The 2026-2027 orchestral season at the CNSMD de Lyon is reinventing itself with new formats designed to enrich collective practices and adapt to the diversity of the musician's profession. The goal is to multiply experiences and support performers in a constantly evolving musical landscape.
The Training Orchestre initiative offers in-depth weekly rehearsals, culminating in a public concert on October 16th, featuring Brahms's Symphony No. 2. This format encourages refined listening and subtle balance among sections.
In contrast, the Pop-Up format, driven by the student artistic committee, challenges musicians on their adaptability by rapidly staging a program in one morning for an internal performance the same day. Pop-Up#1 will present opera overtures by Mozart, conducted by a student from the Artist Diploma Konzertmeister program.
Thomas Besnard, Director of Musical Studies, emphasizes the importance of innovation: 'More than ever, performers, educators, and composers must innovate, explore new forms, and cross disciplines and repertoires to engage themselves. [...] While our institution remains a place of high standards, it is also a space of trust and a laboratory for experimentation, ensuring the emancipation of each individual.'
Other formats promote a collaborative approach. The Lab’Orchestre on March 25th will allow students in choir conducting to lead emblematic symphonic works such as Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 and Rossini's Guillaume Tell overture. They will also conduct excerpts from Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker during Pop-Up#2.
The String Orchestra concert on December 4th will adopt a multidisciplinary approach, including contemporary dance classes. Instrumentalists from the early music department will also join to perform Mozart's Symphony No. 39 and Richter's Symphony in G minor 'with fugue'. The ensemble will experiment with an orchestral layout inherited from the Mannheim School, without a conductor, led by Amandine Beyer, the principal first violin.
The season also highlights contemporary creation. The Festival Empreintes (January 19th-29th) and the Atelier XX-21 (concert on March 12th) will feature contemporary repertoire and student compositions. On November 17th, the XX-21+ format will unite the symphony orchestra with Atelier XX-21, while on October 8th, the Wind Orchestra concert at CNSMD Lyon will blend repertoire pieces with student creations, including works by Strauss, Hindemith, Plog, and Curnow.
