Piranha Arts

It all started with Piranha Events’ first concert (Rufus Thomas on 27 January 1987 in the »Metropol«, Berlin) as well as with Piranha Records’ first vinyl longplayer that same year – PIR 001 was called »Beat! Apartheid«. Founded in Berlin in 1987, Piranha has operated for three decades both locally and globally. With our team of more than 30 Piranhas, we are active as organisers, presenters, curators, developers and multipliers.

The Piranha Arts tree now has six dynamic branches. As a music publisher with its own label, we have been carrying new sounds and artists from all countries via Kreuzberg, Berlin to the entire world ever since. In Berlin, we initiated trailblazing festivals such as HeimatKlänge, Bands United, Fête de la Musique, C3 – Club Contemporary Classical and The Nights of Ramadan. With changing locations and partners, we organise the leading branch events WOMEX – Worldwide Music Expo and Classical:NEXT. We entertain international partnerships and – with Piranha Arts Consultancy – work with professional conferences and network initiatives on four continents. Whether it is with our events or the global sounds of Piranha Records – we campaign for cultural diversity in Berlin and everywhere around the globe. Music means the world to us! This is why we engaged with Berlin’s street festival and parade Karneval der Kulturen right from the start: as musicians, in the jury, with record releases and with the after-parade party »Long Night of Soundsystems«… Since its 2016 edition, Piranha Arts has been the producer of the million-strong Karneval der Kulturen.

Piranha stays in flux and is always open for more. We stay active at the borders: between music and tech, by research & development, between music and audiovisual, with international film projects and programmes.