ZUGumZUG

Pina Bausch Centre under construction, Bundesallee 260, 42103 Wuppertal
Entrance: 10 € / 8 € reduced

ZUGumZUG brings musical worlds together!
A special project celebrates the accordion as Instrument of the Year 2026.

In 2026, the accordion is the Instrument of the Year. To mark the occasion, eight accordionists from across Germany are coming together. They have all made a name for themselves as soloists in jazz, classical music or contemporary music. Now they are pooling their energy and creativity in this newly founded ensemble. At five venues across Germany, under the motto ZUGumZUG, they will join forces with a local accordion orchestra to create an extraordinary concert performance that bridges tradition and the avant-garde.

The three-part evening begins with a specially commissioned work by the Uruguayan composer Osvaldo Budón. Under the guidance of choreographer Thusnelda Mercy, all the musicians move together through the space, combining sound and movement into an intense, physical experience. In the second part, the accordion orchestra presents works from its repertoire and offers an insight into the vibrant orchestral culture. To conclude, the project ensemble joins forces with the orchestra in a musical process combining improvisation, performance and spatial sound design, which redefines the sound apparatus of the accordion orchestra.

Over the course of the evening, the full range of the accordion can be experienced – from folk-inspired timbres to textures with an electronic feel. When 30 or more accordions move around the space, a unique sonic experience emerges: dense soundscapes, delicate lines, overlapping structures and shifting clouds of sound envelop the audience. ZUGumZUG is a play on proximity and distance, density and transparency, past and future – and a powerful plea for the sonic diversity and expressive power of an instrument that is waiting to be rediscovered.

Concept: Eva Zöllner & Ute Völker
Composition: Osvaldo Budón
Movement in space: Thusnelda Mercy
Accordionists: Vojta Drnek, Kathi Koenig, Silke Lange, Annette Rießner, Florian Stadler, Susanne Stock, Ute Völker & Eva Zöllner
Orchestras: Villakkordeon, 1st Essen Accordion Orchestra, Ensemble cisis Bochum, Ruhr Accordion Orchestra