Dr Stephan Keller
Lord Mayor of the City of Düsseldorf
Ladies and gentlemen, dear friends of jazz music!
The Jazz-Schmiede Düsseldorf is celebrating its birthday! I would like to congratulate this popular venue on its 30th anniversary!
The Jazz-Schmiede has been a permanent fixture in Düsseldorf's cultural landscape for three decades. It impresses with an excellent live music programme and is a place where social discourse is also held.
Repeatedly winning the prestigious APPLAUS Award, most recently in 2024 in the 'Best Live Music Programme' category, is a fantastic accolade. It underlines the artistic excellence, the continuous commitment to a vibrant jazz culture and the nationwide appeal of this unique venue.
The Jazz-Schmiede is much more than just an event venue. Rather, it is a good example of how culture connects people, inspires them to think and sends a strong signal about the importance of the independent music scene.
With the 'Jazz and World Music in the Hofgarten' series of events, which enriches summer cultural life year after year in cooperation with the One World Forum, the Jazz-Schmiede also impressively demonstrates how multifaceted and contemporary jazz can be. The 'Jazz meets science' theme evenings organised jointly with Heinrich Heine University also underline the fact that the Jazz-Schmiede is open to cross-genre projects.
Düsseldorf has a long jazz tradition, and the Jazz-Schmiede continues this in an exemplary manner. This year, for example, it will once again be the venue for the traditional Schumannfest and the relatively new Lovebird Festival. The Jazz-Schmiede is always a place of music and at the same time a place of encounters, dialogue and inspiration. The fact that it always demonstrates a good sense of quality and innovation is thanks to the commitment, passion and idealism of the many people behind this special location.
For the coming years, I wish the Jazz-Schmiede continued creative energy, a loyal
and curious audience and many inspiring moments.
Yours
Clara Gerlach
Mayor
Ladies and gentlemen, dear friends of jazz,
for 30 years now, the Jazz-Schmiede has been an integral part of Düsseldorf's cultural landscape and an outstanding venue for jazz music in Germany. This anniversary is not only a reason to celebrate, but also a wonderful opportunity to honour the importance of this institution.
Over the course of three decades, the Jazz-Schmiede has managed to provide a stage for both established artists and young talents. It has established itself as a meeting place where music is not only played, but lived. The cultural commitment of the Jazz in Düsseldorf e.V. association, which runs this special venue with so much passion, deserves the highest respect and recognition.
The history of jazz in Düsseldorf goes back to the 1960s, when a lively scene developed. With the founding of the Jazz-Schmiede in the 1990s, this tradition was given a new home, which continues to provide fresh impetus today with its outstanding programme. The fact that the Jazz-Schmiede has repeatedly been honoured with the 'APPLAUS' national venue award shows the high artistic quality on offer here.
My special thanks go to everyone who fills this venue with life: the musicians, the dedicated Jazz-Schmiede team, the volunteers and, of course, the loyal audience. Without all of you, this success would not have been possible! I would like to congratulate the Jazz-Schmiede on its 30th anniversary and wish it continued success, inspiring concerts and an enthusiastic audience.
With best regards
Clara Gerlach
Miriam Koch
Councillor for Culture and Integration of the State Capital Düsseldorf
30 years of Jazz-Schmiede - that's more than just an anniversary. It is proof of what is possible when people with passion, perseverance and a clear cultural compass work together to create a place that has an impact - in the city, in the scene and beyond Düsseldorf.
The Jazz-Schmiede stands for vibrant urban culture: open, surprising, always on the move - and yet with a clear line. Music is not simply played here, it is lived here. Sometimes experimental, sometimes deeply rooted in the history of jazz, but always with an ear for the present and a sense of community.
For me personally, the Jazz-Schmiede is an example of how much cultural spaces contribute to social interaction. It creates closeness - between generations, scenes, neighbourhoods. And it gives people a voice: Musicians, audiences, volunteers. Anyone who stands on stage or sits in the audience here experiences culture not as a luxury, but as everyday life, as a democratic promise.
I would like to thank everyone who has made this place possible for three decades - first and foremost the Jazz in Düsseldorf e.V. association, the great team at the Schmiede and the many supporters without whom this commitment would be unthinkable. My special thanks go to Peter Weiss, who has shaped this stage with tireless energy, attitude and passion.
Congratulations on 30 years of Jazz-Schmiede - a place that is making cultural history in Düsseldorf.
Miriam Koch
Prof Dr Anja Steinbeck
Rector of Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf
Dear jazz fans,
a successful interplay is always the result of many individual parts and players who are fascinated by the same topic. Jazz and science have much more in common here than might be assumed at first glance. On the one hand, this lively style of music also has many fans at our university who go to the Jazz-Schmiede and who, like me, are delighted about this special anniversary.
Secondly, our joint event series 'Science meets jazz' has been extremely popular since 2016. This combines a lecture and a concert in the university building: Our researchers show amazing parallels between their specialisms and music. For example, vibrations and frequencies are also measured in experimental physics and in psychology, jazz can help people to calm down.
An evening at the Jazz-Schmiede or an evening at the Haus der Universität - both take us into new worlds and let us go home inspired. I wish the Jazz-Schmiede and its guests as well as the dedicated Jazz in Düsseldorf association many more successful events. We will certainly add more bars to our sonorous connection.
Congratulations on your 30th birthday!
