BilleVue

What a celebration! The weather was on our side, allowing for an open-air programme that left the audience in constant awe. The absolute highlight was the musical ‘Rolf’s Vogelhochzeit’ with its bird parade. The famous children’s song composer and musician had written the song cycle 50 years ago. The idea of presenting the piece in a festival version at BilleVue across three stages, complete with a grand bird parade, was a hit with the famous creator of children’s classics such as “Weihnachtsbäckerei”, and he spent the whole weekend singing along with the children.

“I was completely taken aback by the imagination that came to life on stage. (…) Today, at the Kultur Palast Billstedt – a venue I’m very fond of – we’ve seen that ‘Rolf’s Vogelhochzeit’ isn’t just  ‘Rolf’s Vogelhochzeit’, but the bird wedding of many children from many cultures. In that sense, I’m delighted that all of this has come to life here in a way I haven’t felt for a long time.”
Rolf Zuckowski, children’s song composer and musician

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The first BilleVue in 2002 was the biggest town festival Billstedt had ever seen up to that point. Around 150.000 visitors wandered through the hustle and bustle of the two-day street festival, celebrated at KidsMove, sang the specially composed Billstedt song and discovered their neighbourhood in a completely different way through Kunst on Tour, barge trips or guided walks. Schleemer Park was aglow “Lichtermeer” with a sea of lights, and concerts, festivities and information days turned Billstedt into Hamburg’s longest festival stretch for a week.

“BilleVue 1 was brilliant,” said the volunteers involved in organising BilleVue and the overwhelming majority of festival-goers. At the BilleVue office, in the Kulturpalast im Wasserwerk, numerous Billstedt residents also left their personal “thank you” messages.

This huge success was made possible by a unique coalition of associations, the business community, the cultural sector and the local council – who spent a year and a half working on the plans – and a total of more than 600 volunteers. Over eight days, 130 programme items showcased Billstedt’s diversity. The highlight of BilleVue 1 was the two-day town festival – which alone attracted 140.000 visitors.

The celebrations attracted many visitors from all over Hamburg, and the Hamburg media reported on the event in over a hundred articles. “BilleVue has positively changed the image of Billstedt in people’s minds,” says Dörte Inselmann, managing director of BilleVue, summing up the event.

From 10 to 12 September 2004, Billstedt was once again transformed into one of Hamburg’s longest festival streets. Clubs, initiatives, artist groups and local businesses showcased the culture of eastern Hamburg. Young people, families and older people found music, information, games and sports activities, art and culinary delights at the festival in the heart of Hamburg. As an open-minded and self-assured host, the east of the city showed the whole of Hamburg what it’s made of.

Festival verdict: Very good!

The second BilleVue was also largely organised by active members of the Billstedt community. Numerous children’s organisations worked together to organise KidsMove, whilst various working groups developed themes such as wellness, training and education, older people, intercultural issues and the arts. Sports clubs rehearsed for show performances and local bands practised for their gigs on one of the four stages. Many local initiatives planned their activities with a focus on BilleVue.

BilleVue – that’s us!

Echoing the lyrics of the Billstedt Song, representatives from business, politics, clubs and the cultural sector declared: “BilleVue – that’s us!” At the Kulturpalast im Wasserwerk, BilleVue’s administrative office, they meet as partners in a civil law partnership (GbR) that draws up the framework plan for the festival and approves the budget. Every two months, the plenary meeting is also held, at which participants report on their plans. The Uwe Bergmann Agency has once again been commissioned to handle the professional marketing of the venue, which is the festival’s main source of income. Many local and Hamburg-based businesses and housing associations contribute to the financing of BilleVue through sponsorship agreements and donations of money and goods.

From 28 to 30 September 2007, the message was once again: ‘A warm welcome to the town on the Bille!’

