THE LAST ROSE OF SUMMER 2026

Five concerts over five lunchtimes bring together international musicians for a program that spotlights rarely heard voices—from Old Irish harp music to chamber music by female composers such as Fanny Hensel, Clara Schumann, and Rebecca Clarke, to a saxophone concert.

Judith Ingolfsson and Vladimir Stoupel serve as artistic directors.

The festival is a collaborative event organized by the Mendelssohn Society, with support from the Embassy of Ireland.

The venue is the Mendelssohn-Remise, the headquarters of Mendelssohn Bank at Jägerstraße 51 in Berlin-Mitte.

A special highlight is the return of harpist Siobhán Armstrong, who will open the festival on the first day with a program of Old Irish music from the 16th to the 18th centuries.

The program is complemented by a performance by saxophonist Christoph Enzel, who—together with Judith Ingolfsson and Vladimir Stoupel—will present works by Erwin Schulhoff, Darius Milhaud, and his own compositions, thereby broadening the festival’s sonic horizons.

A central focus of the festival is the music of female composers:

Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel, Clara Schumann, and Rebecca Clarke each chart their own paths between Romantic expressiveness and a new, clearer formal language.

This connection is particularly evident in the third concert—in Rebecca Clarke’s *Duo Concertante* for violin, viola, and piano, composed around 1940, which combines echoes of Johannes Brahms with an increasingly minimalist, modern musical language.

Finally, the closing concert features Brahms’ Piano Quartet No. 1 in G minor, Op. 25, alongside Ernő Dohnányi’s Serenade in C major—bringing the ideas hinted at earlier to a grand finale.

INTERNATIONAL LAST ROSE ACADEMY

Parallel to the concert festival, the International Last Rose of Summer Academy will take place from August 11 to 20, 2026, under the direction of Prof. Judith Ingolfsson.

The summer course invites young musicians specializing in violin, viola, and piano to Berlin and combines individual and duo lessons with thematic seminars on artistic expression, interpretation, and stage presence.

Participants will present their work in two final concerts at the Mendelssohn-Remise, on Wednesday, August 19, and Thursday, August 20, both at 7:00 p.m.

Friday, August 14 – Irish Day

Siobhán Armstrong (Old Irish harp) transports the audience into the Irish soundscape of the 16th to 18th centuries with love songs and laments.

Saturday, August 15 – Artist Friendships

Paul Maillet, Jesslyn Handoko, Judith Ingolfsson, and Vladimir Stoupel will perform works by Fanny Hensel and Clara Schumann, as well as the “F-A-E” Sonata, composed jointly by Albert Dietrich, Robert Schumann, and Johannes Brahms.

Sunday, August 16 – The Voice of the Viola

Judith Ingolfsson (violin, viola), Sif Margrét Tulinius (violin), Jesslyn Handoko, and Vladimir Stoupel (piano) will perform works by Rebecca Clarke and Henri Vieuxtemps.

Monday, August 17 – Saxophone!

Christoph Enzel (saxophone), Judith Ingolfsson (violin), and Vladimir Stoupel (piano) present works by Erwin Schulhoff, Christoph Enzel, Darius Milhaud, and Marc Eychenne.

Tuesday, August 18 – Closing Concert

Judith Ingolfsson, Sif Margrét Tulinius (violin), Alan Stoupel (viola), Friedemann Ludwig (cello), and Vladimir Stoupel (piano) will conclude the festival with Ernő Dohnányi’s Serenade in C major, Op. 10, and Johannes Brahms’ Piano Quartet No. 1 in G minor, Op. 25.

Academy Closing Concerts:

August 19 and 20, 2026, 7:00 p.m. each day

Tickets: 20 € / 15 €

Tickets sold exclusively on-site at the Mendelssohn-Remise

DATES, TICKETS, AND INFORMATION

Lunch Concert Festival: August 14–18, 2026, 1:00 p.m. daily (doors open at 12:30 p.m.)

Online advance sales: HERE

Advance sales on-site: starting July 15 at the Mendelssohn-Remise (daily from 12:00 PM to 6:00 PM)

Remaining tickets available at the box office

Academy Closing Concerts:

August 19 and 20, 2026, 7:00 p.m. each day

Tickets: €20 / €15

Tickets sold exclusively on-site at the Mendelssohn-Remise

Program: HERE (Program subject to change)

Further information: HERE