Festivals

The Agora Music Festival is the first classical music festival in Luxembourg centered around the original creations of performer-composers, in equal parts with the traditional repertoire. The public will discover the contemporary form of the lost tradition of Vivaldi and Paganini, Liszt and Rachmaninov - the composition and interpretation of the work being presented by the performer himself. This is the opportunity to present a new music at the time of its birth, interpreted by its creator, while enjoying every aspect of a traditional festival. The festival was brought to life by Nora Braun and Constantin Riccardi while studying in London, where they discovered a new generation of talented performer-composers. The festival with its first edition in 2021 hopes to create a lasting event in the center of musical Europe, a place of alliances across time of several generations of performers: an agora, faithful to the past, open to the future. 

www.agoramusicfestival.com

The Blues Express is one of Luxembourg's biggest Blues music festivals and takes place in July in Fond-de-Gras and Lasauvage (Differdange). The one-day blues festival is known to attract visitors from near and far. The event isn’t just for hardcore blues or jazz fans, it is also an event for both the young and old. Besides the many concerts, visitors also have the opportunity to visit different art exhibitions as well as two museums and a market. Music fans can move between the two sites (Fond-de-Gras & Lasauvage) using the famous Minièresbunn, a mining train travelling 90 metres underground. The “Train 1900” (tourist steam train) connects Pétange to the venue.

www.bluesexpress.lu

The Blues’n Jazz Rallye is a very popular music marathon, which takes place every summer in the capital of Luxembourg. The internationally recognised festival attracts thousands of music enthusiasts into the old town of Luxembourg city and offers a great atmosphere throughout the picturesque streets of Pfaffenthal, Clausen and Grund. More than two hundred renowned artists will play live-concerts on different open-air stages and in several cafes, pubs, clubs and restaurants. The craggy fortress, listed as UNESCO heritage, provides a unique and scenic setting. The pictorial location and nature of the urban festival make it one of a kind in Europe. Free entrance.

Every summer since its opening in 2004, neimënster has been organizing a plethora of outdoor concerts on its famous courtyard, the parvis. Yet, this well-known summer festival is so much more than your standard music festival: Over several weeks the Abbey is brimming with cultural activities, from concerts of local bands to international acts, from exhibitions to artist residencies, performances and much more. In 2018 the festival changed its name from OMNI to “Bock op…”, a name which carries a double meaning. First off, it makes reference to the Bockfiels, which is the stunning backdrop of the outdoor concerts and the natural and historic wall surrounding the premises. Secondly, it hints at the Luxembourgish phrase “Bock hun”, which essentially means to fancy doing something. As a multidisciplinary festival, this could translate into “Bock op… summer”, “Bock op… Jazz” or “Bock op… culture”, depending on what the program has in store for the audience. “Bock op…” is a family-friendly, progressive, multicultural and committed festival for all ages from near and far with a fair and democratic pricing policy. Always working together closely with artists and partner organizations in order to develop and offer a diverse program, neimënster is proud to welcome thousands of guests at the Abbey each year for unforgettable moments.

www.neimenster.lu

Rotondes’ Summer Festival! During an entire month, local and international bands and artists perform at the Klub and on the outdoor stage, while DJ sets guarantee a summer atmosphere in the courtyard. Beside amplified music, people can expect film screenings (including music documentaries), exhibitions and other unusual events.

www.rotondes.lu

E-lake is a free 3 day open-air music festival with a varied music program ranging from rock to techno. The festival has attracted more than 20,000 festival goers in previous years and takes place beside lake Echternach. Previous acts to have played E-Lake include: Benoît Martiny Band, Napoleon Gold, Tuys, Ice In My Eyes, Aamar, The Majestic Unicorns From Hell, Juli, Beatsteaks, Blumentopf, Clueso, Die Firma, Die Happy, Donots, Hooverphonic, K's Choice, Sportfreunde Stiller, Such a Surge... Next edition: 6 - 8 August, 2021!

www.e-lake.lu

The mini-festival Esch Calling was established in 2019, to offer an event under the banner of music and commitment (political, in particular) and thus to show that the Kulturfabrik, even on its small scale, remains a beacon of alternative culture with principles and a strong commitment to the struggles of our times. The program is focused on activist groups (human rights, LGBTQI+ community rights, anti-fascism...) who fight every day, in their own way, to change the world.

