Music Meets Neuroscience as “Notes and Neurons” Series Debuts in Cologne

Cologne/Bonn (Germany), July 13, 2026. “Notes and Neurons: Music for Brain Health” opened with a dazzling concert at the Cologne Philharmonic Hall. Organized by the University of Bonn’s Faculty of Medicine in collaboration with DZNE and other research institutions, the six-event series is part of Germany’s Science Year 2026 – Medicine of the Future.

The nearly three-hour event offered entertaining insights into brain research as well as a journey through time and musical genres – from Strauss and Beethoven to Sting and AC/DC, and the film scores of John Williams and Hans Zimmer. The emotional highlight was a performance by iconic Cologne band Bläck Fööss, accompanied by the University Hospital Bonn choir and the project orchestra conducted by Dr. Theodor Rüber. The “Rhine Power Pipe Band” brought this performance to a stirring close.

A band featuring students from the Cologne University of Music and Dance provided rousing musical accompaniment throughout the evening, with singer Leonora and modern instruments such as drums and electric bass. A virtuoso ensemble from the Gürzenich Orchestra performed works by Mozart, Grieg, and Bach. Finally, British tenor Andrew Staples sent the roughly 2,000 audience members off into the night with Puccini’s famous aria “Nessun dorma”.

Audience participation and high tech in action

The event repeatedly highlighted music as a shared experience. The sold-out audience sang along, clapped to the beat, and transformed the hall into a sea of lights by raising illuminated cell phones in time with the music.

The phones also doubled as research tools. Through a dedicated app, the audience participated in a live experiment exploring how emotions evoked by music affect memory.

Neuroscience took the stage as well: Prof. Daniela Sammler, Prof. Alexander Radbruch, Prof. Joachim Schultze, and Prof. Bernd Weber offered lively explanations of how music affects the brain and how it may support brain health. The audience also learned that a 7-tesla brain scanner can, in a sense, look as deeply into our heads as the famous James Webb Space Telescope can look into the far reaches of the universe. They also witnessed one of the world’s first mobile brain scanners in action on the concert stage and experienced three-dimensional images of the brain of Bläck Fööss vocalist Pit Hupperten.

Violinist Anne Schoenholtz and theater artist Anna Sophie Baumgart hosted the program with playful confidence and effortless humor.

Tour as part of the Science Year

The next “Notes and Neurons” concert will take place in Bonn in October. The series includes six concerts in total and will continue through December.

The popular‑science concert series is a joint initiative of the Medical Faculty of the University of Bonn, the University Hospital Bonn (UKB), the Max‑Planck Institute for Empirical Aesthetics (MPIEA), and DZNE. Funding is provided by Germany’s Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR)on occasion of the Science Year 2026 – Medicine of the Future. More information and upcoming dates (in German): www.notenundneuronen.de