Concert Series ft. Music from our Archive of Contemporary Compositions
The collections of the “Music and AV Media” department at the SLUB are renowned far and wide: sources of Protestant church music dating back to the 16th century, court music from the 18th and 19th centuries, bourgeois music, and Saxony’s audiovisual heritage are archived at the SLUB as important testimonies to the rich cultural life of Saxony. Our “Archive of Contemporary Compositions” is a particular treasure. Some examples from the collections will now be heard again in a concert series.
Over four evenings in the spring of 2026, we will once again present music from our Archive of Contemporary Compositions, showcasing the broad yet clearly focused spectrum of our nationally significant collection. Composers from different generations, different schools, and different styles—but all with a connection to our archive—will be presented by renowned performers such as ensemble unitedberlin, the Zentaur String Quartet, the New Dresden Piano Trio, and continuum XXI.
In cooperation with the Sorbian Institute and the Saxon Music Federation.
Die Veranstaltungen im Überblick
More events coming soon. Please visit this page again.
The unknown Juro Metsk
Film, talk, music and source presentation | April 27, 2026 | 18:00 | SLUB Klemperer-Saal
Performers: ensemble unitedberlin
Compositions: Juro Mětšk - stage music
"An unusual Mětšk indeed - but one who knew exactly what he wanted and how to achieve it. (Gerald Felber: On duty, but not on command. On the stage music of Juro Mětšk)
The estate of the Sorbian composer Juro Mětšk, which is kept in the Archive for Contemporary Compositions at the SLUB, also contains scores for various pieces of stage music. In collaboration with the Foundation for the Sorbian People, the music for "Wendische Schiffahrt" and "Teufelsbrücke" was recently recorded by the ensemble unitedberlin - making previously little-known works by this important but largely equally little-known composer available to a wider audience. Reason enough for us to bring the music and the project to the stage of the Klemperersaal.
Dialogues: Contemporary Music for String Quartet
Concert and presentation of sources | May 08, 2026 | 7:00 pm | SLUB Klemperer-Saal
Performers: Zentaur String Quartet
Compositions by: Beste Özçelebi, Knut Müller, Peter Helmut Lang, Christian Diemer, Max E. Keller and Tobias Schick
"'Dialogues' is an invitation to experience the importance of music as a medium of understanding and to reflect on the significance of communication - both in music and in social interaction. Because in the diversity of voices lies the power to open up new ways of mutual understanding." (Tobias Schick)
The concert focuses not only on the instruments' ability to conduct a discourse, but also on the dynamics that arise when conversations do not always proceed harmoniously. Situations are explored in which the four voices hold opposing opinions, talk past each other or even come into conflict. The aim is to explore the boundaries of a dialog: When is a conversation productive? When do misunderstandings or tensions lead to new insights? And how can musical conflicts be resolved creatively?
Music of extremes #6: Hand and Machine - Baroque, Romantic and Contemporary
Concert and presentation of sources | May 12, 2026 | 7:00 pm | SLUB Klemperer Hall
Performers: continuum XXI
Compositions by: Georg Friedrich Händel, Richard Röbel, Jean-Philippe Rameau, Francois Couperin, Alberto Arroyo, Anne Marie Najderek, György Ligeti
"Concerts of this kind, which are characterized by originality and follow the path of adventure, are worthy of all honours." (Arturo Reverter, Scherzo)
Hand and machine - under this motto, works from the 18th, 19th and 21st centuries from our collections will be performed on historical instruments. Aspects of mechanization versus naturalness, escapism and a return to Romantic ideals in a society marked by modern alienation form the central theme with works by Georg Friedrich Händel, Carl Maria von Weber and Anne Marie Najderek.
Tripel - New Works for Piano Trio
Concert and presentation of sources | May 19, 2026 | 7:00 pm | Klemperer Hall of the SLUB
Performers: Neues Klaviertrio Dresden
Compositions by: Carsten Hennig, Lydia Weißgerber, Alfred Holzhausen, Friedemann Stolte, Christian FP Kram, Knut Müller
"You often hear or read: a composer today can draw on everything that music history has to offer. That sounds more generous than it is - because where everything is possible, it becomes all the more difficult to uncover the unexpected, the touching. Nevertheless, I find it a wonderful task to search for forms that move the familiar away again and, if you're lucky, make the familiar feel like new territory." (Lydia Weißgerber)
The "Neue Klaviertrio Dresden" has been promoting these efforts for decades, stimulating new compositions and thus creating the conditions for the further development of literature for this instrumentation. In addition to the composition by Lydia Weißgerber, works by Carsten Hennig, Alfred Holzhausen, Friedemann Stolte, Christian FP Kram and Knut Müller will be performed.
A literature series organised by Dresden Municipal Libraries, Saxon State and University Library Dresden (SLUB) and Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung Sachsen.