For three days, the whole of Billstedt joined Hamburg in celebrating the biggest city and cultural festival in the east of Hamburg. With a varied programme across five stages, Billstedt once again showcased what eastern Hamburg has to offer: celebrity guests, young stars, traditional and intercultural events, plenty of contemporary music and, for the first time, BilleWorld – the first international folk music festival. Folk groups from all over the world presented the musical traditions of their countries. The group “Novisa” were delighted to take first place here. Light art and the Night of the Choirs, activity zones, presentations by regional institutions, a food and gourmet mile, and Hamburg’s largest children’s cultural parade, the KidsMove, rounded off the city festival.

Around 200.000 BilleVue visitors went on a shopping spree at the Billstedt Centre on Sunday, when shops were open for business, despite the rain; the festival area was packed to the brim – the scent of roasted almonds, grilled sausages and pizza filled the air – and a wide variety of fans gathered in front of the stages: from melodious classical music to loud rock, wild children’s music and rousing hip-hop beats in all their forms.

There was also a huge turnout at the ‘Motormeile’, organised for the first time, featuring classic cars, motorbikes and mini-bikes for visitors to try out. Countless young footballers battled it out in the mud and slush for the BilleVue Cup on the Archenholzwiese.

Another special highlight this year was the KidsMove, which this time took the weather a little too literally: on Sunday, the Plitsch-PlatschMove made its way across the festival grounds to loud music, accompanied by its many enthusiastic followers. One visitor summed it up perfectly: “Partying in the sunshine? Anyone can do that, after all!”

In a wonderful fairground atmosphere, the whole of Kirchsteinbek joined forces with Sonnenland from 26 to 28 June to celebrate the Fiesta Musica Kirchsteinbek, marking the 125th anniversary of the parish fair. Music in all its forms was the highlight of the varied stage programme. True to the ‘Fiesta Musica’ theme, orchestras, choirs, bands and dance groups performed music in a variety of styles: International songs, children’s music, classical, jazz and even hip-hop beats rang out across the historic market square throughout the three days, putting the approximately 11.000 visitors in the best possible fiesta mood.

Festival area

On Saturday and Sunday, nearly 40 organisations showcased themselves along the festival promenade; for example, visitors could have a hearing test at the Hear the World stand, visit the classic car exhibition or find out about current events in eastern Hamburg. The HipHop Academy’s graffiti stand was a big hit with children and teenagers; here, under professional guidance, they could design their own graffiti.

Children’s area and the 6th Hamburg KidsMove

There was plenty of fun to be had in the children’s area: all the children could make and decorate their own glasses, create badges and squishy balls, and there was a chocolate marshmallow machine and much more. Anyone who still wanted to let off steam could do so to their heart’s content on the bouncy castle. The absolute highlight for the children was the 6th Hamburg KidsMove, which wound its way from the church across the festival grounds to the stage on Sunday afternoon. Just in time for this, the sun came out, and so the 500 children were able to live up to the ‘Sun-Samba-Caramba’ theme with samba and caramba moves to the rhythms of the samba groups Unidos des Hamburgo and Fogo do Samba.

Wedding couples

125 years of the parish fair also means that 4.285 couples in love have got married in the beautiful church in Steinbek. Exactly 50 couples responded to our call for ‘125 wedding couples from Kirchsteinbek wanted’. The couple who have been married the longest tied the knot in 1953 and have therefore been married for 56 years; the most recent couple got married in May this year. All 100 married couples gathered on the steps in front of the church with champagne and roses for a group photo. Afterwards, they opened the ‘Danz op de Deel’ with a slow waltz and danced under the open sky until late into the evening.

From 24 to 26 September, Billstedt celebrated the fourth BilleVue with over 150.000 visitors!

The 4th BilleVue has once again clearly demonstrated that: Billstedt is a wonderful, international and multicultural neighbourhood, which attracted a total of 150.000 people to the streets around Billstedt Market Square over the weekend of 24–26 September – despite the rain. 800 volunteers and over 1.000 performers ensured three days of a high-calibre, exuberant and varied neighbourhood festival. It wasn’t just during the performances by Hamburg country legend Gunther Gabriel, the star of the Pro7 show ‘Popstars’ Detlef! D. Soost, the star of the Pro7 show ‘Popstars’, the legendary producer Sleepwalker or the talented performers from the HipHop Academy that the crowds gathered in front of the five stages.

