From the Bulgarian Voices to the Pet Shop Bears: Nine very different Berlin choirs will come together for the Vielstimmig Festival at the Humboldt Forum on the weekend of April 18th and 19th, 2026. With short concerts on every floor, they will fill the entire building with sound. The selection of songs is dedicated to the Humboldt Forum’s annual theme, “Relationships and Family.” As highlights of the event, all the choirs – more than 200 voices – will gather twice daily on the foyer galleries to sing together from three different directions. Vielstimmig III marks the third collaboration between the Humboldt Forum Foundation in the Berlin Palace and the Berlin Choral Association, following two successful editions.
Image avobe: © Humboldt Forum Foundation in the Berlin Palace, photo: Stefanie Loos
What is it like to sing amidst houses from Oceania? What does it feel like to sing in front of the centuries-old mural “The Buddha’s Sermon” by the Chinese court painter Ding Guangpeng? What does the foyer sound like when a choral work resounds all around it?
Voices, halls, sounds, art: Nine Berlin choirs bring their songs into dialogue with the spaces and collections from around the world at the Humboldt Forum. A choir comprised entirely of psychiatrists, psychologists, and neurologists; a choir with a Berghain past; a choir that emerged from an association of Afro-German and African families and sings in more than 12 languages; and many other choirs take turns performing short concerts throughout the building. For the third time, the Humboldt Forum, in cooperation with the Berlin Choral Association, invites Berlin choirs to musically explore the building, get to know one another, and network. This offers the audience new and unusual perspectives on the unique spaces, diverse collections, and exhibitions.
The 2026 festival is inspired by the Humboldt Forum’s annual theme: “Relationships and Family.” Whether a place of peace and security or a breeding ground for conflict and trauma, family touches everyone; family leaves no one indifferent. The third edition of Vielstimmig (Many Voices) musically illuminates the complex web of relationships that the multifaceted system of family evokes within us.
In addition to attending the concerts, visitors who enjoy singing have the opportunity to try their hand at music in open workshops in the Mechanical Arena. Alongside the regular Humboldt Forum program for families this weekend, Vielstimmig III offers a special event for all ages: an open workshop in cooperation with the Berlin children’s concert hall “Kleine Lotte” will take place on both days.
In the lead-up to Vielstimmig III, all participating choirs, under the artistic direction of singer and choirmaster Anna-Lena Bolz, are rehearsing three collaborative works on the theme of “Relationships and Family”: pieces by Rian, Joni Mitchell, and Matthias Claudius. These will be performed several times by all the choirs together in the foyer during the festival weekend. More than 200 voices will create a truly special experience within the unique architectural setting.
For admission to all exhibitions on April 18th/19th, the special price of 9 EUR / reduced price 4.50 EUR applies; children up to the age of 19 are free.
Collaborative works on the theme of “Family”: The Moon Has Risen – Lyrics: Matthias Claudius, Melody: Johann Abraham Peter Schulz • Family Reunion – RIAN • The Circle Game – Joni Mitchell
Artistic Direction: Anna-Lena Bolz
Dramaturgy & Moderation: Kaspar von Erffa
Artistic Coordination: Hannah Ginsburg
Participating choirs:
Berlin Oratorio Choir
Founded in 1904 as the “Berlin People’s Choir,” the Berlin Oratorio Choir has been performing choral symphonic works for over 120 years, bringing together secular and sacred music, new works—including world premieres—and older oratorios, masses, and choral symphonies.
Collaborations, guest appearances, and regular performances at the Berlin Philharmonie shape the choir’s concert calendar.
Director: Thomas Hennig
Bulgarian Voices
Bulgarian Voices Berlin is an international women’s ensemble that combines the primal power of traditional Bulgarian folk singing with contemporary performance practice. The Bulgarian Voices have performed at the Berlin Philharmonie and the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg. International tours, prizes at prestigious competitions, and the release of several albums underscore the ensemble’s success.
