famous for an original kind of German alternative music called Hamburger Schule ("Hamburg School"), a term used for bands like Tocotronic, Blumfeld, Tomte or Kante.
The city was a major centre for heavy metal music in the 1980s. Helloween, Gamma Ray, Running Wild and Grave Digger started in Hamburg. The industrial rock band KMFDM was also formed in Hamburg, initially as a performance art project. The influences of these and other bands from the area helped establish the subgenre of power metal.
Hamburg has a vibrant psychedelic trance community, with record labels such as Spirit Zone.
Hamburg is noted for several festivals and regular events. Some of them are street festivals, such as the gay pride Christopher Street Day festival or the Alster fair, held at the Binnenalster. The Hamburger DOM is a northern Germany's biggest fun fair held three times a year. Hafengeburtstag is a funfair to honour the birthday of the port of Hamburg with a party and a ship parade. The biker's service in Saint Michael's Church attracts tens of thousands of bikers. Christmas markets in December are held at the Hamburg Rathaus square, among other places. The long night of museums offers one entrance fee for about 40 museums until midnight. The sixth Festival of Cultures was held in September 2008, celebrating multi-cultural life. The Filmfest Hamburg � a film festival originating from the 1950s Film Days (German: Film Tage) � presents a wide range of films. The Hamburg Messe and Congress offers a venue for trade shows, such hanseboot, an international boat show, or Du und deine Welt, a large consumer products show. Regular sports events�some open to pro and amateur participants�are the cycling competition Vattenfall Cyclassics, the Hamburg Marathon, the biggest marathon in Germany after Berlin, the tennis tournament Hamburg Masters and equestrian events like the Deutsches Derby. Since 2007, Hamburg has the Dockville music and art festival. It takes place every year
