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Visit Germany

September 26, 2011

The former East German city of Leipzig has a reputation for some of the most exciting new art. It was the home of musical greats Bach and Bartholdy and remains a breeding ground for contemporary art and life.

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Installation at an exhibition of the New Leipzig School
Image: AP

Leipzig is positively stacked with cultural highlights and you will be awash with them from the moment you arrive.

If you take the train, you will find Leipzig's central station a 100 year old architectural wonder. It is a center piece for the city and its 500,000 residents, but it is also a perfect example of the city's seemless mix of the old and the new, the historic and the modern.

Famous composers such as Johann Sebastian Bach and Felix Mendelsohn Bartholdy left their mark on Leipzig and were influential in sacred music in Europe. Bach remained the head of Leipzig's St. Thomas Choir until his death in 1750. The boys' choir is one of the oldest in Germany and continues to perform regularly.

But Leipzig is also significant for its contemporary works and movements. The New Leipzig School, for instance, has produced some of the most successful global artists, like Neo Rauch.

The city is brimming with new artistic life - and a fantastic night life as well.

Author: DW-TV
Editor: Zulfikar Abbany