City guideAmsterdam · Sat 31 – Sun 1 November
Amsterdam this weekend: the EINDER light show and Willem de Kooning
EINDER’s last days at the Centrale Markthal, Klaus Mäkelä’s Mahler at the Concertgebouw, Brainwash Festival at the Tolhuistuin, the Cello Biennale, Willem de Kooning at the Rijksmuseum, Sunday Market at Westergas and the new NENI on the Nieuwendijk.
The weekend at a glance
Choose a pick to find it on the map; scroll down for the full story.
Sunday · 1 November
All weekend · Saturday and Sunday
Sunday
1 November
Sun 14:15From €29
Concert · Concertgebouw
Klaus Mäkelä conducts Mahler’s Seventh at the Concertgebouw
Klaus Mäkelä, the Concertgebouw Orchestra’s chief conductor designate, continues his Mahler cycle with the Seventh Symphony, from its nocturnal middle movements to a brass-heavy finale. Mahler himself led the orchestra in its Dutch premiere in 1909.
Sunday’s matinee starts at 14:15 in the Main Hall and runs about 85 minutes without an interval. Tickets are running low, from €29 with drinks included.
Sun 13:30, 20:00 and 22:00
Festival · Bimhuis
The Cello Biennale at the Muziekgebouw and Bimhuis
The Cello Biennale Amsterdam, the biggest cello festival in the world, holds its 11th edition from 29 October to 7 November: more than 85 concerts, family shows and masterclasses at the Muziekgebouw and the Bimhuis.
On Sunday at the Bimhuis, Giovanni Gnocchi plays newly built instruments at 13:30, free; François Salque joins harmonica, accordion and piano at 20:00; Emir Cello plays rock and keroncong at 22:00.
Sun 12:00–18:00Free
Market · Westerpark
Sunday Market at Westergas
Sunday Market, the city’s market of makers, comes back to Westergas. Its stalls are chosen one by one: ceramics, vintage clothes, art and sustainable fashion, sold by the people who made them, with food trucks between them.
It runs from 12:00 to 18:00 and entry is free, at the 19th-century gasworks on Pazzanistraat. The Westerpark is next door for a walk after.
All weekend
Saturday and Sunday
Sat and Sun, 10:00–22:00€13, free under 12
Exhibition · Centrale Markthal
EINDER, a light and sound installation at the Centrale Markthal
EINDER is Boris Acket’s artificial sky: ultralight fabric about 80 metres long, kept moving by 400 fans under the roof of the Centrale Markthal, the 1934 market hall. It was made for the 30th Amsterdam Dance Event, with a soundscape by Djrum.
Its last days: 10:00 to 22:00 on Saturday and Sunday. Book an arrival time, then stay as long as you like. Bus 18 from Centraal stops at Markthallen.
Sat 12:00–00:00, Sun 10:00–18:00€45, €35 under 30
Festival · Tolhuistuin, Noord
Brainwash, a festival of ideas at the Tolhuistuin
Brainwash, the Dutch festival of philosophy and ideas, moves to the Tolhuistuin for the first time. Etgar Keret, Hartmut Rosa, Ece Temelkuran, Didier Eribon and Minna Salami are among the speakers, in talks and performances in Dutch and English.
Saturday runs from 12:00 to midnight, Sunday from 10:00 to 18:00. Take the free ferry from Centraal to Buiksloterweg; payment inside is by card only.
Sat and Sun, 9:00–17:00€25, free 18 and under
Exhibition · Museumplein
Willem de Kooning at the Rijksmuseum
A hundred years after he left for New York, Willem de Kooning is back with a retrospective of his drawings: more than 120 works across 65 years, from student sketches to charcoal studies, with paintings such as Excavation and Pink Angels.
Woman I and Woman and Bicycle hang in the Gallery of Honour, near the Night Watch. Open 9:00 to 17:00 every day.