Stage highlights

On Saturday and Sunday, the programme on all five stages delighted young and old alike. The NDR stage proved to be the biggest crowd-puller. On Saturday evening, Gunther Gabriel created a lively party atmosphere here and filled Billstedt’s market square to the brim. BilleVue had secured Wido Röttger, the well-known 90.3 entertainer, as the stage presenter. He knew just how to keep the audience entertained, particularly on Sunday, which was overcast and plagued by constant rain. The rain had little effect on the dance workshops and the autograph session with Detlef D! Soost on stage at the Billstedt Centre: fans flocked to their idol in droves and brought the shopping centre to a boil with their waves of enthusiasm.

International Folk Music Festival

Polish folklore with a modern twist, Latin American rhythms, oriental ethno-folk, ska, French chansons, Russian rock and pop, and jazz in the style of Django Reinhardt: Eight bands presented the music of their home countries to the highest standard and showcased trends from the worlds of world and alternative music.
In doing so, they also competed for the top three places amongst all festival entries. First place at this year’s International Folk Music Festival went to Berlin’s SkaZka Orchestra. With their wild mix of punk, jazz, klezmer and Balkan pop, they not only won over the jury but also created a fantastic atmosphere amongst the audience, despite the rain. With their passionate and spirited rhythms, Jolanta Barcik & Polish Band took second place, whilst the trio Django Deluxe, with their swing music in the style of Django Reinhardt, came third.

Circus, cooking, dancing and letting off steam – activities for children

BilleVue wouldn’t be BilleVue if the programme didn’t include numerous hands-on activities, concerts and stage shows for its young visitors. In the big top, preparations were under way over the two days for the 7th Hamburg KidsMove, among other things; this year’s event was themed ‘Glimmer-Glitter-GlamourMove’, and numerous children were getting ready for it with costumes and characters they’d created themselves. The only slight downer was the weather on Sunday: the constant rain meant that only a short KidsMove parade was possible, to prevent the props from getting completely soaked. Nevertheless, the PhapQuang dragon dance group, the Unidos samba group, the African drumming ensemble Galü Afrika, Plitschi, Nessi and all the floats from previous years ensured that, despite the rain, the KidsMove was a delight for everyone who attended.

A new feature at the fourth BilleVue was a children’s cooking area, initially set up in the Kultur Palast car park, but moved indoors to the Kultur Palast on Sunday in a scaled-down form due to the weather. There, the children were also able to try out the musical instruments from the Klingendes Museum. 

Technical heritage and happy winners

It wasn’t just fans of historic cars and motorbikes who got their money’s worth at the Motormeile. Visitors were able to marvel at over 30 exhibits here and see them in action during the grand classic car parade on Saturday. Then, on Sunday, the most beautiful classic car and the most beautiful motorbike were crowned. Andreas Bohn won the trophy for the finest two-wheeler with his 1967 Minarelli P4, whilst the 1952 Daimler Benz 300 Adenauer was judged by the jury to be a first-class classic car.

Art and Culture Days

It wasn’t just the weather that drew crowds; the presentations at the Mümmelmannsberg Art & Culture Days and the exhibition of international artists also attracted many visitors to the former local council office and the Billstedt Centre, which was absolutely packed on BilleVue Sunday. Celebrity guests, young stars, traditional and intercultural elements, plenty of young music and the International Folk Music Festival – BilleVue 4 once again delivered on its promise: to showcase what Billstedt has to offer – much, much more than you might think!

Acknowledgements:
Special thanks for organising this street festival go to all 17 shareholders, the staff at the Kulturpalast im Wasserwerk, the Billstedt Centre Advertising Association, the event agency uba GmbH, the Hamburg Mitte District Office, the Otto Wulff construction company, the 200 exhibiting organisations, businesses and residents, and all other contributors.

