highSCORE New Music Festival and Master Classes

16th edition / ARTISTIC RESIDENCY / July 20 – August 1 2026

highSCORE Festival, under the creative artistic direction of Giovanni Albini (Conservatory of Alessandria, Conservatory of Lugano) and the executive production of Paolo Fosso, is today’s leading Italian Contemporary Music Festival offering for 2026 a unique residency with masterclasses specifically shaped for composers, one of the «ten summer festivals to get the contemporary music blood pumping» (Composition: Today). Over the course of fifteen editions, highSCORE Festival has welcomed as many as 378 composers, establishing itself as a trusted specialized destination for emerging talents in contemporary music.

The upcoming 16th edition (July 20 – August 1 2026) features an outstanding internationally recognized faculty roster: Dmitri Tymoczko (Princeton University), Florian Magnus Maier, Molly Herron (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), and Pascal Le Boeuf (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), the core of our composition faculty. The renowned Trio Kanon will perform live the music submitted by participant composers.

Founded in 2010, highSCORE Festival is an invaluable venue for emerging composers wanting to produce and promote their work, inspire audiences with their music, secure future commissions and job opportunities and join other musicians to create a vibrant artistic community. Musicians work closely with a renowned faculty, talented visiting artists and special guests from around the world for two intense weeks of masterclasses, lectures, workshops and concerts. In addition to the vital opportunity of space and time to create, highSCORE residency program offers a substantial range of professional development opportunities while providing lodging, meals, and studio at a wonderful center nestled atop a hill at the foot of the Belluno Dolomites, overlooking the Valbelluna, the valley of the Piave River, just over an hour away from the magnificent Venice. A visit to Venice is also included in the program, allowing one to lose themselves in the timeless beauty of the “City of Water”. Whether you’re looking for a peaceful retreat or more intense development time, highSCORE enables a step-change in your career, and reveals new insights about music’s place in the world.