According to the festival's press release, the 52-year-old Nordmann has been Artistic Director of the Konzerthaus and Konzerthausorchester Berlin since 2009. Following a multi-stage application process, the musicologist with a doctorate was unanimously elected as the new artistic director by the Lucerne Festival Board of Trustees on the recommendation of the search committee.

Sebastian Nordmann was born in Kiel in 1971 and studied musicology and modern history in Heidelberg and Berlin. He worked for two years as a management consultant at the Boston Consulting Group in Berlin, and in 2002 he took over the artistic direction and management of the Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.

In 2008, Nordmann was appointed Professor of Cultural Management at the Rostock University of Music and Drama. Since 2009, he has been the artistic director of the Konzerthaus and the Konzerthausorchester Berlin am Gendarmenmarkt. Sebastian Nordmann is married and has three children. As part of his new role, he will relocate from Berlin to the Lucerne region in due course.

Born in the USA, she is one of the world's most influential singers, having sold over 180 million records, but was also a successful actress. She became a Swiss citizen in 2013. In 2021, she received an honorary doctorate from the University of Bern, according to the laudation for, among other things, "a unique musical and artistic life's work" and because she "successfully asserted herself as a woman in a previously male-dominated field".

Tina Turner gained her first singing experience in a Baptist church, from 1960 to 1976 she was a member of the duo Ike and Tina Turner, from the early 1980s she launched a successful international solo career as a singer, and later also as an actress. In Switzerland, she was also involved in the Beyond Foundation, a charitable foundation set up by Regula and Beat Curti in 2007, whose projects aim to "connect people around the world with the help of music".

Andreas Eduardo Frank, born in 1987, is a composer, performer, ensemble leader and festival organizer. He studied at the Hochschule für Musik Würzburg and at the electronic studio of the Musikhochschule Basel. He works at various aesthetic interfaces, between real and virtual, music, performance, choreography, video and theater.

Andreas Eduardo Frank has received several awards for his work and is, for example, the winner of the 64th composition competition of the state capital Stuttgart. He has been artistic director of Ensemble Lemniscate Basel since 2018 and a member of the Rümlingen Festival program group since 2021.

Frank will manage Basel's Gare du Nord, a curated production and performance venue for the Swiss and international contemporary music scene, together with Johanna Schweizer (management) and Ursula Freiburghaus (collaborations).

The municipal council, the city's executive body, wants to further increase access to culture in all areas. With the first package of measures of the city-wide cultural strategy, fundamental prerequisites were created, which are sharpened and further developed in the present package of measures. Bern's culture should be "socially, economically and ecologically sustainable". During the pandemic, it has become abundantly clear that the social security of cultural workers must be improved, writes the Council.

The City of Bern's cultural strategy is designed to run for twelve years and shows how the city's cultural policy and cultural promotion will be shaped until 2028. Cultural production as the focal point of the city's cultural life is placed in a broader political and social context.

Part of the strategy is the newly conceived music ensemble sponsorship. Kultur Stadt Bern and the Office for Culture of the Canton of Berne jointly announce these, appoint a jury and decide on the award.

The package of measures:
Cultural_Strategy_City_of_Bern_Objectives_Measures_2023-2024_ES_medium.pdf

Dawidiuk played Beethoven's first piano concerto in Meiningen, where the competition was held, and conducted the orchestra at the same time. The special prizes, the Felix Draeseke Prize and the prize in cooperation with the Joachim Raff Society, enable him to give follow-up concerts. Aurel Dawidiuk is studying orchestral conducting with Christoph-Mathias Mueller and Johannes Schlaefli and piano with Till Fellner at the Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK).

The International Hans von Bülow Competition was held for the fourth time this year. In 2012, 2015 and 2018, it was organized by the International Hans von Bülow Society. Since 2021, the Max Reger Conservatory has been the organizer. Held in up to four rounds in the categories juniors, professionals and conducting from the piano, prize money totaling 50,000 euros, scholarships, CD recordings and follow-up concerts are awarded.

