Berlin, August 6th, 2026 (The Berlin Spectator) – Inti-Illimani Histórico, one of the most influential groups to emerge from Chile’s “Nueva Canción” movement, will perform in Berlin and Stuttgart, as part of a European tour marking the band’s approaching 60th anniversary.
The concert at the Passionskirche in Berlin’s Kreuzberg borough on September 15th is one stop on a wider tour that will also take the band through Italy, Switzerland, Spain and Sweden. According to the tour’s organizers, the shows will feature the group’s best-known repertoire alongside material from its new album “Reencuentro.” The German leg opens a few days earlier, on September 11th, with a concert at the Theaterhaus Stuttgart.
Inti-Illimani was founded in 1967 by students at Chile’s Universidad Técnica del Estado, today known as the Universidad de Santiago de Chile. The band’s name combines the Quechua word for “sun” (Inti) and the Aymara word for “golden eagle” (Illimani). Musically, the group drew on Andean folklore. Politically, it aligned itself with the political left and backed the campaign and government of socialist President Salvador Allende.
Military Coup
The band was on tour in Italy when the 1973 military coup took place in Chile, and its members were barred from returning home. They spent the years of the Pinochet dictatorship, until 1989, in exile in Italy, where extensive touring and the international solidarity movement with Chile brought them wide recognition.
In 1988, the band was again denied entry to Chile, this time while scheduled to appear at concerts alongside artists including Sting, Tracy Chapman, Bruce Springsteen and Peter Gabriel. The group instead played a now-famous show in Mendoza, Argentina, near the Chilean border, where Gabriel performed his song “Biko” together with the band.
A split within the group emerged in 2004, when former members Horacio Salinas, José Seves and Horacio Durán, who had pursued separate solo careers, reunited under the Inti-Illimani name together with other musicians, arguing they had written most of the band’s core repertoire. A legal dispute followed with the group’s other lineup, led by the Coulón brothers. Mediation eventually allowed the Salinas-led ensemble to use the name Inti-Illimani Histórico, distinguishing it from the parallel group known simply as Inti-Illimani.
Salinas, Seves and Durán
The lineup coming to the Passionskirche includes three musicians from the band’s historic and creative core: Horacio Salinas, composer and musical director since the group’s founding, singer and composer José Seves, and Horacio Durán, known for his mastery of the charango. They will be joined on stage by Pedro Villagra on wind instruments, Fernando Julio on double bass, percussionist Danilo Donoso and multi-instrumentalist Cristián Mancilla.
Organizers describe the group as one of the finest ensembles in the world, a characterization they attribute to classical guitarist John Williams, who has recorded with the band in the past.
The Berlin concert takes place on Tuesday, September 15th, 2026, starting at 8 p.m., at the Passionskirche, Marheinekeplatz 1, 10961 Berlin. Tickets start at 37.50 Euro, plus service and shipping fees. Tickets for the Stuttgart show on September 11th are available here. They Inti-Illimani Histórico will also perform in Berne and Geneva.
Built in 1905 in a neo-Romanesque style, the Passionskirche is known as one of Berlin’s more striking church buildings and has become a popular venue for concerts and cultural events beyond its religious functions, having previously hosted acts including Billy Bragg and John Legend. The Berlin date is one of the highlights of the band’s 2026 European tour, offering local audiences a production organizers say has been designed specifically for the venue.
¡Bienvenidos a alemania!
