In the 2026/27 season, Jörg Widmann will assume an exceptional dual role with the Staatskapelle Dresden: for the first time in the orchestra’s history, a single artist will serve simultaneously as Capell-Compositeur and Capell-Virtuos. This unique constellation reflects Widmann’s extraordinary artistic versatility as a composer, clarinettist, and musical thinker.

The residency opens on 20 September with a concert at the Kulturpalast, marking Widmann’s conducting debut with the Staatskapelle. In this concert presentation, he appears as conductor, performer, moderator and composer. Alongside his own works, including Danse macabre and the Fantasy for Solo Clarinet, the programme features Mendelssohn’s Reformation Symphony as well as a Mendelssohn sonata arranged by Widmann — interwoven with personal insights, including reflections on the Weber anniversary year. A portrait concert with the orchestra’s academy musicians and an accompanying masterclass in Hellerau will take place on 13 November, together with chamber music programmes devoted to Widmann’s works, further deepening his engagement with the next generation of musicians and members of the Staatskapelle.

In the symphony concerts of January 2027 conducted by Daniele Gatti, Widmann’s Lied for orchestra is juxtaposed with Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde and will be performed as part of his residency as Capell-Compositeur.

Additional highlights in April 2027 include a chamber music matinée with Jörg Widmann, Carolin Widmann and Dénes Várjon and the orchestra’s Beethoven cycle. Here, the Staatskapelle combines Widmann’s String Quartet No.8 (Beethoven Study III) in a new orchestral version with Beethoven’s symphonic oeuvre. The residency is complemented by lectures and panel discussions, offering a multifaceted portrait of one of the defining artists of our time.