Founded in Berlin (instrument: violine) in 1982, the Akademie für Alte (instrument: fagott) Musik Berlin — commonly known as Akamus — is today among the world’s leading historically informed (instrument: horn) chamber orchestras and can look back on an unparalleled success story.
Whether in New York or Tokyo, London or Buenos Aires, the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin (Akamus) is a frequent and highly sought-after guest on the world’s leading concert stages. In the cultural life of its home city of Berlin, the ensemble is a central pillar. For more than 35 years, the orchestra has presented its own subscription series at the Konzerthaus Berlin. Since 1994, it has also regularly devoted itself to Baroque opera at the Staatsoper unter den Linden.
Akamus performs under the rotating leadership of its concertmasters Bernhard Forck and Georg Kallweit, its concertmistress Mayumi Hirasaki, as well as selected guest conductors. The ensemble shares a particularly close and longstanding artistic partnership with René Jacobs. In recent years, it has also been led by Emmanuelle Haïm, Bernard Labadie, Paul Agnew, Diego Fasolis, Fabio Biondi, Rinaldo Alessandrini, Christophe Rousset, and Francesco Corti.
Akamus regularly collaborates with internationally renowned soloists such as Isabelle Faust, Kit Armstrong, Alexander Melnikov, and Carlo Vistoli. Together with the dance company Sasha Waltz & Guests, the ensemble created the successful production Dido and Aeneas (music by Henry Purcell), which has so far been performed around one hundred times, from Berlin to Sydney.
Particularly noteworthy is its outstanding collaboration of more than 30 years with the RIAS Kammerchor, whose quality is documented in numerous award-winning recordings. The ensemble also maintains close partnerships with the Bavarian Radio Chorus and the Audi Youth Choir Academy.
The ensemble’s recordings have received all major international awards, including the Grammy Award, Diapason d’Or, Gramophone Award, Choc de l’année, and the Annual Prize of the German Record Critics. In 2006, the orchestra was awarded the Telemann Prize of the City of Magdeburg; in 2014, the Bach Medal of the City of Leipzig; and in 2026, the Honorary Prize of the German Record Critics’ Award.