Today, the Hamburger Ratsmusik can look back on half a millennium of musical history in Hamburg, as it was in 1522 that the city first employed town players.

Revived by Simone Eckert in 1991, the ensemble has continued this tradition for more than 30 years, dedicating itself with unwaning enthusiasm to historically informed performance on original instruments. The sound of these rare instruments, some of which are more than 300 years old, continues to intrigue and inspire both the “Ratsmusicians” and their audiences.

In addition to traditional programs, they also venture into new formats and innovative programming. It is a matter of the heart for them to offer the audience wonderful concert experiences with "their" music.

The musicians are committed to carrying out ongoing research into the little-known repertoire of their predecessors such as William Brade, Johann Schop and Dietrich Becker, as well as Georg Philipp Telemann and C.P.E. Bach. The Hamburger Ratsmusik brings this music back to life with its narrated concerts, musical readings and CD and film recordings. Their work is complemented by collaborations with international musicians from Europe, China and Iran and with contemporary composers, and these encounters provide the inspiration for the artists’ innovative programming.

The ensemble has rediscovered a wealth of music from the Renaissance, Baroque and Classical periods and recorded more than 40 albums, most of which represent the first time this music has been recorded, for the labels cpo, Hänssler, Carus, Thorofon, audite, NCA, Christophorus and Phoenix Editions, as well as making recordings for all the German radio stations and ORFAustria. In 2006 and 2010, the Hamburger Ratsmusik was awarded the Echo Klassik Prize, and in 2016 the ensemble received the RITTER Prize from the Oscar and Vera Ritter Foundation Hamburg.

The Hamburger Ratsmusik is also a partner of the Hamburg Telemann Society. Since 2014, it has been running its own concert series, elbwärts (‘towards the River Elbe’), in the Lichtwarksaal concert hall, close to the Composers’ Quarter in the heart of Hamburg.

We are pleased to announce that the Hamburger Ratsmusik has been appointed Ensemble in Residence at the International Heinrich Schütz Music Festival for 2023.