Sarah Maria Sun: Magic Flute in Budapest

On 9/11/13 September 2026 the soprano Sarah Maria Sun will make her debut in the role of Papagena in W.A. Mozart’s Magic Flute with the Budapest Festival Orchestra under the baton and in the stage direction of Iván Fischer at Müpa Budapest.Colleagues on stage will be Samantha Gaul (Pamina), Julian Prégardien (Tamino), Franz-Josef Selig (Sarastro), Alina Wunderlin (Queen of the night), Markus Werba (Papageno), Mirella Hagen (First Lady), Olivia Vermeulen (Second Lady), Marie Seidler (Third Lady), Stuart Patterson (Monostatos) and other singers. Sarah Maria Sun already worked with Iván Fischer and the Konzerthausorchester in 2025, performing songs by Kurt Weill in several concerts to great acclaim.

(published on 1 September 2026)

Anu Komsi: new CD release of Saariaho Songs

On 4 September 2026, the new cd and world premiere recording Kaija Saariaho: Saarikoski Songs, Vista, Three Preludes will be released with coloratura soprano Anu Komsi at Ondine. Next to Saariaho‘s last composition for orchestra Vista Points, the CD presents her Saarikoski Songs (2021), which she has dedicated to Anu Komsi and written on poems by the Finish author Pentti Saarikoski. It is performed by the BBC Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Sakari Oramo. The five Saarikoski songs were originally composed for voice and piano and recorded by Anu Komsi. 
Just days after signing the final double bar of the orchestration in January 2021, Saariaho was diagnosed with the brain cancer that came to claim her life. Anu Komsi sang the world premiere in 2022 with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and Andris Nelsons. Further premieres followed with the Royal Stockholm Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Gewandhausorchester Leipzig among other orchestras. The Three Preludes (1981) have been recorded by Anu Komsi and the organist Marzi Nyman on the new organ of the Helsinki Music Centre. Anu Komsi had a long and close collaboration and friendship with the Finnish composer. She just performed her last opera Innocence in 2025 at the Semperoper Dresden.

(published on 28 August 2026)

New with us: Trumpet Marco Blaauw

We are thrilled to announce our new cooperation with the extraordinary trumpet player and festival director Marco Blaauw. For more than 30 years, he has been performing as a trumpet soloist specializing in contemporary music, always researching and developing his instruments and playing techniques, working on new repertoire and adventurous performing formats in close collaboration with established and young composers. Since 2026 he also is artistic director of the Tyrolean festival for Contemporary Music Klangspuren Schwaz in Austria which will be presented between 10-26 September 2026.

On 29 August 2026, he will perform the world premiere of Tongue of the Land, written by the  Australian composer Liza Lim for the Celtic brass instrument Carnyx, at the Lucerne Festival together with the Lucerne Festival Contemporary Orchestra (LFCO) and Elim Chan. He will present the German premiere on 18 June 2027 at Musica Viva - Bayerischer Rundfunk with the BR-Symphonieorchester and Brad Lubman at the Herkulessaal Munich.

Following the successful premiere of Georges Aperghis’ Trompe-oreille at the Festival Présence (Radio France) in Paris he will play this piece again on 30 September 2026 at the Festival Musica Strasbourg.

(published on 25 August 2026)

T. Augestad: Marthaler Premiere in Hamburg

On 20 August 2026, Christoph Marthaler‘s First last second - a gala will receive its world premiere in Hamburg, co-staring the mezzo-soprano Tora Augestad. The production will be presented by the Internationale Sommerfest at Kampnagel with additional performances on 21, 22, 23 August 2026. Sylvain Cambreling will lead the co-producing Symphoniker Hamburg – Laeiszhalle Hamburg Orchester. The established team around Marthaler will include Malte Ubenauf (dramaturgy), Duri Bischoff (set) and Sara Kittelmann (costumes). Further soloists next to Tora Augestad will be Liliana Benini, Raphael Clamer, Bendix Dethleffsen, Rosemary Hardy, Ueli Jäggi, Hardy Kayser, Clemens Sienknecht and Sebastian Zuber. Before the renovation of the Kampnagel-Halls, Marthaler - who is based in Hamburg - will be staging one last grand gala with his ensemble celebrating the form itself: At the center is the essence of the gala in every conceivable sound, shape, and color. Does the gala offer solace in the difficult hours of change, farewell, and new beginnings? Perhaps, for it is not the gala that passes, but always, again and again, the individual human being. What prospects! On 10/11/12 September 2026 the production will be invited to the co-producing Lausitz Festival.

(published on 4 August 2026)