Immerse yourself in contemporary music: "Why We Play" portrays the work of Ensemble Modern more intimately than ever before. The film captures the deeply sensual atmosphere of rehearsals. It shows not only the perfect final result on stage, but also the arduous journey there – the searching, the discarding, and the collective discovery of a musical language. In Schwedlerstrasse, the creation of new music becomes physically palpable. "Why We Play" gives the audience a sense of the motivations and personal struggles of the musicians and composers who breathe life into this organism. The passion of an ensemble that rehearses around 70 new works each year. A film that makes music not only audible, but tangible as a profound human experience and a collective endeavor.

Ensemble Modern - Why We Play

Bergson Kunstkraftwerk

Award of the Goethe Plaque of the City of Frankfurt am Main to Dr. Thomas Jahn

Frankfurter Römer

The evening will be dedicated to exploring possible paths to dying, using as an example a thematically related composition by the recently deceased Ensemble Modern trombonist Uwe Dierksen (1959–2026).

Sava Stoianov

Events

Upcoming events

May 10, 2026

Ensemble Modern - Why We Play · Ensemble Modern

Jun 2, 2026

Award of the Goethe Plaque of the City of Frankfurt am Main to Dr. Thomas Jahn · Ensemble Modern

Jun 15, 2026

Life Wants to Be Complete · Ensemble Modern

Future and recently performed repertoire

Trumpet in SaVaSa Games by Kretzschmar

Ensemble Modern

Trumpet in Communication for Trumpet and Trombone by Dierksen

Ensemble Modern

About

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