Local bands conquer the stage: a sensation at the music festival in Ulm!

Local bands conquer the stage: a sensation at the music festival in Ulm!

The German Music Festival reached its climax on June 3, 2025 in the twin cities of Ulm and Neu-Ulm. Since 1989, this festival has brought together Germany's brass music scene every six years and this year almost 22,000 participants from 450 music groups took part. Under the motto “Music builds bridges”, the event not only offered musical performances, but also a platform for exchange for the over 500,000 active members in wind orchestras and similar groups.

A particularly outstanding result was achieved by BMV Jettingen, which achieved 94.2 points in the highest level. The orchestra, led by conductor Christian Weng and consisting of around 60 musicians, performed the self-selected piece “Frenzy” by Thiemo Kraas, which was awarded 97 points by the jury. But the compulsory piece “Steiger Variations” by Jörg Murschinski was also praised by the jury, which highlighted the precision, dynamic diversity and expressive interpretation of the musicians.

Successes of the local ensembles

The intensive rehearsals and the musical solidarity of the BMV Jettingen were rewarded with overwhelming applause from the audience. But this club wasn't the only one able to look back on success. The Breitenthal music club achieved “outstanding success” in category 5, while Eintracht Pillowdorf was honored with a “Very Good” certificate. The social association Eintracht Autenried appeared in category 3 with the rating “with outstanding success”. In addition, the Deisenhausen music club achieved 87.6 points and secured third place at the European Championship of Bohemian-Moravian brass music.

The festival in Ulm and Neu-Ulm promoted a colorful program with over 500 events, including concerts, competitions and free open-air events. A special highlight were the so-called “Sound Bridges” over the Danube, which represented an outstanding achievement both artistically and logistically. The two cities and two federal states thus became a lively venue for musical creation.

A celebration for the brass music scene

The German Music Festival competitions are considered the most demanding nationwide competitions in brass and minstrel music, with almost 400 wind orchestras and wind groups taking part. An international jury of experts evaluated the ensembles and thus took part in the award process.

The event was accompanied by BR Heimat with six programs that highlighted various aspects of the music festival. Impressions from the concert competition have also been announced for the brass music concert on June 21, 2025. With such a high number of participants and a diverse program, the German Music Festival will continue to play an important role in the wind music scene in the future.