The summer of LAC Lugano Arte e Cultura opens on Friday 26 June with the ninth edition of LAC en plein air, the festival that over the years has established itself as one of the most popular events of the city's cultural season. Until July 4th, the public can attend six free evening concerts, all starting at 9:00 pm, in the cultural center's Agora. In case of inclement weather, the performances will be moved to the Hall.
The program, once again designed by the artistic director Saul Beretta, creates a musical journey that connects two geographically distant realities yet united by profound cultural influences: Italy and Brazil. Jazz, world music, popular traditions, and contemporary languages thus become the tools through which to narrate identities, migrations, and memory.
Two musical paths between tradition and research
The 2026 edition is divided into two distinct cycles: Viaggio in Italia e Brazilian Twist, spread over two consecutive weekends.
According to Saul Beretta, the program offers six different perspectives capable of describing territories, roots, and new artistic visions. Three performers lead the audience on a journey through Italy, from experimental Milan to traditional Naples, all the way to Sicily, while three other artists offer an immersion in the richness of Brazilian music, encompassing spirituality, exploration, and cross-fertilization.
The aim of the festival is to foster cultural dialogue through different musical languages, demonstrating how seemingly distant experiences can meet and engage in dialogue.
The musical journey through Italy
The first appointment is set for Friday June 26 with Camilla Barbarito and the fanfare Grand Tabazù, protagonists of a project that reinterprets the Milanese musical tradition by intertwining French influences, musical theatre and Dadaist references.
The next day, Saturday June 27, will rise on stage Luisa Briguglio, winner of the Andrea Parodi Award 2025, with Truvatura, a work that combines the Sicilian language, poetry and sound experimentation.
The first part of the review will end Sunday June 28 with Suonno d'Ajere (in the cover photo), a band that offers a personal interpretation of the Neapolitan song built around the voice of Irene Scarpato, with a balance between interpretative elegance and contemporary sensibility.
Brazil is the protagonist in the second part of the review
From 2th July the baton passes to Brazilian Twist, a section entirely dedicated to the Brazilian music scene.
It will be opened Bia Ferreira, which will present America, a project based on the so-called “MMP” (música de mulher preta), in which R&B, soul, Afrobeat and rap coexist.
Il 3th July it will be the accordionist's turn Roger Correa with Latin Iberian, a quartet that fuses South American musical traditions, Cuban rhythms, flamenco and jazz improvisation.
The conclusion of the first part of LAC en plein air 2026 is entrusted, Saturday July 4, Nilza Costa, which will bring on stage songs, a journey built around Afro-Brazilian sacred songs and improvisation.
A summer that continues until the new season
The festival doesn't end with these six inaugural events. Throughout July, the program will continue with five evenings dedicated to local musical acts.
The main novelty of the 2026 edition will arrive in August with Föhn: The New Sounds of the Alps, section curated by the ethnomusicologist Johannes Rühl dedicated to the most current expressions of New Folk Music, the new Alpine folk music.
The musical journey will continue in the 2026/2027 LAC season with further concerts dedicated to jazz and world music.
Information
All performances are free to attend. Concerts begin at 9:00 PM in the LAC Agora; in case of inclement weather, they will be held in the cultural center's hall.
The complete calendar and any updates are available on the official LAC website: https://www.laclugano.ch.
The event is supported by UBS, the main partner of the cultural center. The project Föhn: The New Sounds of the Alps It is made possible thanks to the contribution of Pro Helvetia and Republic and Canton of Ticino – Swisslos Fund and Lugano Foundation for the Cultural Center.
