»It was a pleasure to stay at Casa Orfeo, be inspired by the landscape, and enjoy the amazing sunsets of December. I was able to work uninterrupted for many hours and the special atmosphere and sights made it very easy to focus and concentrate«

Prof. Chaya Czernowin
Composer and Artist-in-Residence (2021)

»Up ahead, below, in the sea, the Siren Islands, which tell of the song of seduction and of how the present can be mastered as the basis for the future. Above, at the highest point of the city, closest to the sky, the cemetery, bright day and night as a memento mori. In between lies the Casa Orfeo. Could a place be more inspiring?«

Prof. Dr. Stephan Mösch
Musicologist and Artist-in-Residence (2023)

»The walls of the Kempff Cultural Foundation in Positano are an immediate invitation to immerse yourself in the imagination of your own music, because more than a myth, they are a place of inspiration.«

Prof. Isabel Mundry
Composer and Artist-in-Residence (2020)

Our path to music

Next date

12-18 September 2025 

Lecturer

Louis Lortie 

Beethoven Masterclass

After establishing the Casa Orfeo, Wilhelm Kempff began his annual Beethoven masterclasses in 1957. The 32 sonatas and the five piano concertos were and remained the central teaching material.

No individual lessons, all scholarship holders were always present to follow the playing of their colleagues. Kempff led the courses until 1982, and it was his express wish to continue offering them after his death.

Wilhelm Kempff died in Positano in 1991. Gerhard Oppitz continued his role from 1992 to 1995, followed by John O'Conor until 2011. Bernd Goetzke led the masterclasses from 2013 to 2016 and was succeeded by Jan G. Jiracek von Arnim from 2017 to 2023. In 2024, Louis Lortie was responsible for the Beethoven masterclass.

The Beethoven Masterclass 2019-2024 was funded by the German Federal Foreign Office.

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Next date

2025 (tbc)

Lecturer

William Youn

Schumann Masterclass

The Schumann Masterclass took place for the first time in 2018 at the Foundation's premises in Positano, Italy. Since 2021, the course has been led by pianist and member of the Foundation Board William Youn.

The Schumann Course takes up and further develops the Beethoven Masterclasses, which characterise the foundation. During the Schumann course, four selected young talents meet three guest artists (or four with the lecturer) and work on and deepen Robert Schumann's chamber music oeuvre together in chamber music sessions.

The Schumann Masterclass 2019-2024 was funded by the German Federal Foreign Office.

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Progetto Positano

The scholarship for young composers was launched by the Ernst von Siemens Music Foundation in collaboration with ensemble mosaik in 2017. Each year, two scholarship holders are invited to live and work at Casa Orfeo for a month.

Zara Ali, composer (May/June 2025)
Arash Yazdani, composer and conductor (February 2025)
Jack Sheen, composer and conductor (August 2024)
Ricardo Eizirik, composer (May 2024)
Georgia Koumará, composer (August 2023)
Maja Bosnić, composer (February 2023)
Kaj Duncan David, composer (June/August 2022)
Laura Bowler, composer und singer (March 2022)
Liisa Hirsch, composer (July 2021)
Chris Swithinbank, composer (May 2021)
Sara Glojnarić, composer (August 2020)
Wojtek Blecharz, composer (June/August 2020)
Julia Mihaly, composer (July/Oktober 2019)
Óscar Escudero, composer (June 2019)
Andreas Eduardo Frank, composer (September 2018)
Manuel Rodriguez Valenzuela, composer (June 2018)
Johan Svensson, composer (June 2017)

A project in cooperation with the Ernst von Siemens Music Foundation and ensemble mosaik.

You can find detailed information about the Progetto Positano here.

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13–20 September 2025

Concerts 

13 September, 7.30 pm
Concert with Louis Lortie

17 September, 7 pm
Piano evening and lecture with the participants of the Beethoven masterclass 

19 September, 7 pm
Concert with Lorenzo de Cunzo (baritone) und Tarek El Barbari (piano) 

20 September, 7.30 pm
Final concert with William Youn (piano) und Nils Mönkemeyer (viola) 

A co-operation with the 
Comune di Positano.

Kempff Festival

Following a successful first edition in 2024, the second Kempff Festival will take place from September 13 to 20, 2025, in cooperation with the municipality of Positano.

As part of the festival, four public concerts will take place at different locations in Positano, promising the audience a diverse listening experience.

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Artist residencies

Every year, the foundation awards scholarships to outstanding artists for a four-week stay at Casa Orfeo.

Artists 2025:
Lucia Ronchetti, composer (August 2025)

Artists 2024:
Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Rathert, musicologist and publicist (December 2024)
Prof. Dr. Nicolas Dufetel, musicologist (December 2024)

Artists 2023:
Prof. Dr. Stephan Mösch, musicologist and publicist (December 2023), video (2:38 min, in German)
Prof. Konstantia Gourzi, composer and conductor (November/December 2023)

Artists 2022:
Piano duo Yaara Tal & Andreas Groethuysen (December 2022)
Robert HP Platz, composer and conductoc (October/November 2022) final report (in German)

Artists 2021:
Prof. Chaya Czernowin, composer (December 2021), final report
Prof. Elmar Lampson, composer (December 2021)
Anna Gourari, pianist (August/September 2021)

Artists 2020:
Prof. Isabel Mundry, composer (September/October 2020), final report
Prof. Johannes Moser, cellist (September/October 2020), video (6:37 min)

The artist residencies 2020-2024 are funded by the German Federal Foreign Office.

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