Woodstock der Blasmusik - the international brass music festival in Innviertel

🎺🎺 Woodstock der Blasmusik 🎺🎺

The Most Important Questions & Answers About the "Woodstock der Blasmusik"

❓ How did the WDB come about? What were the motivations behind it?

In 2004, the then-fledgling brass band MaChlast spent an entire weekend rehearsing in St. Martin im Innkreis. It was a musical weekend with a keg or two of beer. “If we’re going to do this, let’s go all out…,” thought the musicians led by Simon Ertl, and they wrapped things up with a small concert at the Hofwirt with about 70 guests. A year later, MaChlast and da Blechhauf’n held a CD release party at the St. Martin riding hall. By 2006, it had already grown into a three-day festival. The first “Bohemian Spring”—featuring MaChlast, da Blechhauf’n, and the Makos brass band. The event grew every year until 2010, reaching a peak of 1,800 guests over three days. This growing interest in brass music then gave rise to the idea of a larger festival. In 2011, the time had finally come, and the first “Woodstock der Blasmusik” took place.

❓How did the festival get its name?

Woodstock is the mother of all festivals. The term alone is synonymous with “festival.” Combined with brass music, the name actually says it all: an unprecedented festival format featuring all forms of brass music.

❓When did the WDB reach its current size, and how many visitors did it start with?

It started with about 9,000 guests over four days, back then in Kopfing im Innkreis; most recently, there were 110,000 visitors over four days.

❓So far, we’ve had visitors from the following countries:

Australia, Belgium, China, Germany, England, Finland, France, the Netherlands, Italy, Japan, Canada, Croatia, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Austria, Romania, Russia, Sweden, Switzerland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, the Czech Republic, Hungary, and the U.S.

❓Are there more Germans or Austrians at Woodstock?

• Austria 62%
• Germany 31%
• Switzerland 3%
• Netherlands 1%
• Italy 1%
• Rest of the world 1%

❓How does the backstage organization work? And where do the musicians stay?

Each stage has its own stage manager who oversees the entire operation. In addition, there is one artist coordinator per stage who takes care of the artists. One person is responsible for the entire backstage area. Accommodations are in nearby hotels and lodging facilities, though sometimes the bands simply camp out, depending on their preferences.

❓When does planning for the next WDB begin?

After WDB is before WDB. For the anniversary Woodstock in 2027, however, planning started particularly early, and the booking of the bands, for example, was almost complete even before WDB26.

❓Does every musician really bring their own instrument?

Yes. 99% of the musicians arrive with their instruments; for international artists, backline equipment is occasionally provided, including percussion instruments, amplifiers, guitars, etc.

❓Is there a specific age restriction for festivalgoers?

No, there’s no specific age restriction for our festival attendees. Everyone is welcome—from 0 to 99 years old. We especially look forward to seeing many young guests on our Family Sunday: Children get free admission until their 14th birthday.


🎺🎷🎵 All the details: www.woodstock.at