Music for climate protection: major protest with concert grand piano in Leipzig!

Music for climate protection: major protest with concert grand piano in Leipzig!

On June 13, 2025, a significant protest took place in Leipzig under the motto “Bach to Nature,” combining music and climate protection. The event, which began at 3:00 p.m. at the Millennium Field in Plagwitz, attracted numerous participants and aimed to promote social and environmental change.

A preliminary program organized by the “Save the Millennium Field” initiative started at 1 p.m. It offered a festive atmosphere with music and speeches before the parade began at 3 p.m. with a 400 kg grand piano towards the market square. Support vehicles in the form of mobile trees, provided by Verkehrswende Leipzig, accompanied the demonstration for the first time.

Political support and creative actions

Representatives from politics, including Volker Külow, Benjamin Schulz and Katharina Krefft, as well as parent representatives from the Gießerstraße primary school, expressed their support for the cause of preserving the Millennium Field as a green oasis in Plagwitz. During the event, the primary school children discussed the petition “There needs to be more plants in our marketplace,” which still needs signatures.

The demonstrative procession led along Karl-Heine-Straße to Käthe-Kollwitz-Straße and finally at the Elster flood basin to the Sachsenbrücke. There were small breaks along the way as the trailer, which was difficult to steer, slowed the group down. The music and the positive atmosphere were very well received by both participants and passers-by.

Musical highlights and closing ceremony

A highlight of the event was the performance by Sebastian Krumbiegel, who performed several songs at the Sachsenbrücke. At 4:15 p.m. a dance performance was presented next to the climate strips. The procession continued to the University of Music and Theater before finally reaching the Leipzig market square at 6:15 p.m.

Around 2,000 people gathered on the market square for a musical and political ceremony. Mayor Burkhard Jung and Michael Maul, director of the Bach Festival, welcomed the participants. Musical contributions from the protest wing, joint music-making with the Bridges Chamber Orchestra and Leipzig choirs rounded off the program. A speech from the Protest Wing Initiative ceremoniously concluded the event.

The protest wing in Leipzig wove the elements of music and activism in a unique way, calling for an urgent confrontation with the climate crisis. As part of an ongoing movement, organizers hoped to continue to raise people's awareness of environmental issues and initiate sustainable change.