Hearing the Berliner Philharmoniker: Concerts and Tickets

This guide is for people who have moved to Berlin from abroad, with or without children, and want to hear the Berliner Philharmoniker live, on screen, or for free at lunchtime. It covers the concert hall, what is on this season, how tickets and discounts work, and where to look for other concerts in the city.

• The Philharmonie and its two halls
• The 2026/27 season: what is coming up
• Tickets, packages and discounts
• Concerts for children and families
• Berlin’s wider events calendar
• FAQ

The Philharmonie and its two halls

The Berliner Philharmoniker (the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra) plays at its home, the Philharmonie Berlin. When you browse the orchestra’s official website, each concert lists one of two venues inside the building. The Main Auditorium is the large hall used for full orchestral concerts. The Chamber Music Hall is the smaller hall for chamber music, recitals and many guest performances. Before you book, check which hall your concert is in. A string quartet in the Chamber Music Hall feels very different from a full symphony in the Main Auditorium.

If you are curious about the building, the orchestra offers guided tours of the Philharmonie, which it describes as an architectural highlight. A tour is a good first visit if you are new to the city and want to see the hall before you spend money on a concert. The website lists tour dates and prices, and the address and directions are there too.

The 2026/27 season: what is coming up

The orchestra is in its 2026/27 season. It opened the season on tour in the Americas, starting at Carnegie Hall in New York, with Kirill Petrenko conducting and Víkingur Ólafsson playing Brahms’s Piano Concerto No. 1. Back in Berlin, the programme is split into series, which makes it easier to find what suits you. The series include Modern, Lunch Concerts, Piano, Children and Family, Singers, Chamber Music, Early Music, Jazz, World, Organ, and Talks and Literature. There are also festivals such as Musikfest Berlin, the Easter Festival, the Baroque Festival, the Biennale and the Strom Festival.

Here are some dates from the current listings:

• Sat 31 October 2026, Chamber Music Hall: the Karajan-Akademie (the orchestra’s academy for young musicians) with the painter Norbert Bisky. The composer Sara Glojnarić will receive the Claudio Abbado Composition Prize that evening, and her new work will have its world premiere.
• 5 to 7 November: Andrés Orozco-Estrada conducts the orchestra instead of Iván Fischer. The orchestra and Fischer agreed together that he would not conduct these concerts.
• Tue 10 November 2026, Chamber Music Hall: Pinchas Zukerman and members of the Berliner Philharmoniker.
• Wed 11 November 2026, Chamber Music Hall: klezmer, hora and love songs with She’Koyokh and Çiğdem Aslan, part of the World series.
• Sun 15 November 2026, Chamber Music Hall: the Kyiv Symphony Orchestra.
• Mon 16 November 2026, Main Auditorium: Il pomo d’oro and Jakub Józef Orliński in the Originalklang series (literally “original sound”, meaning music played on period instruments).
• Sat 21 November 2026, Main Auditorium: Maxim Emelyanychev conducts Mendelssohn, Mozart and Haydn.

Looking further ahead, the website has winter programme highlights from December to 3 April. The season ends with a concert at the Waldbühne, Berlin’s open-air amphitheatre, with Daniel Harding and Augustin Hadelich. Tickets for it are already on sale. Check the website for the date and prices.

Tickets, packages and discounts

The orchestra’s website does not list prices on its homepage. Prices depend on the concert and the seat, so look up each event on the official site and book there. A few offers are worth knowing about before you buy:

• Lunch concerts at the Philharmonie Berlin are free of charge. If you work nearby or want to try the hall without committing to an evening ticket, start here. The website lists the dates and any rules on getting in.
• Flex packages let you pick your own concerts and save up to 15 % compared with buying them one at a time. This makes sense once you know you will go several times a season.
• The ClassicCard is the orchestra’s offer for young people under 30. If you or your teenage or adult children qualify, check the website for how it works.
• The Digital Concert Hall is the orchestra’s streaming service, with concerts live and on demand. It is useful when a concert sells out, or when getting a babysitter is not realistic. The website explains the subscription options.

Programmes and performers sometimes change, as the November conductor change shows. Read the news section on the website before you go, especially if you bought tickets months in advance.

Concerts for children and families

The orchestra runs a Children and Family series, so you do not have to guess which concerts suit younger listeners. The website gives the dates and any age recommendations for each family event. Check those details before you book rather than assuming a concert will suit a small child.

If you want to test whether your children enjoy orchestral music before buying tickets, the orchestra has put a full family concert recording of “Peter and the Wolf” online free of charge. Watching it at home is an easy way to introduce the instruments and the idea of a concert. Then you can take them to a live family concert with some idea of what to expect.

For adults, the evening listings in the Main Auditorium and Chamber Music Hall are where you will find the full symphonic programmes, recitals, jazz and world music. Series such as Talks and Literature, and premieres like the one at the Karajan-Akademie concert, are aimed at grown-up audiences who want something beyond the standard repertoire.

Berlin’s wider events calendar

The Philharmonie is one part of a busy music scene. The city’s official portal has an English events page covering concerts, theatre, opera, festivals, film and exhibitions. It has sections for events today and tomorrow, weekend tips, and monthly highlights. It also has a “Top Concerts 2026” page and a “Concert Highlights” page with dates and advance ticket sales.

The monthly pages are good for planning. The November page mentions a short film festival, Jazzfest Berlin and the Christmas markets. The December page covers Christmas events, exhibitions, concerts and New Year’s Eve celebrations. If you are new in Berlin, pairing a Philharmonie concert with one of these listings is a good way to get to know the city’s cultural year.

FAQ

Can I hear the Berliner Philharmoniker for free?

Yes, in two ways. The lunch concerts at the Philharmonie Berlin are free of charge, and the orchestra has put a full family concert recording of “Peter and the Wolf” online for free. For the dates of upcoming lunch concerts, check the orchestra’s website.

Is there a discount for young people?

The orchestra offers the ClassicCard for young people under 30. The website explains how to get it and which concerts it covers. If you are older and plan to attend several concerts, the Flex packages let you choose your own programme and save up to 15 %.

Are there concerts suitable for children?

Yes. The orchestra has a dedicated Children and Family series. Each event’s page on the official website gives its age guidance and ticket details. The free “Peter and the Wolf” recording is a gentle introduction to try at home first.

Where can I find other concerts in Berlin?

The city’s official portal, berlin.de, has an English events section with listings for today, tomorrow and the weekend, monthly highlights, and concert pages with advance ticket sales. It covers festivals such as Jazzfest Berlin as well as theatre, opera and seasonal events.

Official sources: berliner-philharmoniker.de · berlin.de

Last checked: 31 October 2026 against the pages linked above. Prices, opening hours and programmes change; the venue’s own site always has the current details.