Events
The Programme
A homecoming party, thrown by people who once had to leave home.
On the darkest evenings of the year, Orchestre Partout’s Grassroot Band plays the Keizersgrachtkerk. Musicians from Syria, Iran, Eritrea, Afghanistan and the Netherlands, in one band, in a church built a century ago to bring people together.
Don’t expect a quiet evening. This is a party. Horns, percussion, songs you’ve never heard that you’ll be humming after one chorus. Candlelight, people close together, a room that dances.
And before the band comes on: a surprise act. We’re not telling you who.
Why this night
Coming home is rarely simple. You leave something behind, you build something new, and sometimes you find it again somewhere you weren’t looking. In a room full of strangers, say, on a Tuesday night in December.
This evening is part of the run-up to The Spirit Festival 2027, themed Acts of Peace. For us peace isn’t a position you hold. It’s something you do. Singing together counts. So does sitting next to someone you don’t know.
As on every one of these nights, we open with one minute of silence for peace.
Come along
Tickets are kept low, and a good share of the seats are free for anyone who can’t afford one. Just email roel@thespirit.amsterdam and ask. No forms, no explaining yourself. You’re welcome.
Afterwards the bar opens and the church stays ours a while longer.
