20 Euros Gewandhaus Orchester

Founded in Leipzig in 1743, the Gewandhaus Orchestra holds the distinction of being the oldest civic concert orchestra in the world still operating under continuous institutional identity. The 2018 issue commemorates its 275th anniversary. Felix Mendelssohn served as its Kapellmeister from 1835 until his death in 1847, raising the ensemble to international prominence and establishing the subscription concert model that most European orchestras would later adopt.

German commemorative €20 silver pieces of this period were struck for collectors rather than circulation, with face value serving a legal tender formality.