The Academy searches the world for the most promising pianists, violinists, violists, cellists and trios and quartets to become students of its Soloists & Ensembles programme.
Up to seven musicians from each solo discipline and one ensemble are selected for three weeks of mentorship and coaching. Junior Students, aged 13 to 15, may also be invited in residence to soak up the Festival experience and inspire them to join the Academy in the future. The study and performance of chamber music are fundamental at Verbier. All soloists take part in chamber music masterclasses in addition to those in their respective disciplines.
programme dates
includes arrival and departure dates
2027
11 July – 2 August 2027
2028
10 July – 1 August 2028
how to apply
Applications for the 2027 edition of the Academy’s Soloists & Ensembles programme open on 7 October 2026
Please read the guidelines at the following link before sending your questions to the Verbier Festival Team. Application documentation is only available in English.
guidelinesmasterclasses
Information for students
Soloists normally perform in at least six masterclasses in their respective disciplines and four classes in their assigned chamber music groups. Whenever possible, Junior Students will participate in at least two masterclasses or private coaching sessions; they may also be assigned to a chamber music group, at the Academy’s discretion.
Ensembles normally participate in ten masterclasses.
mentors 2027
Chamber Music
Pierre Colombet, Quatuor Ébène
Augustin Dumay
András Keller
Gabriel Le Magadure
Pedja Mužijević
Gábor Takács-Nagy
Musicpreneurship
All Academy musicians learn to navigate the world of music by being exposed to concepts they don’t learn in school: programming interactive concerts to meet changing audience tastes and demographics, effective marketing and social media, media training, financial management, sound and video recording, and mental and physical wellness practices. Musicians meet with artists, educators and businesspeople who are living proof that there is no single career path for a young artist.
Charlotte Gardner
Gary Leboff
Pedja Mužijević
Alexis Milligan
Karen Zorn
Other mentors will be announced shortly
Piano
Joaquín Achúcarro
Sergei Babayan
Dmitri Bashkirov †
Jean-Efflam Bavouzet
Michel Béroff
Bella Davidovich
Leon Fleisher
Claude Frank †
Richard Goode*
Gary Graffman
Klaus Hellwig*
Joseph Kalichstein
Stephen Kovacevich
Menahem Pressler
Ferenc Rados
András Schiff*
Rena Shereshevskaya
Violin
Kristóf Baráti
Kolja Blacher*
Guy Braunstein
Zakhar Bron
Ana Chumachenco
Augustin Dumay*
Pamela Frank*
Ivry Gitlis
Ida Haendel
András Keller
Young-Uck Kim
Boris Kuschnir
Mihaela Martin*
Igor Oistrakh
György Pauk †
Dora Schwarzberg
Joseph Silverstein
Dmitry Sitkovetsky
Isaac Stern †
Viktor Tretiakov
Donald Weilerstein
Eduard Wulfson
Pinchas Zukerman
Viola
Yuri Bashmet
Isabel Charisius
Gerard Caussé
Roberto Diaz
Yuri Gandelsman
Nobuko Imai
Kim Kashkashian
Paul Neubauer
Lawrence Power
Máté Szücs*
Antoine Tamestit
Lars Anders Tomter*
Tabea Zimmermann
Cello
Nicolas Altstaedt*
Alban Gerhardt
Lynn Harrell †
Frans Helmerson*
Gary Hoffman
Steven Isserlis
Ralph Kirshbaum
Laurence Lesser
Julian Lloyd Webber
Miklós Perényi
Ferenc Rados
Torleif Thedéen
Jian Wang
Alisa Weilerstein
Chamber Music
Nicolas Altstaedt
Alfred Brendel
Pierre Colombet
Pamela Frank
Kirill Gerstein*
Amihai Grosz
Klaus Hellwig*
Mathieu Herzog
I Giardini
András Keller
Gabriel Le Magadure
Mihaela Martin*
Raphaël Merlin
Menahem Pressler
Ferenc Rados
Quatuor Ébène
András Schiff*
Alasdair Tait
Gábor Takács-Nagy*
Pinchas Zukerman
Improvisation
Yilian Cañizares*