolf Buchbinder (2008)
Hélène Grimaud (2009)
Angelika Kirchschlager, Thomas Hampson, Julian Rachlin (2010)
Anna Prohaska, Elisabeth Kulman, Janine Jansen, Udo Wachtveitl (2011)
Kristīne Opolais, Joseph Calleja (2012)
Rolando Villazón, Thomas Hampson (2013)
Terem Quartet (2014)
Julia Fischer (2015)
Annette Dasch, Elisabeth Kulman, Andrew Staples, Gerald Finley (2016)
Martin Grubinger (2017)
Diana Damrau (2018)
Renée Fleming (2019)
Igor Levit (was scheduled for 2020)
Sol Gabetta (2021)
Veronika Eberle (2022)
Anja Kampe, Michael Volle (2024)
Daniil Trifonov (2025)

Munich Philharmonic Orchestra

Conductors:
James Levine (2000 / 2002 / 2003 / 2004) – Principal Conductor
Alexander Liebreich (2005)
Andrey Boreyko (2006)
Claus Peter Flor (2007)
Christian Thielemann (2008) – General Music Director
Semyon Bychkov (2009)
Thomas Hengelbrock (2010)
Christoph Eschenbach (2011)
Juraj Valċuha (2012)
James Gaffigan (2013)
Alan Gilbert (2014)
Krzysztof Urbański (2015)
Valery Gergiev (2016 / 2017 / 2018 / 2019) – Principal Conductor
, Lorenzo Viotti (2021)
, Daniel Harding (2022)
, Andrés Orozco-Estrada (2023)
, Lahav Shani – Principal Conductor-Designate (2024 / 2025)

Soloists:
Maxim Vengerov (2005)
Hélène Grimaud (2006 / originally scheduled for 2020)
Waltraud Meier (2007)
Adrianne Pieczonka (2008)
Katia and Marielle Labèque (2009)
Sol Gabetta (2010 / 2012)
Lang Lang (2011 / 2014 / 2023)
Martin Grubinger (2013)
Daniela Fally, Benjamin Bruns, Jochen Kupfer (2015)
Daniil Trifonov (2016 / 2019)
Yuja Wang (2017 / 2021)
Juan Diego Flórez (2018)
Leonidas Kavakos (2022)
Anne-Sophie Mutter (2024)
Lisa Batiashvili (2025)

Hosts of "Klassik am Odeonsplatz"
, Senta Berger (2005)
, Sabine Sauer (2006 / 2007)
, Christoph Süß (2010)
Udo Wachtveitl (2012)
Roger Willemsen (2014 / 2015)
Maria Furtwängler (2022)
Maximilian Maier (2023)
Siham El-Maimouni (2024 / 2025)

Audience origin
50%: Greater Munich
25%: Bavaria
25%: other German states / abroad

Sponsorship
Thanks to the positive image of “Klassik am Odeonsplatz,” marketing for the event has been extremely successful since 2000.
Mercedes-Benz Munich and BayernLB have sponsored “Klassik am Odeonsplatz” every year since the event’s inception. Since 2014, Mercedes-Benz Munich has served as the event’s main sponsor.
Support from corporate partners is a key pillar of the event’s financing strategy.

We would like to express our sincere thanks to all the companies that have supported Klassik am Odeonsplatz in recent years.

Sponsors of Klassik am Odeonsplatz 2026:
Mercedes-Benz Munich (Main Sponsor)
BayernLB
American Express
Riedel Real Estate
Höflinger Müller Bakery
Gahrens + Battermann
HUMMEL Rental Furniture
Das Speisesyndikat
BR-KLASSIK (Media Partner)

(As of: June 2026)