Sound in the Garden 2026, Day 4 (Michael Rother plays NEU!, Harmonia & Solo Works)

From August 12–16, 2026, Berlin’s Neue Nationalgalerie will once again present the open-air concert series “Sound in the Garden,” featuring ambitious live concerts specially tailored to the venue and a multi-generational lineup that transcends genre boundaries. After four nights of live concerts, Sunday will be dedicated to special sound installations created in honor of Japanese artist Fujiko Nakaya, who is presenting a site-specific fog sculpture in the sculpture garden of the Neue Nationalgalerie.

On this night, we spotlight legendary krautrock and Kosmische Musik pioneer Michael Rother. Celebrating over fifty years of musical innovation, he’ll perform tracks from his seminal work with NEU! and Harmonia alongside his highly influential solo catalog. Rother’s performance centers on the motorik beat—a relentless, forward-surging pulse that mimics the sensation of tearing down an empty highway at midnight. Looped, shimmering guitar melodies and warm analog synthesizer notes layer over this steady foundation, building into a wave of euphoria. By replacing standard verses and choruses with infinite, hypnotic repetition, Rother laid the structural foundation for everything from the post-punk of Joy Division to the soaring arrangements of Radiohead. Listening to these tracks is a direct encounter with the source material that forever redefined how musicians use rhythm and space.