Application for the Lucerne Festival Academy 2026
Jörg Widmann Artistic Director
Pierre Boulez † Founder and Honorary President
Dates
7 August - 7 September 2026
Arrival Day in Lucerne: Friday, 7 August (
no late arrivals possible)
Departure Day from Munich: Monday, 7 September
Course
If you would like to be in the know about what’s happening right now in the world of contemporary music, the Lucerne Festival Academy is the place to be. For four weeks, you get to focus entirely on contemporary music and work with some of today’s leading performers. Being part of the public community is a new pillar of the Academy, which will be expanded from 2026 onwards. New and existing formats will be implemented in collaboration with guerillaclassics. Beginning in 2026, the Academy will be led by composer, clarinetist, and conductor Jörg Widmann, with whom you will tackle such projects as Wolfgang Rihm’s Tutuguri, a spectacular exploration of sound. You will also meet Mark Andre, the 2026 Summer Festival’s composer-in-residence, and work on his clarinet concerto über as well as his large-scale orchestral triptych
Im Entschwinden-Im Entfalten - Im Entbergen. The lineup additionally includes world premieres by Jalalu-Kalvert Nelson and Liza Lim, who has written a concerto for the carnyx, an ancient bronze trumpet. And in keeping with the Summer Festival’s theme of “American Dreams,” the program spans music from John Adams and Steve Reich to Frank Zappa and his legendary final work, The Yellow Shark.
There is no fee for the application and for active participation in the Lucerne Festival Academy. Travel, accommodation, and meals, as well as instrumental parts are provided by Lucerne Festival.
Click
here for the information booklet and program of the Lucerne Festival Academy 2026.
Profile of Participants
- Advanced music students and professional musicians
- Age limit: For the first participation in the Lucerne Festival Academy, the age limit is 28 years (cut-off date: August 1, 2026). For musicians from the Academy Network who have already attended the Academy once, the age limit for re-registration is 32 years (cut-off date: August 1, 2026).
- Participation: You can attend the Academy a maximum of three times.
- Course language: English
Documents to be submitted online
Audition
The Lucerne Festival Contemporary Coaches will decide on active participation upon receipt of the registration forms and recordings. The results of the selections will be announced by mid of March 2026. There is no right of legal appeal. No correspondence regarding the decisions will be conducted. Applicants must include a recordings of themselves playing the required audition repertoire; the recording must be uploaded online. Please note that the recording must not be edited in any way.
Application deadline
Sunday, 15 February 2026 (23:59 Swiss Time; CET)
Course fee
There is no fee for active participation in the Lucerne Festival Academy.
Travel
Lucerne Festival will cover the travel expenses of each active participant.
Accommodation
Lucerne Festival will arrange and cover the cost of accommodation of each active participant in a local host family.
Per Diem / Meals
Each active participant of the Lucerne Festival Academy will receive a daily lump sum of CHF 40 for the main meals.
Scores/Parts
Lucerne Festival will provide all instrumental parts for the orchestral and ensemble repertoire.
Contact
academy@lucernefestival.ch
DATA PROTECTION AND PRIVACY
By submitting the application documents, the applicant confirms that he/she has been informed of Lucerne Festival's privacy notice. The privacy notice is available at the following
link.
Anmeldeschluss ist der 15.02.2026.