The arts in metropolises like New York City have certainly had their share of noteworthy collaborations, but this November Carnegie Hall takes cultural synergy to unprecedented places, reaching outside its own doors to partner venues across New York City for the artistic extravaganza Berlin in Lights. Carnegie Hall has built bridges to a multitude of organizations to celebrate, from November 2 to 18, the glorious past and promising future of a city that has today reemerged as a major international center.

During a whirlwind 17 days, New York will buzz with the added cultural energy of the once-divided, now-mended, eclectic, contemporary Berlin. New Yorkers will find evidence of this vibrancy throughout the city in Carnegie Hall’s partner venues: framed on gallery walls and projected onto the big screen; noted in song and symphony; reflected in dancers’ motion and movement; expressed through the fresh eyes (and ears) of young children; and whisked into being through the experienced batons of veteran and up-and-coming conductors.

Berlin in Lights kicks off on Friday, November 2, in Carnegie Hall’s Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage with a contemporary spin on Weimar-era cabaret music by the transfixing Max Raabe and his Palast Orchester. On the same day, further uptown, the Guggenheim Museum offers a different “spin” on contemporary Berlin with the beats of DJ Jazzanova, accompanied by a special visual set from the design group JUTOJO, pulsing late into the night. Panel discussions presented in partnership with The American Academy in Berlin, The Museum of Modern Art, the Center for Architecture, and the German Consulate of New York pop up all around town that same weekend, as a host of engaging commentators lead talks on Berlin’s evolving architectural backbone and innovative visual arts scene.

The next two weeks offer up a cornucopia of partner events, including free Neighborhood Concerts in three of New York City’s five boroughs by members of The Berliner Philharmoniker—part of its eight-day residence at Carnegie Hall—and KINO! Berlin, a film series hosted by The Museum of Modern Art highlighting a varied selection of cinematic gems, from the Oscar-winning The Lives of Others (2006) to the blockbuster Run, Lola, Run (1998).

Berlin in Lights takes the idea of synthesis to new heights, not only in linking a multitude of separate New York institutions but also by spreading Carnegie Hall’s educational mission (by way of Berlin’s own talent) to never-before-reached places. In a highly symbolic and fitting grand finale to the festival, New York City public school kids—most of whom have never before set foot in a dance class—will perform Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring and Songs: Ritual Rhythms, an original composition based on themes from The Rite of Spring and developed and performed by 80 students, at The United Palace Theater with the Berliner Philharmoniker, an inspiring collaboration that promises to change the lives of all who participate.