Vilem Vlcek has been studying at the Hochschule für Musik Basel in Danjulo Ishizaka's class since 2018. Alongside his studies, he has taken part in various masterclasses, including with Yo-Yo Ma, Frans Helmerson, Leonidas Kavakos, Steven Isserlis, Richard Aaron and Alisa Weilerstein.

Vilem is the winner of various national and international competitions, including the cello competition in Liezen (1st prize), Talents for Europe (1st prize), Heran Cello Competition (1st prize), Czech Conservatories Competition (winner), Concertino Praga (laureate and EMCY prize), Jan Vychytil Cello Competition (winner), Bohuslav Martinů Competition (1st prize) and currently in 2022 the 1st place of the Rahn Music Prize. As a member of the Kukal Quartet, he was awarded 3rd prize in the Prague Spring 2021 competition.

For the first time, contributions will be awarded for a four-year period. Between 2023 and 2027, the orchestras will receive contributions towards their artistic and administrative costs, which will enable them to implement six projects each for the benefit of a Basel audience and comply with the Swiss Musicians' Association's recommended tariffs. A total of eight instrumental ensembles and orchestras applied for program funding.

The following will now receive contributions: Basel Sinfonietta (CHF 4,044,600), Basel Chamber Orchestra (CHF 2,913,996), La Cetra Baroque Orchestra: (CHF 1,581,412), Ensemble Phoenix Basel (CHF 1,066,616) and the Klang Lab Ensemble (CHF 379,920). Camerata Variabile, which has received funding from the orchestra program funding since 2016, will receive a transitional funding contribution of CHF 60,480 for the last time for the 2023 to 2024 season. It no longer fully met the requirements of the call for proposals.

For the first time, two orchestras are being recognized for special achievements above and beyond the usual programming on the basis of the Ordinance on Programme and Structural Support for Orchestras, which came into force in 2022. The Basel Sinfonietta's grant includes funds of CHF 60,000 per year to support measures such as evening childcare, the promotion of young talent and children's concerts on a pro rata basis. The efforts of the Basel Chamber Orchestra to communicate music in a simple way and to design certain offers with a low threshold were also considered exceptional by the jury and are reflected in the funding contribution with CHF 40,000 per year.

The five independent jurors come from different areas of the concert industry: Beat Fehlmann, Director of the German State Philharmonic Orchestra Rhineland-Palatinate, Ludwigshafen; Norbert Graf, music journalist and music producer at SRF 2 Kultur, Schüpfen; Rico Gubler, Head of the Music Department at Bern University of the Arts; Lisa Nolte, Artistic Director of the SONIC MATTER festival and online forum, Zurich; Lena-Lisa Wüstendörfer, conductor, Zurich. The non-voting advisory board members were: Dominika Hens, Commissioner for Cultural Projects Basel-Stadt, and Katrin Grögel, Head of the Department of Culture Basel-Stadt.

The German GEMA (Gesellschaft für musikalische Aufführungs- und mechanische Vervielfältigungsrechte - Society for Musical Performing and Mechanical Reproduction Rights) has adopted several amendments to its rules and regulations at its General Assembly which affect various aspects of the online use of music. Against the backdrop of new general agreements, two motions dealt with the online offerings of broadcasting companies: To ensure that broadcasters can easily and legally access GEMA repertoire for productions for their increasingly relevant media libraries, the prerequisites have been created for granting production rights for this area from a single source in future.

At the same time, the General Assembly adopted rules for a separate distribution for media library usage. The distribution for social media platforms was fundamentally further developed so that the income that GEMA generates from YouTube and other platforms can be distributed even more usage-based in future. The General Assembly also set the course for cultural promotion with a special focus on the growing online sector.

The development of artificial intelligence was also hotly debated. GEMA is already using it in certain areas, such as the duplicate detection of setlists. The use of data to train the AI software is a major challenge. Ralf Weigand, Chairman of the GEMA Supervisory Board, emphasized that it must be clear whether a human or a machine has created content.

