The word volta carries different layers of meaning. 

In music, it signals a turn, a return. In poetry, it marks a rhetorical shift and the transformation of a thought or feeling. Volta evokes a sense of renewal and change, a shift in the way we listen and see.

The Voltahalle also embodies this concept. Once a coal storage centre, it has transformed into a striking and unusual space that invites creativity and culture. What better place to discover music anew?

What unites us at VOLTA Kammermusikfest is a passion for chamber music and the importance of meaningful connections, both between musicians and with our audiences.

We bring together a community of world-class artists, full of friendship and history, all with strong ties to Basel and its cultural life. The depth of these relationships can be felt in the music-making.

A central part of our mission is to keep classical music alive and relevant for younger generations while warmly welcoming audiences of every age. Our programmes celebrate the great masterpieces of the chamber music tradition and place them alongside works by today’s composers, presenting the repertoire in a way that feels fresh, innovative, and connected to our time.

VOLTA Kammermusikfest was founded in 2024 by violinist Ayla Sahin and violist Alinka Rowe, whose musical partnership began when they first played chamber music together at the age of twelve. What started as a childhood collaboration has grown into a lifelong artistic dialogue and a shared love for chamber music, which is the heartbeat of this festival. In 2025, they are joined by double bassist Hans Greve, whose experience as a concert curator with organisations such as Heidelberger Frühling and Arte Frizzante enriches and broadens the vision that drives VOLTA.

More than a festival, VOLTA is a meeting place and a space where chamber music can be experienced in its most intimate, inspiring, and transformative form.