From July 18th to 31st, the Ticino Musica Festival celebrates a significant milestone: thirty years of activity dedicated to classical music, the education of new generations of artists, and the dissemination of culture throughout the region. The 2026 edition features over eighty events spread across Italian-speaking Switzerland and surrounding areas, confirming a formula that over the years has successfully combined professional development with high-quality concert performances.
Born as an international educational and artistic project, the Festival has become one of the most recognizable summer events on the regional cultural scene, attracting students, teachers, professionals, and enthusiasts from numerous countries every year.
A large international orchestra for the thirtieth anniversary
Among the major new features of the 2026 edition is the return of the Ticino Musica Festival Orchestra. After last year's debut, the symphonic ensemble brings together selected young musicians and established performers under the direction of Maestro Lü Jia.
The orchestra will be performing two evenings in Lugano. The first event is scheduled for July 23rd in the LAC's Sala Teatro, with a program that includes the famous Aranjuez concert by Joaquín Rodrigo entrusted to the guitar of Pablo Márquez and the Symphony concertante by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart performed by Ivan Podyomov, Romain Guyot, Gabor Meszaros, and Christian Lampert. The evening will also include works by Mozart and Beethoven.
The second symphonic concert will be held on July 30th at the Palazzo dei Congressi and will offer a journey through different periods of musical history, from classicism to contemporaneity, with particular attention to No Templates, concerto for viola and orchestra by composer-in-residence Dieter Ammann, performed by Berliner Philharmoniker violist Diyang Mei.
La Bohème inaugurates a new phase of the Opera Studio
Another important element concerns the International Opera Studio "Silvio Varviso". After years dedicated mainly to the brilliant repertoire, the project tackles for the first time a major dramatic opera with La Bohème by Giacomo Puccini.
The production will feature young singers, conductors, and instrumentalists selected through international auditions and will tour several locations in Ticino.
The premiere is scheduled for July 18th at the Conservatorio della Svizzera italiana in Lugano. Repeat performances will follow in Bellinzona, Magliaso, Novaggio, Sorengo, Lugano again, and finally Locarno. The two different casts will allow for different interpretations at each stop.
Three resident ensembles to celebrate thirty years of activity
To underline the symbolic value of the anniversary, the Festival will host three ensembles in residence.
The Moser Quartet, a young Swiss quartet that has already won numerous international competitions, will open its concert season on July 18th in Morcote. It will subsequently perform in Cagiallo, Mesocco, and Lugano with programs dedicated to chamber music repertoire.
The Kontakt Quartet, a group formed within the Conservatory of Italian Switzerland, will be performing alongside the Swiss quartet. The group will perform recitals in Ascona, Giubiasco, and Rovio.
Also returning is the Pucela Brass Quintet, a Spanish ensemble that won over audiences at the previous edition. The Iberian brass musicians will be performing in Ravecchia, Brè, Gazzada, and Morcote, where they will also perform a traveling concert through the village streets.
The Academy remains the heart of the event
While the concerts are the most visible part of the Festival, the Academy remains its heart. Hundreds of young musicians from around the world will flock to Lugano to attend masterclasses led by internationally renowned teachers.
The program covers a wide range of disciplines: singing, piano, strings, wind instruments, organ, guitar, and chamber music. Instructors include prominent figures such as Roberto Plano, Stefano Molardi, Alessandro Moccia, Diyang Mei, Asier Polo, Ivan Podyomov, Andrea Cellacchi, Pablo Márquez, and many other performers active on the major international stages.
The public will also be able to attend the lessons by purchasing a Listener Pass or by joining the Circle of Friends of Ticino Musica.
Open classes dedicated to historical instruments
Particular attention will be given to the Open Classes coordinated by Stefano Molardi, dedicated to historical keyboards.
The activities will involve various locations in the area: the organ in the Church of San Siro in Canobbio, the historic instruments of Soazza, the harpsichord in the Aula Magna of the Lugano Conservatory, and events in Mendrisio and Cabbio dedicated respectively to the organ and the Tangentenflügel.
Each day will be rounded out with concerts open to the public, offering the opportunity to listen to the results of the work done during the study sessions.
The great masters in recital
In parallel with their teaching activities, the Academy's teachers will perform a series of solo and chamber music concerts.
Among the most anticipated events are the concert with Frits Damrow, Stefano Molardi, and Barbara Meszaros in Giubiasco, the chamber music evenings in the Conservatory's Aula Magna, and the concert for oboe and guitar featuring Ivan Podyomov and Pablo Márquez in the Church of San Bernardo del Curzútt.
These events will offer the public the opportunity to hear up close performers who regularly perform on international stages.
Space for the new generations
One of the Festival's distinctive aspects remains the promotion of young talents.
Afternoon concerts in the Conservatory's Aula Magna and musical lunches in the LAC Hall will allow students to present the work they have completed during their training. These will be complemented by events held in various locations throughout the region, including Astano, Ascona, and Lugano.
Particular emphasis will also be placed on events featuring masters and students performing together, a format that has always been one of the most popular features of the event.
International award winners and well-being for artists
The 2026 edition will also host recitals by young musicians who have distinguished themselves in important international competitions.
Among them, the cellist Till Schuler, winner of the Prague Spring International Competition, and the young performers Adelaide Alizah Chiaradonna, Amalia Zampa and Harry Liang, protagonists of a concert dedicated to the winners of the Swiss Youth Music Competition.
Alongside artistic activity, there's also space for personal well-being. From July 20th to 25th, daily yoga sessions will be held, open to both participants and the public, with the aim of promoting concentration, relaxation, and body awareness.
A territory united by music
From Lugano to Malcantone, from Bellinzona to Locarno, passing through Mendrisiotto, the Italian Grisons and some locations beyond the border, the Ticino Musica Festival continues to propose a network of events that involves numerous municipalities and cultural institutions.
The thirtieth edition thus confirms a vision developed over three decades: to make classical music a vehicle for artists, students, and the public to meet, transforming the region into a large shared space dedicated to culture.
For information, registration, and the complete calendar of events: www.ticinomusica.com.
Tickets and Ticino Musica Pass: www.laclugano.ch.
The Festival also adheres to the AG Culture program.