Director: Boryana Velichkova
Coro Contrapunto
Coro Contrapunto is an a cappella choir with an international lineup; many of the approximately 30 singers come from Latin America or have lived there for an extended period. Their repertoire includes contemporary and traditional pieces from Latin America, as well as arrangements of classical music.
Director: Catalina Restrepo Amaya
Joliba Friendship Chor
The Joliba Friendship Choir is part of the Joliba Intercultural Network in Berlin e.V., an association that has been supporting Afro-German and African families since 1997. The choir members come from four continents. The choir’s focus is on sharing African musical traditions as a space for exchange, friendship, and encounter. Currently, the choir sings in more than a dozen languages, including Bambara, Zulu, Swahili, Ewe, and Mandinka. They learn in the traditional African way, by ear and through repetition, without sheet music.
Director: Djatou Touré
Pet Shop Bears
The “Pet Shop Bears” a cappella group emerged in 2014 from the queer party series of the same name in the canteen of the Berlin club “Berghain”. The repertoire of the now 25-member ensemble includes, on the one hand, classical works for male choirs from the Renaissance to the present day, and on the other hand, specially arranged cover versions of artists such as Björk, Kate Bush, Grace Jones, Freddie Mercury, Joe Jackson, and Rufus Wainwright.
Director: Christian Höffling
Singing Shrinks
The Singing Shrinks are probably the world’s only choir made up entirely of psychiatrists, psychologists, and neurologists – and have been for over 25 years. Whether in village churches, at the Berlin TIPI tent near the Federal Chancellery alongside Eckart von Hirschhausen, or at the Waldbühne open-air theater for Hallelujah Berlin with Rainald Grebe – the Singing Shrinks embody the emotional and psychological power of choral music. Because they know perfectly well: singing is healthy for body and soul. It activates positive emotions, regulates stress hormones, and fosters social connection.
Director: Santiago Mutolo
Siren
Siren is a Berlin-based feminist choir that understands music as a means of protest, solidarity, and social change – founded on the urgent need to draw attention to the ongoing violence against women and girls. Siren uses music to make the strength, vulnerability, and resilience of women audible – loud, multifaceted, and unmistakable.
Spirited
Spirited, comprised of approximately 25 singers, primarily sees itself as a pop choir. Its repertoire is characterized by its great stylistic diversity. A cappella, authentic, and extraordinary: Spirited stands for swinging and precise pop melodies. Familiar songs sound fresh, and the unfamiliar becomes a listening experience!
Director: Ilja Panzer
Women in Harmony
The choir Women in Harmony, which emerged from the Arab Music Initiative Berlin e.V., is today an important part of Berlin’s vibrant Arab music scene. The choir unites women from diverse backgrounds who musically express their personal stories of migration, culture, and identity.
Director: Nabil Arbaain
The three collaborative songs also include choirs from Vielstimmig I and II: The Diplomatic Choir Berlin, Liedertafel Bianca Castafiore, Lostsongs and Sakura.
A collaboration with the Berlin Choral Association
Vielstimmig III is part of the anniversary program for the 125th anniversary of the Berlin Choral Association.
The Berlin Choral Association (Chorverband Berlin e.V.) is the largest amateur music organization in the capital and the most important forum for Berlin’s amateur choral scene. Through its diverse activities, it acts as a professional association, event organizer, and funding provider, providing intensive support for grassroots, broader audiences, and young talent, and creating the necessary conditions for top performances from within its own ranks.
About the Humboldt Forum
One building, four actors: The diversity of voices is already inherent in the collaboration between the partners. The Humboldt Forum is a collaborative effort between the Humboldt Forum Foundation in the Berlin Palace, the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation with the collections of the Ethnological Museum and the Museum of Asian Art of the National Museums in Berlin, Humboldt University of Berlin with the Humboldt Laboratory, and Kulturprojekte Berlin and the Berlin City Museum with the Berlin Exhibition.
WHEN?
Saturday, 18. April 2026, 1–6 pm
Sunday, 19. April 2026, 12 am–5 pm
WHERE?
Humboldt Forum
Schlossplatz 1
10178 Berlín
