ince the mid-1900s, Basel has led the world in the rediscovery of Baroque music. Along the way, the city has developed as a hotspot for Renaissance music as well, though this has often been less appreciated by the general public. ReRenaissance is a platform built to showcase this unique scene, thus setting an important building block in the foundation of Basel as a musical capital.

ReRenaissance flourishes in Basel because of the talented musicians who are internationally-renowned for their Renaissance expertise and came to Basel because of the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis.  This project provides these musicians a spotlight in their region and a chance to connect and network with other local musicians. A changing musical director and specially-formed ensembles are selected for each concert; so far, more than 70 professional musicians have collaborated together in ReRenaissance to present varied, new programs. In the hands of these experts, instruments that can be seen in illustrations of the time come to resounding life, such as viols, early violins, rebecs, fiddles, lutes, percussion, transverse flutes and recorders, cornetts, shawms, trombones, early keyboard instruments, and, of course, singing.

Music before 1600 can be experienced anew in the Barfüsserkirche in Basel’s Historical Museum, situated in the charming, historic center of town, every last Sunday of the month. A new, one-hour program is premiered at 6:15 p.m., often preceded by an introduction to the concert’s theme by an expert at 5:45 p.m.

In 2022, ReRenaissance traveled beyond Basel for the first time into other Swiss cities, with an evocative December program entitled “Noël Normand.” More plans are underway to share the exciting “re-birth” of Renaissance music happening in Basel with an expanding audience.