Six small museums on Hamburg's Peterstraße devoted to Telemann, C. P. E. Bach, Hasse, Fanny and Felix Mendelssohn, Brahms and Mahler.
September 25, 2026 – February 28, 2027
Marking the 200th anniversary of her death, the KQ devotes an exhibition to a female composer for the first time: from 1809, Luise Reichardt shaped Hamburg's musical life as a singing teacher and choir director. On view in the gallery room of the Brahms Museum.
It all began in 1971 with the Johannes-Brahms-Gesellschaft: with the support of the patron Alfred Toepfer, it set up a memorial to the Hamburg-born composer in the Beyling-Stift at Peterstraße 39. The merchant's house from 1751 is one of the few buildings on the street that survived the bombing raids of 1943; the other facades of today's row of houses were later dismantled elsewhere and rebuilt here in historicizing style. The site is owned by the Carl-Toepfer-Stiftung.
In 2011 a Telemann museum was added next door. On the initiative of the Carl-Toepfer-Stiftung, a plan emerged from 2013 to honor other composers with ties to Hamburg in a shared ensemble. The association Komponisten-Quartier Hamburg, founded for this purpose, opened the first section in March 2015, with rooms on Telemann, Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach and Johann Adolf Hasse as well as the integrated Brahms Museum. In May 2018 the exhibitions on Fanny and Felix Mendelssohn and on Gustav Mahler followed.
The museum rooms occupy the interconnected ground floors of the buildings at Peterstraße 29 to 39 and follow a unified design concept, each with a central motif per composer. The content is developed by six composer societies, and day-to-day operations are run by around 100 volunteers. The Brahms Museum was modernized in 2021/2022 and expanded with a gallery room for temporary exhibitions; since 2025 the KQjunior family trail has rounded out the offering.
| Adults | €11 |
|---|---|
| Reduced | €8School students, university students (ages 13–28), trainees and apprentices, volunteer service participants (BFD, FSJ, FKJ), the unemployed, recipients of Bürgergeld (citizen's benefit), people with disabilities, holders of the Hamburg Card, the Theatergemeinde's Kulturvorteil and Engagement cards |
| Children & teens | €2free up to age 6 · Children 7–12 €2, up to age 6 free |
| Seniors | –No senior discount listed |
| Visitors with disabilities | €8companion free · Reduced admission for people with disabilities |
| Students & apprentices | €8Students aged 13 to 28 |
| Groups | –Group tours (45 min., up to 15 people) €60, reduced €45, plus admission in each case; request via the tour form. Groups are asked to register in advance. |
| Families | –Family admission: children up to age 6 free, ages 7–12 €2, up to two accompanying adults €8 each |
| Group tour (45 min., up to 15 people) | €60Plus admission; reduced €45; max. 2 sessions |
Free admission for holders of the FreikartE, ICOM members and members of the friends' association and the composer societies.
The exhibition rooms are largely accessible. The exception is the historic Brahms Museum (Peterstraße 39): thresholds, a steep staircase, no elevator. Accessible restroom according to Hamburg Tourismus. The KQjunior children's audio trail is written in plain language. Exhibition rooms have air purifiers.
Great for kids & families
| Kids’ admission | free up to age 6 |
|---|
KQjunior family program for children aged 6 to 12 who can already read a little: children's audio trail in plain language, short films and a hands-on trail at the end of which the “KQ-Wundermaschine” (KQ wonder machine) plays a piece they have composed themselves. Younger readers are best accompanied. Children up to age 6 free.
Stadthausbrücke
S1, S3, S7 to Stadthausbrücke (Michaeliskirche exit); U3 to St. Pauli; bus 12 to “Museum für Hamburgische Geschichte”; bus 16 and 17 to “Michaeliskirche”
Parking available
Peterstraße is closed to cars. Nearby parking garages: at the Handwerkskammer (Bei Schuldts Stift 3) and in the Lindner Hotel am Michel (Neanderstraße 20, open 24 hours).
The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.
The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.
| Guided tours | yes |
|---|---|
| School programs | yes |
| Good to know | Visits without a guided tour are possible. Group tours on individual composers or as a highlights tour of the 18th/19th century on request (according to the visitor page in German, English, Ukrainian, Spanish and French). For school classes, the KQjunior workshop (ages about 8–12) and choir projects; register at info@komponistenquartier.de. The Gustav Mahler Vereinigung starts public city walks at the KQ in summer. Regular concerts and lectures. |
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