Chemnitz will hold the title of European Capital of Culture in 2025 and will present itself internationally in close cooperation with the German National Tourist Board (GNTB). Together with Chemnitzer Tourismus und Marketing GmbH (CTM), the GNTB will be promoting the cultural highlights and events around the world from 2024, putting the spotlight on the transformation of the Saxon city and its region from an industrial metropolis to a vibrant cultural region.
In the run-up to the Capital of Culture year, the GNTB and Chemnitz 2025 are organising a Welcome Tour to get international tourism partners and the media excited about the major event. At the kick-off event in Zurich on 1 November 2024, the audience at the Kraftwerk experienced a special evening of bandoneon and tango music. Jürgen Karthe from the Saxon Mozart Society is one of the few who has mastered the instrument. What does Argentinian tango have to do with Chemnitz? Carl-Friedrich Uhlig from Chemnitz is the inventor of the concertina, the predecessor of the bandoneon, which was built in Saxony and exported to Argentina. The evening was rounded off with a culinary treat from chef Angelique Fleischer and a hands-on programme from Pia Hackner from Makerhub Schneeberg and Wilhelm Reichel from studio Hängengebleiben, who showed the guests how to make traditional shoehorns.
The next stops on the Welcome Tour are on 7 November 2024 in Vienna and on 14 November in Prague. The events offer exclusive insights into the recently published programme and serve as a networking platform for partners and media representatives who want to promote Chemnitz 2025.
The Capital of Culture year will open on 18 January 2025. You can find the entire programme at chemnitz2025.de/programme.
