Name: Yesterday, but not past
Start: 2025-12-28T19:30:00
Location: Gotha Cultural Center

Leonie Rebentisch

Thüringen Philharmonie Gotha-Eisenach

Yesterday, but not past

Gotha Cultural Center

Christmas Oratorio

St. George's Church Eisenach

The Thuringia Philharmonic's Christmas concert is a true classic of the December concert program and has become a Philharmonic tradition. For many years, it has exuded a festive atmosphere and set the tone for the upcoming Christmas season. In addition to classical festive music,
this year's surprise program also promises rousing and exhilarating Christmas rhythms. As a special guest, we welcome our Artist in Residence, Alexey Stadler, on solo cello. We cordially invite you to join us for an enjoyable concert in a festive atmosphere and be enchanted!

B2 Philharmonic Christmas

Philharmonic Christmas

State Theatre Eisenach

“rejoice, Fear” – Christmas Oratorio

Margarethenkirche Gotha

The Thuringia Philharmonic Gotha-Eisenach will be playing

On Christmas Eve, a little boy lies in his bed, pondering two crucial questions:

“Does Santa Claus exist? Or is he not?” He listens and looks out into the snowy night,

whether perhaps the bell of a reindeer sleigh can be heard somewhere. But instead of the sleigh, a

Suddenly a smoking train squeaks in front of the little boy's house: It is the Polar Express! Its friendly conductor

ner asks the astonished and fascinated boy to get in, because a fast and adventurous ride awaits him

to the North Pole. On the journey there, the boy meets many other fascinating passengers and learns that miracles never

end, as long as you firmly believe in them. If you also want to know whether Santa Claus lives at the North Pole, then join

Join the Thuringia Philharmonic on their journey on the Polar Express!

THE POLAR EXPRESS – Family Concert

When a sound endures for centuries, when an ensemble of musicians not only survives but preserves, carries on, and renews cultural heritage – then one approaches what one can in good conscience call “tradition.” With the opening of the 2026 anniversary season, the Thuringia Philharmonic Orchestra looks back on 375 years of orchestral tradition – not as a mere chronology, but as a living movement between past, present, and future. This special season invites you not only to hear, but to eavesdrop; not only to remember, but also to think further – and so the Thuringia Philharmonic Orchestra Gotha-Eisenach is celebrating 375 years not as the culmination of achievements, but as a new beginning: namely, into what is possible. The future of music does not begin tomorrow – it begins with the next note of today. In this sense, may the music of this season unite us all, indeed transform us – and remind us of the essence of music: Where people listen together, a space of humanity always arises. 

B1 Festive New Year's Concert – Opening! The Ninth!

When a sound endures for centuries, when an ensemble of musicians not only survives but preserves, carries on, and renews cultural heritage – then one approaches what one can in good conscience call “tradition.” With the opening of the 2026 anniversary season, the Thuringia Philharmonic Orchestra looks back on 375 years of orchestral tradition – not as a mere chronology, but as a living movement between past, present, and future. This special season invites you not only to hear, but to eavesdrop; not only to remember, but also to think further – and so the Thuringia Philharmonic Orchestra Gotha-Eisenach is celebrating 375 years not as the culmination of achievements, but as a new beginning: namely, into what is possible. The future of music does not begin tomorrow – it begins with the next note of today. In this sense, may the music of this season unite us all, indeed transform us – and remind us of the essence of music: Where people listen together, a space of humanity always arises. Full of exuberance, Friedrich von Schiller's poem "Ode to Joy" evokes a feeling that unites all humankind, a kind of divine inspiration that unites and inspires all earthly life. Ludwig van Beethoven was fascinated by this ode from a young age, especially because of its heroic and sublime power of language and its overarching humanistic message. When Beethoven was at the height of his compositional creativity, he was almost compelled to let this "Ode to Joy" resound in the final movement of his 9th Symphony, a daring, vocal-symphonic hymn. Let us all be inspired by the idealism of Schiller and Beethoven and welcome the new year 2026 together!