Weekend of Music in Leipzig, Germany

When deciding what I wanted to do with my free time this weekend (7/17), I really didn’t know what I wanted to do. I knew I wanted to take advantage of being in central Europe and the ease of traveling to other places, but that was all I was going on. I then decided, “okay, I’m just going to look at a map and see what cities stood out to me and seemed easily accessible by bus or train”. Immediately, Leipzig stood out as I zoomed out of Prague… I remembered first hearing about Leipzig my sophomore year of college when I took my first music history class, Baroque Music. At this time, I really didn’t know what Baroque meant and I didn’t even know if I was actually going to enjoy being a music major. Little did I know, I was about to take on something I’m still passionate about today.

As many people don’t know, Leipzig, Germany is one of the musical capitals of the world. It is home to some of the greatest composers, including Bach, Mendelssohn, Wagner, and Schumann, all of which are names I’ve learned a great deal about as a music major. Bach, however, is the one I was most excited about because Leipzig is the place where he did most of his work for 27 years until his death in 1750. With that, Shannon and I had a very productive weekend, hitting up many cultural spots as well as some live music!

We started our weekend with a trip to the Old Town Hall where we learned a bit about the history of Leipzig and important people in it's history. We next moved onto the Bach museum, which is situated right outside of the St. Thomas Cathedral. The museum was extremely interesting, where we learned about what life was like for Bach as the music director of all the major churches in Leipzig, and we also got to see many original copies of his scores! We next moved to the Cathedral, which is the final resting place of Bach's remains. we were also lucky enough to be there on a day where an organ concert was going on, so for about an hour we were consumed with the beautiful sounds from the instrument I find so complex and interesting. I had such a wonderful time being able to listen to amazing live music in such a historically significant place of western music.

Old Town Hall in Leipzig, converted into an exhibit about the city

Statue of J.S. Bach outside of St. Thomas Cathedral

St. Thomas Cathedral: Bach's workplace for 27 years until his death!

There was truly beautiful music everywhere we went in the city; even outside of the church was a beautiful string quartet playing gorgeous music that we were able to enjoy with a glass of wine at a nearby cafe. The importance of music is everywhere you go in Leipzig and it is clearly appreciated.

On Sunday morning (7/19) we took a tour of the Mendelssohnhaus, where we were able to walk around the house where the composer lived with his family and conducted his works. Additionally, we got to see another live performance at the house of 2 young violinists from other countries studying in Leipzig. 

Violin duo performing at the Mendelssohnhaus

I had such a wonderful time in the musical city of Leipzig. I left there feeling completely appreciative of all the live music I was able to see and how immersed I felt in the culture. I was only there for a short time, but I could absolutely feel the importance of the city's history just from walking around. Being an American girl in the 21st century, I often feel a bit alone in my love for classical music because it isn't something my generation is exposed to on a regular basis. However, this doesn't bother me at all, for being in a place like Leipzig just reinforces that there are so many people in this world that understand the beauty that classical music has to offer. There is always something to learn from it, in terms of musicality, emotion, intelligence, etc... and I love always discovering something new, for there is an infinite repertoire out there. That being said, coming to this place left me feeling wonderful, and I hope to never forget it.

Not a big beer drinker, but when in Germany!