www.kulturfabrik.lu

Founded in 1953, the Festival de Wiltz (operated by COOPERATIONS asbl) is the most renowned open-air festival in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. Every summer the city of Wiltz, cosily nestled in the rugged landscapes in the north of Luxembourg, welcomes a variety of international and local performers. The castle of Wiltz, built in the 12th century, serves as the impressive backdrop of the festival stage. The program has expanded over the years and now offers a wide range of musical genres for grown-ups as well as performances for children. It’s a festival for everybody that stands out thanks to its exciting diversity, mixing world music with local music. Taking a glance at the 2021 edition, one will notice that the festival’s program stays true to its eclectic musical cocktail: you can dance the night away to Passenger and Mando Diao, but also discover Krunnemécken, a passionate group of local accordionists as well as enjoy artists of the national Jazz scene.

www.festivalwiltz.lu

Since 2002, the FIMOD has been organising the Dudelange International Organ Festival at the Stahlhuth/Jann organ in the church of Saint-Martin in Dudelange, an organ of international renown. This festival invites confirmed international artists, young talents and Luxembourg organists. With its commissions for compositions, the Festival contributes to the enrichment of the repertoire of Luxembourg and foreign music. The biennial competition attracts candidates from all over the world who present themselves to a jury of international renown. Its laureates then launch a very promising professional career. With more than 80 CDs recorded for international labels, the organ of Dudelange is a first-rate Luxembourg cultural ambassador abroad.

www.orgue-dudelange.lu

Created in 2006, the FlamencoFestival Esch is THE place to be for flamenco art lovers. Every year, the Kulturfabrik and the Círculo Cultural español Antonio Machado offer a rich and varied program with performances (dance, singing, guitar), an exhibition, multiple workshops (for beginners and advanced) and film-documentary screenings. Since 2019, a flamenco village with numerous stands (gastronomy, clothing, bookstore corner...) completes the program. While most of the shows take place at the Kulturfabrik, two major partners of the Luxembourg cultural scene are associated with the FlamencoFestival Esch: the Escher Theater and the Cinémathèque de la Ville de Luxembourg.

FlamencoFestivalEsch

The Last Summer Dance Festival is a participative festival with an eclectic mix of music, workshops and arts at the end of August - start of September. Over two days, the idyllic castle park of Erpeldange-sur-Sure is filled with music from near and far, including bands like Konoba, Blue Nipple Boys, Tuys, The Disliked, and Giant Rooks.

www.lastsummer-dance.squarespace.com

At the turn of the new millennium, the reputation of Dudelange as Luxembourg’s City of Jazz was already firmly rooted in its outstanding previous history. Relying on this pioneering work and its ultimate commitment to jazz, Danielle Igniti (Artistic Director) decided to create an international jazz festival doing justice to the dynamic image of Dudelange, and to defend with refueled fervor its cultural strategy by organizing a common platform for the artists, the public, the professionals and cultural workers, as well as the associations and societies interested in partnership. Concentrating its efforts on jazz in all its forms, the festival offers a wide and open range of the most various currents, staking on the exceptional quality of the performances, shows and creations. « Like a Jazz Machine » is a festival for all ages, worthy of a big city’s renown, dedicated to enhance the visibility and the moods of today’s jazz all over the city of Dudelange, the whole of Luxembourg and the large European borderland.

www.jazzmachine.lu

music:LX, in partnership with the Philharmonie Luxembourg organizes the Luxembourg Classical Meeting. The main goal of this showcase festival is to present the country's classical music scene to an audience of representatives of concert halls, festivals, record companies and artistic agencies.

The first edition of the festival was held in June 2015 for the tenth anniversary of the Philharmonie opening.
Artists featured: pianists Jean Muller, Cathy Krier, Francesco Tristano, the ensembles Artemandoline, Trio Koch and Lucilin, clarinetist Max Mausen, opera singers Claudia Moulin and David John Pike.  

The second edition took place in September 2017 parallel to the inauguration of the season 2017/18 of the Philharmonie Luxembourg. 
Artists featured: Quatuor Louvigny, Claudia Moulin&Marcelo Amaral, Trio Koch, Joint Venture Percussion Duo, Cathy Krier, Artemandoline, Philippe Schartz & Christopher Williams, Jean Muller. Moreover, the international delegates had the chance to listen to the OPL (Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg) under the baton of its Music Director Gustavo Gimeno, with Sir Bryn Terfel as a soloist. 

www.philharmonie.lu

Since 2004, the Schalltot collective and the Kulturfabrik have been organizing the Out of the Crowd Festival in April. Every year, the program gives pride of place to "actual music” and emerging bands from today's underground scene (rock, indie, jazz, experimental music, electro...). The festival has welcomed more than 150 bands from all around the world such as Russian Circles, Battles, Gogo Penguin, Baths or Breton, Le Klub Des Loosers or Other Lives.

www.ootcfestival.com

Powerful, wild, and primeval – over the first two weekends of December, the rainy days festival presents contemporary sound landscapes no lawnmower could tame. Orchestral works run wild in two concerts with Ilan Volkov and the OPL; a wild free-jazz big band; a Wild West-style avant-garde rock trio; artificial woods out of a socket, heroes from northern sagas, tigers from America, and crocodiles from Manchester – all add up to a boisterous, eclectic, indoor and outdoor festival.

