The Lugano LongLake Festival is one of the largest urban open air in Switzerland, a multidisciplinary event with a varied musical soul, which offers concerts every evening with protagonists of the international, Swiss and local music scene, to which are added free entertainment, including theatre, cabaret, conferences, activities and events for families, thematic markets and street food proposals. The festival programming includes Estival Jazz, Lugano Buskers and LAC en plein air. 17 days of free events (almost all) that will take turns on various stages set up in the green and urban spaces of the city. The program is divided into various thematic strands which from the beginning constitute the backbone of the festival and guide the choice of the public: music, street, family, words.

MUSIC

The musical line up of the Festival opens with Estival Jazz which on 7 and 8 July will offer two evenings of free concerts in Piazza della Riforma. The prestigious event, in its 43rd edition, will bring artists of great international renown to the stage: Ben Harper, Gilberto Gil, Judith Hill, Stanley Clarke, Seun Kuti & Egypt 80, Mark Lettieri, Beppe Donadio. The first notes chosen for the official opening of Estival, on Friday 7 July, are entrusted to Beppe Donadio, singer-songwriter, pianist-singer, born in 1968, born in Brescia but Ticino by adoption. After him, on the stage in Piazza della Riforma we will have guest Mark Lettieri, the virtuoso American guitarist and member of Snarky Puppy who will warm up the square with his adrenaline-pumping fusion.

The evening continues with a super guest, Ben Harper together with the Innocent Criminals, winner of three Grammy Awards and author of a piece of current music history. To conclude the first evening in style, Californian singer-songwriter Judith Hill will take the stage, a pure concentrate of funk, soul and r&b, with many references to the 'old school' and some more modern cues. Saturday 8 July, the second evening of Estival begins with the notes of Stanley Clarke, winner of 4 Grammys and considered a legend of contemporary jazz.

In Lugano he presents his new and exciting band 4EVER, a band that offers a powerful combination of jazz harmonies and improvisations with rock, funk, R&B, hip-hop and electronic music influences. The evening continues with a highly prestigious guest: the Brazilian artist Gilberto Gil who is back in concert with his Aquele Abraço Tour, to celebrate his 60-year career and 50 years of world tour. And to close the 43rd edition of Estival in style, the overwhelming rhythm of Seun Kuti & Egypt 80 who represent the authentic original root of afrobeat, but reinvigorated by young energy and a remarkable openness to collaborations and artistic contaminations.

LAC en plein air

On 11 and 12 July we move to the Piazza del LAC, Piazza Luini, with two concerts offered by LAC en plein air, the summer festival conceived by LAC Lugano Arte e Cultura. Salmo, one of the major protagonists of the Italian rap scene, will be a guest on Tuesday 11 July, to continue the following day with the concert of the young singer-songwriter Madame, which will be preceded by a performance by the Ticino rapper Mattak. Tickets for the Salmo and Madame concerts are available on www.luganolac.ch. LAC en plein air, continues its programming until July 29 with an offer dedicated entirely to World Music curated by Saul Beretta. A range of proposals ranging from concerts by artists of different origins and cultures, who will offer the public incursions into the most varied musical genres - from tango to jazz, from electronic music to traditional Japanese music - to chamber ensemble concerts by musicians from the OSI, without forgetting the listening experiences inside the MASI exhibition halls.

Ciani Park

The musical program of the Festival continues from 14 to 17 July in the suggestive Ciani Park with four paid evenings of music and concerts.

On July 14th the program sees guests from the English The Hunna, one of the strongest bands on the international rock circuit. Opening the evening will be the Bumblebees, a band from Ticino who will present "Paper Boat". After them it will be the turn of Black Sea Dahu, a brand new project conceived by the Swiss songwriter Janine Cathrein.

On July 15 it will be the turn of the German band The Notwist, born in 1989 in Munich, who have become one of the main reference groups for world post-rock thanks to their nine albums. To open the evening will be the young Caribbean singer Samora who will bring to the stage an incredibly fresh, powerful and energetic interpretation of the modern Antillean vibes. Followed by Puts Marie, a Swiss rock group from Bienne known for its intense performances on stages in Switzerland and Europe, from the Transmusicales of Rennes to the Printemps de Bourges, via Eurosonic in Holland or The Great Escape in Brighton. The live set by Brian Zajak, aka Fejká, pupil of Christian Löffler, will close the evening, ranging from the soft and dreamy atmosphere of electronics to the hard and incisive rhythms of techno.

On July 16th Carl Brave will be a guest of the Festival, a Roman producer and singer, a histrionic and versatile artist who with his style is tracing new coordinates in Italian pop song. Carl Brave will perform with an eleven piece band. The evening will be opened by Giuseppe Puleo aka Giuse The Lizia, a 21-year-old singer-songwriter born and raised in Bagheria in the province of Palermo. The artist will present his first unreleased album "Crush", in which he tells the true and sincere feelings that characterize the depth and conflict of the most authentic relationships through indie rock and urban nuances.

Closing the paid concerts at Ciani Park will be the Coma Cose who will perform on July 17 with a unique show, which will offer the best songs of the duo: from the already cult songs of "Inverno Ticinese" to the Sanremo songs, "Fiamme Negli Occhi ” and “L'ADDIO”, passing through the recent albums “Un Meraviglioso Modo di Salvarsi”, “Nostralgia” and “HYPE AURA”. The concert will be opened by Ele A, a very young rap aesthetics artist born and raised in Lugano.

Parco Ciani will therefore host international artists while giving ample space to musicians from the Swiss scene, both at the opening of the paid concerts at the Boschetto, and on the stages of Rivetta Tell and Punta Foce.

