Gagaku: Japan’s music for gods and emperors

During the 2026 Shirabe Festival season, the Weltmuseum Wien will become a resonance chamber for a centuries-old musical tradition. In a performative workshop concert, the audience will encounter gagaku, Japan’s oldest musical genre and a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site, not as a static exhibit, but as a living musical practice.

The focus is on the music itself: traditional gagaku pieces are performed in their original form and enter into dialogue with contemporary new compositions created especially for this format. The musicians open up the performance space, provide insights into sound structures, playing techniques, and aesthetic concepts, and make audible how ritual, time, and sound are interwoven in gagaku.

Between the musical sequences, there is room for exchange and participation – questions, short demonstrations, and selected participatory moments invite the audience not only to listen to gagaku, but also to experience it physically and spatially. The result is a concert format that combines performance and education, providing immediate access to one of the world’s oldest musical traditions.

Note: This evening is offered as part of the Shirabe Festival, June 8–14, 2026, in Vienna.
Visit the main concert of the Shirabe Festival, ama no gawa – Music from Another World, on June 12. This is a unique opportunity to experience the entire Gagaku Ensemble on a Viennese stage!

Concert and workshop in German language
All guests require a valid museum ticket to participate in the event.
Participation is free for Annual Ticket holders, Weltmuseum Wien Friends, Patrons, Members, and Ambassadors as well as ICOM members and holders of the Kulturpass.
Registration: friends@weltmuseumwien.at
Meeting point: WMW Forum
Admission from 6.30 p.m.