CTM 2026

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CTM 2026 unfurled amidst the charged interplay of dissonance and resonance coexisting in constant negotiation. This edition was anchored by the theme »dissonate < > resonate«, examining the productive and irreconcilable tensions that emerge when frequencies, identities, histories and perspectives converge. Where past editions of CTM traced a journey from liminality through transformation toward contact, opening portals and learning to sustain ourselves and our practices, dissonate < > resonate was an invitation to inhabit the spaces in-between.

236 participants from 40 countries presented concerts, performances, DJ sets, presentations, discussions, workshops, exhibitions and installations over the course of the 10-day festival, which took place across a constellation of Berlin venues, including Berghain, Radialsystem, Volksbühne am Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz, RSO.Berlin, Morphine Raum, Haus der Visionäre, and more.

Several recurring and expanded thematic strands were braided throughout music and daytime programmes. The »Resynthesising the Traditional« artistic lab continued its exploration of how sonic traditions and inherited cultural forms can be critically reactivated within contemporary contexts, challenging fixed notions of heritage while uncovering new possibilities embedded within cultural memory. Immersive listening remained a key focus through »The Fifth Ear«, which presented spatial sound concerts, workshops, and listening experiences examining the evolving creative potential of audio technologies. CTM's ongoing »Rethinking Music Ecosystems« thread was reinvigourated through a collaboration with Resident Advisor that took shape as a one day conference dedicated to the future of independent electronic music communities.

Collaborations with Kyiv’s ∄ through the »Disturbed Ground« project brought together Ukrainian and international artists to respond to the ecological consequences of war in Ukraine through newly commissioned A/V works, while our Berlin–Seoul exchange with WeSA Festival connected artists and audiences across continents through performances, workshops, and discussions.

Alongside an expanded Discourse programme, the exhibition »Echoes of Tumult« presented in partnership with the DAAD Artists-in-Berlin program and iii – instrument inventors initiative further explored listening as a means of navigating complex sociopolitical interrelationships.

Running in parallel, our sister festival transmediale's dense nexus of hybrid artistic practice and critical inquiry expanded their ongoing dialogue on technology and the possibilities of transformation in an increasingly interconnected and uncertain world.

»Over time, (CTM) has become one of the few music festival that stands out, head and shoulders, from the herd. It has now become a staple in avant-garde aesthetics and meticulous production value, from their posters and choice of venues to their partnerships and residency program, pushing more and more the boundaries of what a complex and modern music festival can, or rather should, be.«
→ Clot Magazine

»Music designed to alter your perception of time and space. If you’ve ever wanted sound to physically move through you, this is your week.«
→ The Next Day

»This year’s CTM split more than ever into nighttime parties and exclusive, often multimedia or theatrical projects. For years I enjoyed how bizarre elements could break into the carefully curated selection, but that wasn’t the case this time. The result is a sense of mechanical, almost inhuman operation, as if the event exists outside the reality of the broader alternative and experimental music scene. Individual sets blur into the experience of the night, into a rave. This is something CTM does better than any comparable event.«
→ Full Moon Magazine

»...I am amazed by the wide variety of the musical palette offered....The political undertone produced something that felt genuinely necessary: not art for art’s sake, but art as a way of inhabiting the present without capitulating to it.«
→ REINCANTAMENTO

»Immersive audio and a focus on infrastructure vision, combined with knowledge, software, and practice, are CTM’s unique strengths compared to other festivals.«
→ Glissando

»I sat on the cold floor, closed my eyes, and let myself be carried away by the intense lights bathing the warehouse and the overwhelming sound. I cried for long minutes. It was the point where the noise transformed discomfort into a kind of liberation.«
→ Music Non Stop

»The significant frequencies of the, as every year, totally overwhelming lineup rubbing against one another, creating something like a vibrating black hole.«
→ Kaput Mag

»Has such a mosh pit ever formed on the dance floor at a Berghain night before?« 
→ taz

• CTM 2026 – dissonate < > resonate: Lectures, Talks & Panels by CTM Festival

• CTM 2026 – dissonate < > resonate: Lectures, Talks & Panels by CTM Festival