Every October, Amsterdam becomes the world capital of electronic music for five days. The usual soundtrack of bicycle bells and tram rails gets swallowed into an endless drumbeat as ADE takes over clubs, warehouses, record stores, conference rooms and whatever other corners of the city can fit a sound system.
It's a festival, a conference and a citywide scavenger hunt rolled into one, with discoveries everywhere from iconic arenas to underground cellars you might otherwise walk straight past. For newcomers, the sheer scale can be dizzying. For seasoned veterans, their knees are battle-tested. There are enough events to make both of their heads spin.
Opening Night: Three Showcases, Three Sounds
Wednesday, October 21 kicks off with Armin van Buuren and hard house revivalist Benwal at Gashouder, running from 23:00 to 06:00. The lineup includes IDEMI and Olive Anguz. Across town at Melkweg, bitbird brings San Holo and DROELOE together starting at 23:30, with support from What So Not, Sensu, and Khamsin. San Holo, born Sander van Dijck, has moved from punk and alt-rock roots through future bass and SoundCloud-era success to his independent breakthrough on bitbird, earning praise from Rivers Cuomo, Tom Morello, and Porter Robinson.
For a different angle on the same night, Audio-Technica and The Stargate host Hotaru:Analog:Ambient from 12:00 to 18:00 at Prinses Irenestraat 19. Guest selector Nina Yamada will curate Japanese minimal, ambient and kanyõ ongaku records on the Hotaru turntable, a floating analog deck launched at Milan Design Week 2025 that unites music and light. The free event invites guests to stand, sit or lie down for as much or as little time as they need.
Jean-Michel Jarre on Machines and Music
Thursday afternoon at the Rosewood Amsterdam Ballroom, Jean-Michel Jarre joins Armin van Buuren, Lady Starlight, JakoJako, and Meike Jentjens for a panel exploring the relationship between artists and technology. Drawing on Jarre's book Machines, which launches at ADE, the 12:45–13:30 conversation traces how tools shape sound and how artists continue to redefine those tools, opening up questions about creation, authorship, and the evolving role of machines in electronic music.
Label Milestones
Thursday evening, STMPD RCRDS celebrates its tenth anniversary at AFAS Live from 17:00 to 23:59. Martin Garrix, DubVision, Third Party, and Matisse & Sadko headline the label night, which follows a global anniversary tour with packed events in the US, Canada, Brazil, and Japan. Over the past decade, STMPD RCRDS has hosted stages at Tomorrowland, Ultra, Sziget, and Lollapalooza.
Also on Thursday, the original ADE crew gathers at Felix Meritis from 16:15 to 17:15 for a panel on 30 years of the event. Anna Knaup, Dave Clarke, Gary Smith, Maria Jiménez, and Richard Zijlma will discuss how ADE grew from 300 professional delegates and three nighttime venues in 1996 to 10,000 delegates and 300 venues today.
ADE runs October 21–25, 2026. Full passes are available now.
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