Fritz Gerber Awards 2026 presented

For the twelfth time, the Fritz Gerber Foundation and Lucerne Festival will present the «Fritz Gerber Award» to three young talents in the field of contemporary music in summer 2026. This year, the Italian double bassist Pietro Elia Barcellona, the Swiss-American violinist Benjamin Frueh and the Portuguese percussionist Bárbara Ribeiro will receive the highly endowed award. They each receive prize money of 10,000 francs. In addition, the foundation will enable them to take part in the Lucerne Festival Academy 2026, also worth a total of CHF 10,000 each.

The «Fritz Gerber Award» is aimed at young artists who are either Swiss nationals or have lived in Switzerland for at least three years. They are selected by a jury consisting of Sebastian Nordmann, Artistic Director of the Lucerne Festival, Mark Sattler, Co-Head of Contemporary and Dramaturg of the Lucerne Festival, and Jack Adler-McKean, Coaching Program Coordinator of the Lucerne Festival Academy.