Illuminated fountains on 9 and 10 September 2011.

From 21 to 23 September 2012, Billstedt celebrated the fifth BilleVue with over 120,000 visitors!

Once again, the fifth BilleVue clearly demonstrated that Billstedt is a wonderful, international and multicultural neighbourhood. Over three days, 800 volunteers and more than 1.000 performers on stage ensured a high-calibre, lively and varied neighbourhood festival. 120.000 guests came to enjoy stage shows, a fantastic ‘clubs and societies’ area and a spectacular neighbourhood production.

Stage programme and venues

On 21 September, the festival site was officially opened on the stage at the market square. Visitors were then treated to an intercultural programme featuring Mario Rispo as the headline act. Unfortunately, however, the unusually cold temperatures for the time of year put a damper on the large turnout. Nevertheless, in Schleemer Park, amidst a cheerful atmosphere as part of the 11th LichterKunst, people listened to music groups including the ‘Ahoy’ marching band and the cover band ‘Risotto’. The ‘Wir für Billstedt’ initiative and Spiel-Werk-Stadt provided enchanting light installations.

Following this successful start, the festivities got into full swing on Saturday 22 September across the entire festival site on Billstedt’s Hauptstraße: visitors could find out about local clubs and initiatives at more than 60 information stands. In the Kids’ Area, various Billstedt children’s organisations provided plenty of craft and play activities for all age groups. The Klingendes Museum was also present with its ‘Klingendes Mobil’, offering children the rare opportunity to try their hand at playing the violin.

On Saturday evening, Torfrock took to the stage and numerous fans celebrated the cult band’s concert on the Schiffbek stage.

800 Years of Schiffbek – A neighbourhood production featuring 800 performers

A particular highlight was the large-scale neighbourhood production featuring several hundred performers from over 40 music and dance groups in Billstedt. Under the title ‘Schiffbek is coming – A ship is coming’, a parade unfolded featuring imaginative ship-themed installations and a sea of sounds and movement. The production, directed by Frank Düwel (norden Theaterproduktion), took place at various times at BilleVue 5 on Billstedt’s market square. The performance took place not only on the square and the stage but also on the rooftops: dancing sailors communicated across the flow of the parade using flags and signal tones, offering the audience a spectacular sight. Brass players also performed a specially composed melody from the rooftops. A fascinating spectacle for the audience and a powerful, collaborative performance for the neighbourhood!

Battlefield – Northern Germany’s newest hip-hop contest and the line dance festival

The dance events on the main stage were also a major draw – at Saturday’s Hip Hop Battlefield, dance-loving young people crowned the best in hip hop, house, popping and B-boying, whilst on Sunday hundreds of line dancers from all over Northern Germany came together for the joint festival.

TuckerKutterSchiffbekMove

This year’s KidsMove also had a maritime theme – it took place on Sunday at 3 pm alongside the neighbourhood parade. Lots of children and adults from drum groups (Ramba Samba de KiFaz, Samba Camara, Banda Ashé), nurseries and other children’s organisations chugged their way towards the Schiffbek stage in this colourful parade, complete with ships large and small, lifebuoys, sailor’s caps, pirate masks and much more. There, the parade was welcomed by District Administrator Andy Grote and Klangstrolch patron Carlo von Tiedemann, before the children’s programme continued. Also taking part were children’s songwriters Helmut Meier and “Mit Krone und Hund”, the children of the Lüttville Festival with a dance performance, DJ Kekse and the St. Pauli Rock’n’Roll Kids.

From Friday 11 September 2015 to Sunday 13 September 2015, the whole of Billstedt was buzzing with excitement for the 6th BilleVue! After a three-year hiatus, the 6th BilleVue, held from 11 to 13 September, attracted around 100.000 visitors to the east of Hamburg with glorious sunshine and a host of colourful activities and concerts.

