Brass Ensemble of the Lucerne Festival Orchestra

The Brass Ensemble of the Lucerne Festival Orchestra brings together the brass players of the orchestra founded by Claudio Abbado and now led by Riccardo Chailly. As a permanent formation, they perform music from the Renaissance to the present day. The idea originated with principal trumpet Reinhold Friedrich: on his initiative, the ensemble gave its first concert during the 2009 Summer Festival. Its unconventional approach to programming, organized around specific extra-musical themes, has remained a hallmark. In keeping with the theme of each Summer Festival, its specially curated programs have explored ideas such as “Nature,” “Eros,” “Night,” “Faith,” “Psyche,” and “PrimaDonna” — and this year, of course, the theme of “American Dreams.” The repertoire heard in these concerts knows no boundaries. It includes arrangements of classics and works by Sofia Gubaidulina, Wolfgang Rihm, Galina Ustvolskaya, and Einojuhani Rautavaara, as well as light music. Arrangements often written specifically for the Brass Ensemble of the Lucerne Festival Orchestra are also performed: today’s concert, for example, features the premiere of Steven Verhaert’s arrangement of Barber’s Adagio. The ensemble’s size can range from solo or duo to the full strength of a wind orchestra, or to an expanded formation including percussion. In addition to its Festival performances, the Brass Ensemble also presents its programs on other European stages. In 2013, Accentus released an album by the ensemble featuring works by Modest Mussorgsky.

Lucerne Festival debut on 16 August 2009 with a program on the theme of “Nature”.

August 2026