European Workshop for Contemporary Music 2025

16-22 September 2025
rehearsal period at  Fryderyk-Chopin-University Warsaw 

23 September 2025, 7.30 pm
concert at Warsaw Autumn Festival
Witold Lutosławski Hall of the Polish Radio, Warsaw

Programme 2025

Wolfgang Rihm: Chiffre II Silence to be beaten  (1983) for ensemble         
Ricardo Eizirik:   junkyard piece I  (2014-16) for an ensemble of musicians and found objects                    
Maciej Kabza:   new piece (2025)for ensemble commission by Warsaw Autumn                                        
Golnaz Shariatzadeh: MOM  (2023) for ensemble and animation                    
Fausto Romitelli:  Amok Koma  (2001) for ensemble and electronics   

In the European Workshop for Contemporary Music (EWCM) young musicians from Poland, Germany and other European countries come together to work on core pieces from the contemporary music repertoire, explore contemporary playing techniques and premiere new works by young European composers. The ensemble consists of about 20 young musicians who meet once a year for a week-long rehearsal period followed by a concert at the prestigious Warsaw Autumn or other European festivals.

The European Workshop for Contemporary Music is aimed particularly at advanced students who are interested in new music and have initial experience in the performance practice of contemporary works. Participants are given the opportunity to expand their musical skills under qualified guidance: Prof. Rüdiger Bohn is the artistic director of the ensemble. The project also conveys the aesthetic and historical background of contemporary music. Musicians from a renowned contemporary music ensemble from Germany (such as Ensemble Recherche, Musikfabrik) join the rehearsals each year to coach the young musicians. Composers provide first-hand insights into different compositional working methods and approaches to interpretation.

The project was initially launched in 2003 by the Polish festival Warsaw Autumn and the German Music Council as the “Polish-German Ensemble Workshop for New Music” and later changed its name to “European Workshop for Contemporary Music”. Since its foundation, the ensemble has established itself permanently at the Warsaw Autumn Festival and has gained international reputation through guest appearances at major festivals such as Ultraschall Berlin, Kontrasty (Lviv/Ukraine), Milano Musica (Italy) and the Darmstadt Summer Courses. By connecting international players in the field of contemporary music, the project makes a significant contribution to intercultural dialog and thus to the growing together of Europe. The focus lies on encounters and cooperation with the new EU member states.

The European Workshop for Contemporary Music is a joint project of the German Music Council and the Warsaw Autumn Festival. It is largely funded by the Goethe-Institut and the Foundation for German-Polish Cooperation.