Original article:
https://www.gema.de/de/w/mitgliederversammlung-2023-gema-modernisiert-verteilung-im-wachstumsmarkt-online-und-setzt-zeichen-fur-kulturforderung-1

Baldur Brönnimann graduated from the Basel Music Academy and the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester. He has worked as music director of the Colombian National Symphony Orchestra in Bogotá, as artistic director of "BIT20", one of Norway's most renowned contemporary music ensembles, and as chief conductor of the "Orquestra Sinfónica do Porto Casa da Música" in Portugal. He has also conducted other major orchestras, including in Seoul, Oslo, Bergen and Vienna. Since 2016 and until the end of the 2022/2023 season, he has been Principal Conductor of the Basel Sinfonietta, which he has led with tireless dedication and guided into a progressive organizational structure.

Jean-Paul Brodbeck was part of the Basel hip-hop group P-27 and worked for Seven and as a theater musician at the Zurich Schauspielhaus alongside Michael Neuenschwander and Mike Müller in Martin Suter's "Geri". From 1998 to 2004 he was a permanent member of the "Bait Jaffe Klezmer Orchestra", and from 2007 to 2010 part of the quartet around Wolfgang Muthspiel. He teaches at the Lucerne School of Music.

German scholar Barbara Piatti, who grew up in Duggingen and now lives with her family in Basel, has made a name for herself in the region over the years as a cultural mediator. In collaboration with her team and other experts, Piatti has been developing interdisciplinary cultural projects and publishing non-fiction books for years, each accompanied by a varied educational program.

Rebekka Salm grew up in Bubendorf and now lives in Olten. After completing an apprenticeship and working in a bank, she studied Islamic Studies and History in Basel and Bern. In addition to her work as a copywriter, adult educator in the field of migration, presenter and mother of a daughter, she also publishes columns and short stories. In 2019, she won the Swiss Writers' Trail writing competition and published her story in the book "Das Schaukelpferd in Bichsels Garten" in 2021.

The category prizes are endowed with CHF 20,000 each, the sponsorship prize with CHF 15,000. The next cultural award ceremony will take place on Wednesday, May 15, 2024.

According to the federal government's press release, Erik Truffaz "does not allow himself to be held back by genre boundaries as a musician". Born near Geneva in 1960, the trumpeter combines jazz with hip-hop, drum'n'bass, pop and electronica in his "innovative and accessible compositions". Since his album "Bending New Corners" was released in 1999 on the legendary Blue Note label, he has been one of the outstanding personalities in recent jazz history. Truffaz has worked with a wide variety of musicians, including the singers Rokia Traoré and Sophie Hunger (Swiss Grand Prix Music 2016).

The winners of the 2023 Swiss Music Awards are

Carlo Balmelli (Arogno, Ticino) has been an important figure in wind music in Switzerland for decades. The musician, composer and instrument inventor Mario Batkovic (Bern) defies categorization and uses his accordion to develop music that touches on genres as diverse as classical, ambient, minimal music and metal. Lucia Cadotsch (Zurich) is one of the outstanding voices of contemporary jazz. She is constantly reinventing herself with her innovative and relevant projects. The four musicians of Ensemble Nikel (CH, ISR, USA, DE) Brian Archinal, Yaron Deutsch, Antoine Françoise and Patrick Stadler strive for a renewal of chamber music with their exploratory work. As a DJ and producer of electronic music, Sonja Moonear (Geneva) is one of the most recognized personalities on the scene with her combination of house, techno and experimental sounds. The composer Katharina Rosenberger (Zurich) challenges our listening habits with her art and sound sculptures and draws our attention to our own perception of music. As an improviser and singer with an exceptional voice, Saadet Türköz (Zurich) has established herself as one of the most influential personalities on the independent Swiss music scene thanks to influences from various musical traditions.

Special music prizes

The special prizes are awarded to important institutions and players in the Swiss music scene. They recognize personalities, venues, labels or educational projects that actively promote the status of music, the promotion of music creation and the dissemination of cultural heritage in Switzerland.

