During his extraordinary 40-year career as the world’s most prominent trumpet soloist, Håkan Hardenberger has not only pushed the boundaries of what can be achieved with the instrument, he has inspired countless composers and musicians to expand their horizons and explore unknown musical territories with him. His quest for excellence and innovation continues to this day and he champions the finest works written for the trumpet by performing them with stunning virtuosity and sheer dedication to music.

Hardenberger performs regularly with the world’s leading orchestras such as the Berliner Philharmoniker, Concertgebouworkest, Wiener Philharmoniker, Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks and the London, Boston and NHK Symphony Orchestras. Notable engagements of the 2025/26 season include the Norwegian Premiere of Jörg Widmann’s Towards Paradise with the Oslo Philharmonic and Alain Altinoglu as well as the Dutch premiere with the Concertgebouworkest and Andris Nelsons, with whom he will also perform Bernd Zimmerman’s Nobody knows de trouble I see with the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks. He brings HK Gruber’s Aerial to the Stavanger Symphony Orchestra, Tonkünstler Orchestra and Sydney Symphony Orchestra with Fabien Gabel.

Further engagements include with the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra for Wallin’s The Fisher King under the baton of Dima Slobodeniouk and a performance with the Boulez Saal Ensemble for Neuwirth’s ..miramondo multiplo... and Matthias Pintscher. He concludes the season on a European tour with the Mahler Chamber Orchestra and Daniel Harding. Hardenberger also joins John Storgårds with the Swedish Chamber Orchestra and leads the Danish Philharmonic Orchestra in a play-direct program.

A committed educator, Hardenberger performs with Junge Deutsche Philharmonie alongside Nodoka Okisawa as well as leading masterclasses at the Paris Conservatoire and the Royal Academy of Music, London. Hardenberger enjoys collaborating with some of the most renowned conductors, including Alain Altinoglu, Marin Alsop, Ryan Bancroft, Tabita Berglund, Fabien Gabel, Alan Gilbert, Daniel Harding, Susanna Mälkki, Andris Nelsons, Eva Ollikainen, Sakari Oramo, Sir Simon Rattle, Dima Slobodeniouk and John Storgårds.

Many works written for Håkan Hardenberger stand as cornerstones of what has become a vast repertoire thanks to his tireless commitment. These have included pieces by Sir Harrison Birtwistle, Brett Dean, Helen Grime, HK Gruber, Hans Werner Henze, Betsy Jolas, György Ligeti, Olga Neuwirth, Tōru Takemitsu, Mark-Anthony Turnage, Rolf Wallin and Jörg Widmann. Håkan Hardenberger’s 60th birthday season featured two extraordinary trumpet concertos: Jörg Widmann’s Towards Paradise, co-commissioned by the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig and the Boston Symphony Orchestra and Helen Grime’s night-sky-blue, co-commissioned by the Koussevitzky Foundation, Library of Congress, London Symphony Orchestra, and Boston Symphony Orchestra.

He appeared as Artist Portrait with the London Symphony Orchestra, performing with Sir Simon Rattle in London and Paris and giving country premieres of the Grime concerto in Germany and Denmark. Hardenberger performs frequently with pianist Roland Pöntinen, guitarist Mats Bergström and percussionist Colin Currie. With the latter Hardenberger released a recording of works by Brett Dean, André Jolivet and others.

The latest addition to his discography on BIS features French trumpet concertos by Jolivet, Schmitt, and Tomasi, and Jolas’ Onze Lieder. He has also recorded for Philips, Deutsche Grammophon, Decca, and EMI.

Born in Malmö, Sweden, he began studying the trumpet at the age of eight with Bo Nilsson and continued his studies at the Paris Conservatoire with Pierre Thibaud and in Los Angeles with Thomas Stevens. From 2016 to 2018, Hardenberger was Artistic Director of the Malmö Chamber Music Festival, and he is a professor at the Malmö Conservatoire.

Sophie Kukulies is a professional musician building a flourishing career as a classical trumpeter and educator. Based in Brisbane, she maintains a dynamic portfolio career as both a freelance performer and dedicated teacher. She has recently returned from London where she completed her Master of Performance degree at the Royal Academy of Music graduating with a Distinction and earning the Regency Award for all-round contribution and achievement. In 2023 she held a 12-month contract as associate principal trumpet with the West Australian Symphony Orchestra and has continued to enjoy working with them as a casual musician. 

Sophie’s musical journey began at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music, where she attained her Bachelor of Music with an academic excellence award in 2021. Her acclaimed performance of the Gregson Trumpet Concerto at the Queensland Conservatorium Concerto Festival in May 2021 showcased her talent. During her time in London, she worked with the Philharmonia Orchestra and performed with Septura Brass and the London Philharmonic Orchestra as part of the Royal Academy of Music’s side-by-side projects.

From a young age, Harrison was surrounded with the sounds of brass, his parents and family all being involved in brass bands. Quickly captivated, he began playing the trombone at the age of 8. Harrison’s love for the trombone grew with his love for classical music, and in the later years of high school, he began dreaming of a career in classical music and performing in one of the world’s best orchestras.  

Having grown up predominantly as a soloist in his high school years, Harrison has won numerous solo state- and nation-wide competitions, including sections in the Australian National Band Championships since 2015, finalist and winner of the Australian Youth Classical Music Competition in 2021, and finalist in 3MBS The Talent in 2019. Since 2019, Harrison has been involved in frequent Australian Youth Orchestra programs and was a part of its most recent International European Tour this year, performing in some of the most famous concert halls in the world like the Musikverein in Vienna and The Concertgebouw in Amsterdam.   

Growing up in Sydney, Lucy began learning the horn in high school with Rafael Salgado. She moved to Melbourne in 2022 to study with Carla Blackwood at the Melbourne Conservatorium.

In 2025, Lucy returned home to study with Rachel Silver and Sam Jacobs at the Sydney Conservatorium, graduating with first class honours.

She has been lucky enough to play casually with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Opera Australia Orchestra and Orchestra Victoria. Lucy loves orchestral music and the teamwork required to play in a horn section and is incredibly excited to take part in the Sydney Symphony Orchestra Fellowship this year.