The fact that there is much more that unites than divides nations, genres, traditions and even eras in music may sound generalized, worn out and banal. Even confusing. Because if everything is connected to everything else, where is the orientation? The Viennese formation The Erlkings is a perfect example of a case of seemingly inextricable connections. But her way of playing the song genre works amazingly directly, because it sounds strange and yet familiar. And not a bit banal.

The head of the Erlkings, singer-songwriter Bryan Benner, describes himself as an "American born troubadour" and is a self-confessed Viennese, like Hanseatic-born Brahms, the fixed star of this edition of the song festival. "Troubadour" Benner takes the seriousness with which classical music is performed in Vienna in his own way: "I was tempted to play with it, to create a vacuum in which humor and lightness can arise."

Instead of piano, the Erlkings perform with guitar, cello, tuba and percussion, and sing in English. In Heidelberg, they investigate what folk songs in the classical and romantic periods are all about, arranging and interpreting them in their own way.

Concert with intermission