For the Beethoven year in 2027 (the 200th anniversary of his death), we are planning a members´ gathering from 14th to 17th October 2027 in Vienna.
Please save the date. Further details will follow.
Category: Uncategorized
Checklist Music Stamps
New copies of Exhibits
On our website, copies of numerous (partly historical) exhibits can be viewed.
New exhibits in the members only section:
9.9.26: Six new exhibits added to the “Composers” section
“Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – The Inconceivable Genius”
“Benjamin Britten”
“Beethoven – The Miracle of Music”
“The Viennese Waltz Kings – Johann Strauss I and II”
“George Gershwin – A Composer Encounters Cultures”
“Les Six – Moving Away from Romantic Music”
Copies of exhibits (members only)
New Checklists
The members only section of our website contains a collection of checklists about various topics of music philately. The collection is constantly expanding and can be read online by our members.
New enhancements:
15.1.26: Postal Stationery of Bulgaria (updated)
23.4.26: Female Dancers (updated)
14.6.26: Verdi (updated)
5.7.26: Aida (updated)
7.7.26: Male Dancers (updated) / Ballroom Dance (updated)
6.8.26: Postal Stationery of Romania – Covers (updated)
7.9.26: Bayreuth Festival (new)
15.1.26: Postal Stationery of Bulgaria (updated)
23.4.26: Female Dancers (updated)
14.6.26: Verdi (updated)
5.7.26: Aida (updated)
7.7.26: Male Dancers (updated) / Ballroom Dance (updated)
6.8.26: Postal Stationery of Romania – Covers (updated)
7.9.26: Bayreuth Festival (new)
Stamp of the Month: August 2026
80th birthday Freddie Mercury
Freddie Mercury (alias Farrokh Bulsara) He would have turned 80 on June 5th. Sadly, this exceptional artist passed away on November 24, 1991. Rock in peace, Freddie.
The new “Musikus” has been issued
Our newsletter “Der Musikus” No. 168 has been released.
This time, the featured article focuses on the 150th anniversary of the Bayreuth Festival.
In addition to numerous articles on composers, performers, musical instruments, and music venues, there is — as always — an extensive list of new stamp issues.
Take a look at the table of contents. Members of “Motivgruppe Musik” (Philatelic Music Study Group) can read the entire issue online in the members’ area.
Yehudi Menuhin Trophy 2026 – Most popular Music Stamp 2025
Designed by Kirsten Lubach
Born in Troisdorf in 1973, Kirsten Lubach trained as an engraver at the Zeichenakademie in Hanau. She subsequently pursued further studies in Lahti, Finland, on a scholarship and qualified as a master engraver there in 1999. After working for a specialiced firm for several years, she moved to the Austrian State Printing Office in 2003, where she was initially responsible for correcting and retouching printing plates. The first stamp she engraved — part of the “Wildlife of Austria” series — was released in 2006. In 2012, Lubach became self-employed, opening her own copperplate engraving and printing studio in Vienna. Over the years, she has designed numerous stamps for various postal authorities and already received the Yehudi Menuhin Trophy in 2023 for the “Trombone” stamp — part of the “Musical Austria” series — which was voted the most popular music-themed stamp of 2022.
With 4.59% of the vote, the Christmas stamp “The Pixies’ Christmas” from the Faroe Islands — issued on October 20, 2025 — took second place. The stamp was designed by Janus á Húsagarði, a Faroese photographer and visual artist based in Hafnarfjörður, Iceland.
Taking third place with 4.43% of the vote was the German stamp “Semper Opera House” from the “Historic Buildings in Germany” series; for its design, graphic artist Jan-Niklas Kröger — part of Deutsche Post’s graphic design team — utilized the AI image generator DALL·E.
It is fascinating to observe the diverse graphic approaches taken with these three stamps: ranging from collage and poetic, fairy-tale-style illustration to the use of artificial intelligence — though one hopes that postal authorities will not succumb to the temptation of replacing the craftsmanship of graphic artists with AI.
Once again, stamps from 66 postal authorities were in the running for the title of “Most Popular Music Stamp of 2025” and collectors from 36 countries participated in the online vote.
Here you will find all previous winners of the Yehudi Menuhin Trophy.
In Memoriam: Ozzy Osbourne
Irish musician Glen Hansard passed away on July 29, 2026, at the age of just 56.
Glen Hansard died in a motorcycle accident near Dublin on July 29, 2026. He had previously been honored by the Irish postal service on an official stamp issued on March 24, 2022 (Mi. 2433, featuring Markéta Irglová). An article on this subject can be found in *Musikus* 151 (June 2022). At the funeral service, Bono of U2 bade farewell to Glen Hansard with a new rendition of “Beautiful Day.”
Glen Hansard & Markéta Irglová perfoming their Oscar-awarded Song
“Falling Slowly” from the film “Once”.
New articles in our Library
The library of our study group contains an extensive collection of philatelic magazine articles from all areas of music philately. These articles can be read online by our members.
The new articles deal with the following topics, among others:
Carl Maria von Weber / Marilyn Monroe / Engelbert Humperdinck / Friedrich Cerha / Udo Lindenberg / German Rock Classics / Eurovision Song Contest / Finlandia Hall / Burgtheater in Vienna / The Timpany / Bayreuth Festival / “The New German Wave” / Indian Music in Philately / The Meistersinger Stamp of 1968
Carl Maria von Weber / Marilyn Monroe / Engelbert Humperdinck / Friedrich Cerha / Udo Lindenberg / German Rock Classics / Eurovision Song Contest / Finlandia Hall / Burgtheater in Vienna / The Timpany / Bayreuth Festival / “The New German Wave” / Indian Music in Philately / The Meistersinger Stamp of 1968
Please Save the Date: New Stamp Fair in Mülheim an der Ruhr, 2027
As a successor event to the Essen Stamp Fair, an International Stamp Fair will take place in Mülheim an der Ruhr, Germany, from May 21 to 22, 2027. Please save the date; we are planning to host an information stand for the Motivgruppe Musik. Further details will follow.