Stage programme and venues

Following a successful launch of the"Kunstmeile" (art mile) at the Billstedt Centre on Thursday 10 September 2015, and a LichterKunst festival on Friday evening that was, as always, beautifully organised and very well attended, the festival grounds were officially opened on stage on 12 September.
Visitors were then treated to a varied programme, including Singa Gätgens’ children’s show, the new ‘Stand-up Comedy’ format and, of course, the dancers from the HipHop Academy, who presented an action-packed show. In the evening, special guest Lotto King Karl thrilled around 2.000 visitors with his songs.

Festival area

Following the successful opening, activities got underway across the entire festival site along Billstedter Hauptstraße: visitors could find out about local clubs and initiatives at more than 60 information stands. At the ‘Musiculum’ area, which was attached to the Klangstrolche stand, visitors could try out instruments along a ‘sound trail’. There was also a new parkour area where visitors could join in, and on the market square, young and old alike gathered in the ‘multi-generational tent’ to play bingo, release balloons and move giant chess pieces back and forth.
At the Billstedt Centre, the Mümmelmannsberg Arts and Culture Days showcased the works of over 50 artists and were delighted to attract a large crowd.

Highlights

At the Line Dance Festival, hundreds of people gathered once again to dance the choreographed routines together with great enthusiasm.

The new parkour area attracted a great deal of interest, and the children had great fun leaping up walls and wooden structures.

The new multi-generational area successfully brought children and older people together. Activities ranging from ‘early morning church services’ to ‘bingo’ were always very well attended, so the concept will be expanded even further in the coming years.

Shuttle buses were provided for the new refugee accommodation in Billstedt. The ‘Welcome Tent’ for refugees was, fortunately, well attended.

The tried-and-tested classic car parade once again adorned the street with treasures from days gone by and attracted a large crowd of enthusiastic spectators.

Acknowledgements:
The success of the 6th BilleVue was made possible by a fantastic partnership comprising businesses, private individuals, institutions and volunteers, and, of course, the generous funding from the “Bezirksamt Hamburg-Mitte” Mitte District Office as part of the Billstedt-Horn Integrated Neighbourhood Development programme.

With a varied programme across a total of four stages, various activity areas for children, the Intergenerational Tent, the Line Dance Festival, a ‘battlefield’ for the hip-hop scene, as well as the arts and creative festival and clubs’ mile, and much more, the largest city and cultural festival in east Hamburg was as varied and diverse as east Hamburg itself. A programme for the whole family!

This year’s special guest was the former guitarist of the SCORPIONS: Uli Jon Roth, who wowed the audience on Saturday on the Kultur Palast stage with his many years of stage experience and catchy riffs. Also on the programme were: a children’s programme, BATTLEFIELD – the urban dance competition, an art mile, a classic car mile, parkour, dragon dance, performances by the HipHop Academy Hamburg and St. Pauli Rockkids, a flea market, line dancing and much more.

Billstedt showed itself at its best at the BilleVue city festival!

Now in its 8th year,BilleVue – the biggest neighbourhood festival in east Hamburg – welcomed visitors and offered plenty of attractions and entertainment for young and old alike.

Right at the start of Öjendorf Market Square, the funfair – complete with carousels, trampolines and bouncy castles – offered plenty of opportunities to let off steam. Meanwhile, on the main stage, various bands performed music from all genres and regions. The children’s area provided families and very young guests with a safe space to play and let off steam, whilst at the Clubs and Environment Mile, various stalls provided information about the colourful life in Billstedt. A highlight of the weekend was the city musical ‘Planet Billstedt ’22 – All the way up!’

20 years of BilleVue, 100.000 visitors, brilliant weather and an impressively varied programme.