Venues include – as well as the Philharmonie, the Grand Théâtre, and the Mudam – the rocky setting around Neumünster Abbey, the storied casino cellar, and the city’s untidy outskirts: waste land, industrial ruins, and the bustle of pre-Christmas shopping malls. Even in the concert hall, the OPL and the highly cultivated ensemble recherche indulge in shows of force and outbursts of rage…

With festival debuts by exceptional ensembles (London Jazz Composers Orchestra, Blueblut, Distractfold, PHACE, and Magnus Lindberg’s Toimii Ensemble) and premieres and new work by Pierluigi Billone, Roby Glod, Alexis Guneratne, David Helbich, Steve Kaspar/Trixi Weis, Catherine Kontz, Jorge López, Daniel Ott/Enrico Stolzenburg, Alexander Schubert, Maurizio Spiridigliozzi, Pamelia Stickney/Mark Holub/Chris Janka, and many others.

contact: dramaturgie[at]philharmonie.lu

website: www.rainydays.lu

3 days, 1 place, around 15 concerts and a lot of exchanges! SHUFFLE – Luxembourg Jazz Meeting is the most important music jazz showcase and festival in Luxembourg! Taking place every two years at the end of November, at the Neimenster Abbey, in the heart of the historical city centre of Luxembourg.

Every two years, the city of Luxembourg hosts a three days event focused on showcasing the country’s most talented jazz artists selected for their international career and their brand new actualities. We are also thrilled to be inviting foreign artists on stage and thus are favouring international exchange and new music discoveries. Open to the worldwide music professionals and a public audience, this event gathers jazz fans during 3 days filled with meetings, exchanges and great live music!

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This event is co-organized by Kultur l lx and Neimenster, with the support of the Ministry of Culture of Luxembourg, Sacem Luxembourg, Ville d'Esch sur Alzette, and local media radio 100,7 and Kultur Kanal.  

contact: Laura Varache laura@musiclx.lu

The Siren’s Call Music & Culture Festival started in 2017 and has since become the yearly summer event that the Grand-Duchy can look forward to with multiple genres performing on various stages in the historic & picturesque Grund area. Venues include the Siren’s Main Stage at the Neumünster Abbey, Melusina Stage, Siggy’s Stage, St Jean Church Stage, Garden Stage, the Agora, the Brasserie and the Lawn as well as De Gudde Wëllen. Since its first edition, the festival will feature a variety of cultural activities. From art & theatrical performances to light & sound installations and a design exhibition, the festival collaborates with local talents and offers a platform for their work of art.

www.sirenscall.lu

Located between Belgium, France and Germany, SONIC VISIONS is a Showcase and Conference Festival that creates a platform for professionals all over the music industry as well as for the international audience. Previous editions included gigs by artists such as When 'Airy Met Fairy, Scarred, Cherokee, Rome, Say Yes Dog, An Apple A Day, Napoleon Gold, Bonaparte, Naive New Beaters, Royal Republic and keynotes by music professionals such as Carl Leighton-Pope, Alan McGee (Creation Records) and Ross Robinson (producer - KoRn, Klaxons, Slipknot, The Cure...)

www.sonicvisions.lu

Since 1997, around mid-March, the city of Dudelange is turning into the Mecca of Celtic music, hosting the jewels of this music genre at the Zeltik. The colourful festival takes place at the Alliance appendix of the Lycée Nic Biever’s sports hall. 2017 will be the 20th anniversary of the renown event. Traditionally, the 19th edition will be preceded by the ‘Celtic Prelude’, which will open the festivities on Friday 11 March at 8 pm at St Martin’s church with the Berlin Pipe Company (Scottish Pipes & Drums) and Erik Hoppe at the organ. Saturday evening

Past acts: Carlos Nu?n?ez, The Red Hot Chilli Pipes, Capercaillie, The Waterboys, The Levellers, Altan, Dervish, Los Paperboys, Soldat Louis, Moya Brennan, Dan Ar Braz, The Danceperados of Ireland, Celtic Legends, Skerryvore, The Rapparees, Bagad Kemper, Salsa Celtica, Urban Trad, Beoga, Guichen, Red Cardell, Xosé Manuel Budiño, Seth Lakeman, Bodh’aktan, The Kilkennys, Niahm Ni Charra Band, Cara, An Erminig etc.

www.zeltik.lu