The 8 Swiss artists who have been selected from the over 335 applications received will be able to perform on the stages of the Festival (Boschetto Parco Ciani, Punta Foce and Rivetta Tell) between 14 and 17 July: Fire Cult, Bumblebees, Siselabonga, Matt Bertini, Samora , Imelda Gabs, Julian Brown, Eon Awa. The Swiss made musical line up is enriched with other guests who have been invited directly by the artistic direction of LongLake to play within the Festival. These include Nola Kin, Brainchild, Black Sea Dahu, Chaïa-Maria, Jonathan, Hotline, Marquise Fair, Puts Marie, Velvet Two Stripes, Somatic Rituals, Ele A, Enrico Donner. It is possible to purchase a pass for all four evenings at Parco Ciani at the price of CHF 65. – (personal, non-transferable). More information at this link.

WORDS

Lugano LongLake Festival confirms its nature aimed at multidisciplinarity also through the artistic proposals linked to "words" which range from theatrical performances, to readings, to workshops, to stand up comedy. A unique opportunity to explore various topics or get to know the authors through the proposed meetings. Among the guests who will speak at the Festival we remember Francesca Borghi who will talk about music therapy and autism (July 10), Giacomo Moccetti who will present his book "Playing as God commands" in dialogue with Alberto Cerruti columnist for Gazzetta dello Sport (July 12), Rocco Tanica leading to Lugano "We have never been on earth", the first book written by a human being together with an artificial intelligence (July 13). There will also be an evening with Ticino Poetry Slam (July 18).

There are also several theatrical performances scheduled at the Teatro Foce: among these we remember "I can beat Kennedy in golf" (July 7) written and interpreted by Massimo De Luca and directed by Paolo Bignamini, a show that tells of the dangerous intersections between sport and politics. On 8 July there will be a scenic reading from Dino Buzzati's stories "The haunted jacket and other stories" with Stefano Annoni, Matteo Bonanni, Leda Kreider.

On the 12th July, a production by the Teatro Franco Parenti "Hills like white elephants" is on the bill, a story by Ernest Hemingway where the theme of incommunicability is declined in a suspended dialogue. Guest on July 13 at the Teatro Foce the writer and author Moni Ovadia with his show "Laudato sì", a reading on the beauty of nature, which takes the title of the second encyclical letter written by Pope Francis in 2015. On July 18 they return to the Palazzo dei Congressi the MozART Group with their musical cabaret: the virtuosic performance of favorite pieces from the classical repertoire meets hilarious physical gags and musical jokes galore.

FAMILY

Since its inception, the Festival has always dedicated ample space to programming for children and their families, offering an alternative way to spend free time in the summer. The range of events is vast and varied, all free, ranging from shows to readings to workshops of all kinds. The proposals are aimed at the 0-12 age range, and there is something for all tastes. During the festival the Family Village will be set up again, a play area for children and their families. The village, open every day from 16:00 to 21:00, is located inside the Palazzo dei Congressi and in the adjacent garden of the Ciani park.

STREET

A rich program of events including street performances, concerts, installations and live performances, many of which were created specifically to connect with the streets and places of the city. The undisputed protagonist of this strand of the Festival is the Lugano Buskers, with a program now in its 15th edition. There is also room for dance in Rivetta Tell, for the artistic interventions of Urban Art and for the markets on the lakefront.

Long Lake Experience

There are various "experiences" to fully experience the Lugano summer by the lake during the Festival. From the evocative atmosphere of Lugano Marittima to the break at the Urban Beach, the terrace that allows everyone to enjoy the magnificent scenery that the lake offers us while remaining in the city, to the Park&Read summer lounge at Ciani Park where you can relax on deck chairs in the company of a enjoy the reading. New for this edition is Lugano Scintilla, an intergenerational creative meeting space that contains a collective work curated by the Scintilla Association with the support of Lugano Bella. Creative ateliers, but also lots of good music, friendship and lightness at the container located inside Ciani Park. Pedal boats, lidos, swimming pools, excursions and much more to fully enjoy the festival!

The statements

During the presentation of this year's festival, Roberto Badaracco – Deputy Mayor and Head of the Dicastery for Culture, Sport and Events of the City of Lugano – and Claudio Chiapparino – Director of the Events and Congress Division – taking a broader look at the events of the extremely rich Lugano summer, expressed as follows:

“Whoever says summer means evenings outdoors, fun, moments to be with friends, walks, swims and lots of sun. Added to all this are the events that intensify the summer period making it unforgettable and allow you to meet and discover the wonderful locations in a new guise, creating a festive atmosphere that will accompany us in these months.

With great pleasure we present in these pages the dense summer season of Lugano and the main events that will take place in the city and in its lively districts, which will begin with the Summer Jamboree on the Lake from 22 to 25 June, in the name of music and culture American of the 40s and 50s. The Lugano LongLake Festival will take place from 7 to 23 July, the festival with a musical soul that has always stood out for its multidisciplinarity and eclectic proposals that involve every type of audience.

Its line up includes big names such as Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals and Gilberto Gil & Family, proposed as part of Estival Jazz which this year too, thanks to its inclusion in the Festival, will once again be entirely free.

Among the great guests also Coma Cose, Carl Brave, The Notwist, The Hunna and, within LAC en plein air, Salmo and Madame. Plenty of space also for Swiss music with eight artists selected from over 335 applications received and many others. Lugano Buskers always occupies a special place because much loved by the public that literally invades the streets in those days, it will host more than 50 artists including musicians, actors, acrobats who will take turns on stage and on the street.

In addition to this, shows, screenings, dances, family events, meetings and much more at LongLake, the beating heart of the Lugano summer. Numerous other events waiting to be discovered will characterize the Lugano summer, including Blues to Bop, from 25 to 27 August, the longest-running blues festival in Switzerland. In the Experience section you will also find other engaging offers for your free time. Happy summer 2023 and have fun!”