Since 2014, the Federal Office of Culture awards the Swiss Music Prizes each year to recognise outstanding achievements in Swiss music creation. They are open to all musical genres, linguistic regions and genders. Each year, it mandates ten independent experts who nominate up to 100 individuals, collectives or institutions, and the seven-member jury then recommends the laureates. Finally, the Federal Office of Culture awards the prizes on behalf of the Federal Department of Home Affairs and makes the awarded achievements visible nationally and internationally at a public ceremony.
_____
SWISS MUSIC PRIZES 2026
_____
Swiss Grand Award for Music 2026:
Nadja Räss I Yodeler and cultural mediator with roots and vision, Einsiedeln (SZ)
_____
Swiss Music Prizes 2026:
Domi Chansorn – Making music with the devotion of a child at play, Huttwil (BE) / Zurich (ZH)
Ensemble ö! – Curiosity and consistency in the universe of contemporary music, Chur (GR)
Esther Hoppe – A violinist between music and humanity, Zug (ZG) / Zollikerberg (ZH)
Flèche Love – An experimental laboratory and a path to personal healing, Troinex (GE) / Geneva (GE)
Louis Schild – A hyperactive force of sound, Lausanne (VD)
Patricia Draeger – An accordionist bridging cultures, Zug (ZG) / Meierskappel (LU)
Ruedi Häusermann – Inventor of a music-theatrical language, Lenzburg (AG)
_____
Special Prizes for Music 2026:
Café Bar Mokka – A Thun space where subculture found its home, Thun (BE)
Intakt Records – A hub for jazz and boundary-crossing music, Zurich (ZH)
La Via Lattea – Musical pilgrimages where the landscape becomes a theatre, Vacallo (TI)