The Special Prizes Music 2023 go to:

The Helvetiarockt association, which campaigns for equal opportunities and more visibility for women, inter, non-binary, trans and agender people in jazz, pop and rock;

The Kunstraum Walcheturm, an independent cultural venue in Zurich that is of particular importance to the experimental cultural scene;

The rapper Pronto, who is one of the most influential personalities in the young Swiss trap and Afrobeat scene.

Ursula Benzing holds a doctorate in musicology and most recently worked as opera director and head music dramaturge at the Staatstheater Kassel. She designed repertoires, including unknown and little-performed operas as well as a complete cycle of Wagner's "Der Ring des Nibelungen". In 2021, she received Kassel's KULTURpunkt Award for "the special promotion of baroque opera and in recognition of her lively exchange with the audience".

Jonathan Bloxham studied at the Yehudi Menuhin School and at the Royal College of Music with Thomas Carroll before completing his studies at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama with Louise Hopkins. He began his career as Assistant Conductor with Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla at the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (CBSO). For the last eleven years Jonathan has been Artistic Director of the Northern Chords Festival in his home town of Newcastle upon Tyne. Jonathan Bloxham is an advocate of contemporary music and has commissioned several new pieces from young composers such as Vlad Maistorovici, Jack Sheen and Freya Waley Cohen.

Tanja Scartazzini took over as Head of the Office of Culture on 1 August 2021. According to the canton's press release, her work was "characterized by changes and special challenges". Under her leadership, the Office of Culture implemented the support measures in connection with the Covid-19 pandemic.

Tanja Scartazzini played a key role in the continuation of important major projects in the cultural sector, such as the project for a new state archive, which was approved by voters in 2022, and the new library project. Tanja Scartazzini oversaw the establishment of the cultural promotion region of St.Gallen and the surrounding area and provided important impetus for the further development of the St.Gallen Cultural Foundation and the harmonization of regional cultural promotion organizations.

Tanja Scartazzini is leaving the St. Gallen Office for Culture at the end of August to take over as Head of the Office for Culture of the City of Winterthur on September 1, 2023. The government regrets her departure and thanks Tanja Scartazzini for her commitment and achievements. Her position will be advertised shortly.

Munich Tetra Brass are Aljoscha Zierow (trumpet), Luca Chiché (trumpet), Christian Traute (trombone) and Jakob Grimm (bass trombone). They were the first brass ensemble to graduate from the chamber music course at the University of Music and Performing Arts Munich. The quartet has been awarded 1st prize at the Chieri International Competition and 1st prize at the 7th International Music Competition Berlin.

The ensemble specializes in the discovery, performance and expansion of quartet literature for brass. In concerts throughout Europe, it combines its repertoire into its own programs and regularly performs world premieres by young composers.

According to the city's announcement, cultural projects that generally fulfill the applicable Aarau cultural funding guidelines are eligible for funding. Applications are submitted by e-mail. A short project description with the purpose of the grant and account details is sufficient. The conception and implementation of smaller cultural and art projects, site fees or work yard services are approved. Projects already supported by the City of Aarau and those that do not comply with the funding guidelines are excluded. A photo of the event is sufficient proof.

The Cultural Promotion Commission has reserved a funding budget of 5,000 francs for Fast Lane until the end of the year. The maximum funding amount per project is 500 francs. The commitment will be made within a week by the Aarau Cultural Office after consultation with the committee members.

More info: https://www.aarau.ch/politik-verwaltung/aktuelles.html/204/news/8009

Benjamin Lang studied composition, music theory, conducting and musicology in Rostock, Salzburg, Hanover, Lugano, Bremen and Edinburgh. He completed his composition studies with a concert exam and a doctorate, and his musicology studies with a doctorate.

From 2010, Lang taught music theory and composition at the Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK), becoming a professor in 2014. In 2016, he was appointed to the Hanns Eisler School of Music. He has been a professor at the Rostock University of Music and Drama since 2018.