Dear English speaking guests…..

…..sorry that this website is in German. Please find here a short overview in English.

The Orlandus Lassus Foundation

The Orlandus Lassus Foundation is a foundation of the Rotary Club Munich-International. It supports highly gifted students at the University of Music and Performing Arts Munich (Hochschule für Musik und Theater München, picture on the left).

In 2006, the Rotary Club Munich-International established the Orlandus Lassus Foundation with the aim of the foundation to support highly talented students of music at the University of Music and Performing Arts Munich who are in need of financial assistance.

Who was Orlandus Lassus?

Orlandus Lassus (1532-1594), also known as Orlando di Lasso, was a famous Renaissance composer and legendary leader of the Munich court orchestra (Münchener Hofkapelle) during his lifetime, and he gave his name to the foundation.

As an internationally active and renowed musician he actively supported young musicians and, thus, represents a special inspiration for the foundation.

The picture shows the bronze statue of Orlando di Lasso on the Promenadenplatz in Munich. Ironically, it also serves as a memorial to the pop icon Michael Jackson.

Selection of OLS Scholars

The Munich University of Music and Performing Arts collects applications from among its students and proposes suitable candidates to the foundation. After a selection process including reviews and interviews with the applicants, the Artistic Board (Kuratorium) of the foundation including three members proposes suitable candidates to the Foundation Board (Stiftungsrat) of the foundation composed of five members selected from among the Rotary Club Munich-International, who formally decide on the grant of scholarships.

A list of past and present scholars of the Orlandus Lassus Foundation can be viewed here. You may find concerts of the scholars here as well as concerts in support of the foundation here.

How can you help?

The Orlandus Lassus Foundation is run on a voluntary basis with cost-free administrative support by the Deutsche Rotarische Stiftung, Düsseldorf. As a result, your donations reach the scholarship recipients in full. Our goal is to support at least two scholars per academic year.

Any donations to the Orlandus Lassus Foundation may be wired to the following bank account:

Deutsche Rotarische Stiftung
w/Orlandus Lassus Stiftung des Rotary Club München International
Deutsche Bank AG
IBAN: DE05 3007 0010 0436 5540 00
BIC: DEUTDEDDXXX

Please do not forget to include your name and address for obtaining a corresponding tax-deductible donation receipt. Thank you very much for your kind support!

Read some voices about our foundation:

Wilfried Hiller, as a recognized composer you have placed yourself as patron of the Orlandus Lassus Foundation. Why?

When music has shaped one’s own life in such a way, one naturally begins to take an interest in highly talented young people. The idea that talent cannot develop because the scarcity of resources prevents concentration on music seems unbearable to me. That is why I support the Orlandus Lassus Foundation with full conviction and from the bottom of my heart. After more than ten years, we can see from the scholarship holders that it has been worthwhile. The internationality and quality of the instrumentalists and singers who have been supported by the foundation are consistently at a very high level.

Prof. Dr. Bernd Redmann, as the President of the University of Music and Performing Arts Munich, does the Orlandus Lassus Foundation help you?

Our goal is to educate young artistic personalities. While the University makes every effort to competently educate young talents from around the world, it can only be of limited help in case of financial need of its students. To this extent funds from a wide variety of sponsors step in, in particular the generous individual scholarships provided by the Orlandus Lassus Foundation. It helps us greatly in the quality of education, when the young artists concentrate fully on their education, attending master classes and preparing for concerts and competitions, without having to spend extensive time on side jobs.

Joanna Liberadzka, you were the first scholarship recipient as a harpist. What did the scholarship mean to you?

It was especially important for me, as it is for many music students, to participate in international competitions and master classes. Thanks to the scholarship I was in a position to prepare for them in a very focused way and, thus, to be successful. Especially the travels abroad or the purchase of a new instrument are usually beyond the student’s budget. The scholarship helped me to work with groundbreaking musicians, artists and teachers. I am grateful for these forming impulses, which have strongly influenced my musical development.