Billstedt has shown just what this wonderful neighbourhood has to offer. Guests came from all over Hamburg. The crowd favourite was the popular country band Truck Stop, who ensured the Billstedt market square was packed. Fans sang along to the songs, and cowboy hats and the matching dance moves could be seen throughout the crowd. The line dancers were already warming up for their big performance on Sunday. Visitors could enjoy spectacular choreography and beautiful voices almost everywhere on the festival site. Cool shows by the HipHop Academy Hamburg entertained visitors on the activity stage in the ECE Billstedt shopping centre and on the main stage in Billstedt’s market square. The K-Pop Random Dance event organised by the Deviation Dance Crew led to a massive flash mob on the market square, followed by a packed Kronensaal at the Kultur Palast, where groups from all over Hamburg and the surrounding area gathered for the K-Pop showcase.

The double bill of BilleVue and “Rolf’s Vogelhochzeit” was a resounding success

• Good news 1: The weather was sunny and the whole of Billstedt was in a festive mood
• Good news 2: The programme went down a treat – from group singing to hip hop, everyone joined in!
• Good news 3: The musical ‘Rolf’s Vogelhochzeit’ delighted young and old alike, and Rolf Zuckowski sang with the children all weekend – right through to the very last song.  

What a celebration! The weather played its part, allowing for an open-air programme that left the audience in constant awe. The absolute highlight was the musical “Rolf’s Vogelhochzeit” with the bird parade. The famous children’s song composer and musician had written the song cycle 50 years ago. The idea of presenting the piece in a festival version at BilleVue across three stages, complete with a grand bird parade, was a hit with the famous creator of children’s evergreens such as “Weihnachtsbäckerei”, and he sang along with the children throughout the weekend.

“I was completely taken aback by the imagination that came to life on stage. (…) Today, at the Kultur Palast Billstedt – a venue I’m very fond of – we’ve seen that ‘Rolf’s Vogelhochzeit’ isn’t just Rolf’s Vogelhochzeit, but the bird wedding of many children from many cultures. In that sense, I’m delighted that all of this has come to life here in a way I haven’t felt for a long time.”
Rolf Zuckowski, children’s song composer and musician

BilleVue, however, wasn’t just about the ‘Rolf’s Vogelhochzeit’ and the funfair, games, sport and fun, but also an incredibly varied programme across three stages and the activity stage at the ECE shopping centre in Billstedt (for example, K-pop with ‘Deviation’!).

Sport, games, fun and music across three areas

Tens of thousands of festival-goers strolled along the ‘Vereinsmeile’, found out about the organisations in Billstedt and enjoyed the wide range of hands-on activities across three zones: The sports area with skating, handball, yoga and goal-shooting (a fantastic effort from TV Gut Heil Billstedt, i-Punkt Skateland, Billstedt-Horn Sports Club, FC St. Pauli Rabauken and many other helpers!). The family area, featuring a bouncy castle, a packed children’s programme and a waffle iron in constant use in the school playground of St Paul’s Catholic School (the Falkenflitzer play van, the local nurseries, Sonnenland ‘mer-khkene – wir zusammen’, the Doppelfisch multi-generational centre, and the Billstedt Parents’ School). And the music area with a bird-making station, a mobile music museum and instruments to try out at the Klangstrolche stand. In between, brilliant performances by the HipHop Academy on all stages, from the market square to the Haspa stage at the Kultur Palast. 

Democracy project with the NDR

Right at the heart of it all were 12 student reporters who, as part of a partnership between the Kultur Palast, St. Paulus Catholic School and Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR), launched a democracy project equipped with microphones and interview coaching. “BE BILLSTEDT – BE DEMOCRAT” explores democracy and diversity. What better place to start than at the BilleVue, where diversity was very much on the agenda.  

 “I’d like to thank everyone who played an active part, all the volunteers, and also all our wonderful artists – both big and small – who together helped make this festival such a huge success. I believe we have succeeded in showing just what Billstedt has to offer – this large and diverse neighbourhood. I’m already looking forward to the next BilleVue in two years’ time.”
Dörte Inselmann, Artistic Director of Stiftung Kultur Palast, BilleVue Management