Since 2004 Pierre Boulez has led the LUCERNE FESTIVAL ACADEMY, which both he and Michael Haefliger co-founded. Approximately 130 highly talented young musicians from all over the world have gathered once again during the summer of 2011 to study contemporary scores and classics of modernism. Through daily rehearsals, workshops, and instruction the participants develop the tools needed to interpret new music. In orchestral concerts and ensemble programs they then perform the works featured in the “curriculum.” A French program, an evening of Stockhausen, works from the Second Viennese School, and Boulez’s own masterful homage to Mallarmé, Pli selon Pli, are this season’s focus. Along with Boulez, Peter Eötvös, Oliver Hagen, Susanna Mälkki, and David Robertson will also rehearse these compositions with the Academy students. Additionally, the students are enhancing their experience in the area of improvisation by participating in a project with “artiste étoile” Charlotte Hug. The Academy’s work encompasses two other contemporary composers as well, Marc-André Dalbavie and composer-in-residence Georg Friedrich Haas, who can provide first-hand interpretive guidance in their music. Mention should be made of the popular Forum series, which include moderated rehearsals, dialogue concerts, and a master class for young conductors. The Open Stage series meanwhile offers graduates an opportunity to develop and direct their own concert programs. And the new Spotlights series has been added to present former Academy participants involved in interdisciplinary projects. The work of the LUCERNE FESTIVAL ACADEMY has been documented by the 2010 film Inheriting the Future; this past June they released a double CD of works by Mahler, Stravinsky, and Webern under the direction of Pierre Boulez.
August 2011