HEMU Contemporary Ensemble

Since its foundation in 2003, the Ensemble Contemporain de l'HEMU (HEMU Contemporary Ensemble) has become a key player in the musical life of French-speaking Switzerland, particularly through its regular collaboration with the Société de Musique Contemporaine (SMC Lausanne). The ensemble’s mission is to introduce HEMU – Haute École de Musique students to the rich repertoire of the last fifty years under the guidance of specialists in this field of music, who are often the composers themselves. These contemporary workshops now punctuate the academic year. The quality of its performance is increasingly recognised by a growing number of partners in Switzerland and even neighbouring France.

The HEMU Contemporary Ensemble was formed for a series of concerts dedicated to the composer Toshio Hosokawa. This opportunity was offered to the HEMU by the Bern Biennale, which hosted its first concerts. Composed of Master's students at the HEMU, the ensemble’s size is flexible, enabling it to explore a wide repertoire ranging from 1950 to the present day. Preparatory work is generally supervised by specialised professors, performers, and guest composers, culminating in numerous professional concerts in Switzerland and abroad.

Thanks to the quality of its performances, the ensemble has been recognised by a large number of partners, including the Lemanic Modern Ensemble, the Ensemble Contrechamps, and the Festival Archipel. The ensemble also regularly collaborates with RTS Espace 2, the Cinémathèque Suisse, the Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK), the HEM in Geneva and the Scène conventionnée Château Rouge in Annemasse.

The long list of leading composers whose works have been performed by the ensemble since 2003 (often in direct collaboration with the composers themselves) constitutes a veritable who’s who of contemporary creation over the last fifty years: These include Dieter Ammann, Luciano Berio, George Benjamin, Oscar Bianchi, Pierluigi Billone, William Blank, Pierre Boulez, John Cage, Elliott Carter, Georges Crumb, Luigi Dallapiccola, Xavier Dayer, Pascal Dusapin, Morton Feldman, Ivan Fedele, Francesco Filidei, Beat Furrer, Stefano Gervasoni, Vinko Globokar, Sofia Gubaidulina, Jonathan Harvey, Heinz Holliger, Toshio Hosokawa, Klaus Huber, Michael Jarrell, Tom Johnson, Betsy Jolas, Mauricio Kagel, György Kurtág, Hanspeter Kyburz, Helmut Lachenmann, György Ligeti, Witold Lutoslawski, Yan Maresz, Tristan Murail, Isabel Mundry, Luis Naón, Krzysztof Penderecki, Matthias Pintscher, Wolfgang Rihm, Giacinto Scelsi, Alessandro Solbiati, Toru Takemitsu, Edgard Varèse, Iannis Xenakis, Isang Yun, Agata Zubel and Noriko Baba. The composer in residence for the 2025-26 season is Gérard Pesson 

> Composers in residence at the HEMU

To celebrate its tenth anniversary, the HEMU Contemporary Ensemble released the documentary film “Passeurs de sons” (Sound Carriers) on DVD. The film was made following the 2012 Lemanic Modern Academy and is dedicated to the creation of Gong, the farewell work by Swiss composer Eric Gaudibert.

Composer and conductor William Blank has been the ensemble’s artistic and musical director since its inception. Following his retirement, Guillaume Bourgogne became the ensemble's artistic director.

Videos

Seen & Heard

• Dans la rigueur, se libérer du temps
• Noces de cristal de l'HEMU et du 2.21

2025-2026 season concerts

Coming soon