Sat and Sun, 12:00–15:00 and 17:00–23:00
Restaurant · Nieuwendijk
NENI, a new Eastern Mediterranean restaurant on the Nieuwendijk
NENI, the Molcho family’s Eastern Mediterranean restaurant from Vienna, has opened a second Amsterdam branch in the Kimpton De Witt hotel on the Nieuwendijk. Like the first, at Stadionplein, it is built for sharing: hummus, grilled vegetables and meats, and long tables.
At the weekend, brunch is 12:00 to 15:00 and dinner 17:00 to 23:00, with the bar open until midnight. Book on its site.
Sunday
Sun 14:15
Klaus Mäkelä conducts Mahler’s Seventh at the Concertgebouw
Klaus Mäkelä, the Concertgebouw Orchestra’s chief conductor designate, continues his Mahler cycle with the Seventh Symphony, from its nocturnal middle movements to a brass-heavy finale. Mahler himself led the orchestra in its Dutch premiere in 1909.
Sunday’s matinee starts at 14:15 in the Main Hall and runs about 85 minutes without an interval. Tickets are running low, from €29 with drinks included.
The Concertgebouw Sun 13:30, 20:00 and 22:00
The Cello Biennale at the Muziekgebouw and Bimhuis
The Cello Biennale Amsterdam, the biggest cello festival in the world, holds its 11th edition from 29 October to 7 November: more than 85 concerts, family shows and masterclasses at the Muziekgebouw and the Bimhuis.
On Sunday at the Bimhuis, Giovanni Gnocchi plays newly built instruments at 13:30, free; François Salque joins harmonica, accordion and piano at 20:00; Emir Cello plays rock and keroncong at 22:00.
BIMHUIS Sun 12:00–18:00
Sunday Market at Westergas
Sunday Market, the city’s market of makers, comes back to Westergas. Its stalls are chosen one by one: ceramics, vintage clothes, art and sustainable fashion, sold by the people who made them, with food trucks between them.
It runs from 12:00 to 18:00 and entry is free, at the 19th-century gasworks on Pazzanistraat. The Westerpark is next door for a walk after.
Gashouder Westergasfabriek All weekend
Sat and Sun, 10:00–22:00
EINDER, a light and sound installation at the Centrale Markthal
EINDER is Boris Acket’s artificial sky: ultralight fabric about 80 metres long, kept moving by 400 fans under the roof of the Centrale Markthal, the 1934 market hall. It was made for the 30th Amsterdam Dance Event, with a soundscape by Djrum.
Its last days: 10:00 to 22:00 on Saturday and Sunday. Book an arrival time, then stay as long as you like. Bus 18 from Centraal stops at Markthallen.
Centrale Markthal Sat 12:00–00:00, Sun 10:00–18:00
Brainwash, a festival of ideas at the Tolhuistuin
Brainwash, the Dutch festival of philosophy and ideas, moves to the Tolhuistuin for the first time. Etgar Keret, Hartmut Rosa, Ece Temelkuran, Didier Eribon and Minna Salami are among the speakers, in talks and performances in Dutch and English.
Saturday runs from 12:00 to midnight, Sunday from 10:00 to 18:00. Take the free ferry from Centraal to Buiksloterweg; payment inside is by card only.
Tolhuistuin Sat and Sun, 9:00–17:00
Willem de Kooning at the Rijksmuseum
A hundred years after he left for New York, Willem de Kooning is back with a retrospective of his drawings: more than 120 works across 65 years, from student sketches to charcoal studies, with paintings such as Excavation and Pink Angels.
Woman I and Woman and Bicycle hang in the Gallery of Honour, near the Night Watch. Open 9:00 to 17:00 every day.
Rijksmuseum Sat and Sun, 12:00–15:00 and 17:00–23:00
NENI, a new Eastern Mediterranean restaurant on the Nieuwendijk
NENI, the Molcho family’s Eastern Mediterranean restaurant from Vienna, has opened a second Amsterdam branch in the Kimpton De Witt hotel on the Nieuwendijk. Like the first, at Stadionplein, it is built for sharing: hummus, grilled vegetables and meats, and long tables.
At the weekend, brunch is 12:00 to 15:00 and dinner 17:00 to 23:00, with the bar open until midnight. Book on its site.
NENI Centrum