A home isn't just a building.

We all grew up in homes, yet no two are the same. A home isn't defined by money or size. It's not really about anything physical. The walls of a tiny shed can hold more love than a concrete mansion—or less.

So what is a home? Maybe music—not words—is the truest way to explore that feeling.

Bartók, in the U.S., writing truly Hungarian music.
Caetano Veloso and Gilberto Gil, creating Tropicalia from exile in London.
The lullaby our mother sang before sleep.
The songs we sing to comfort our child in the dark.

Is home, perhaps, a sound?

This year, the Ilumina Festival takes "Home" as its theme. The festival will be a musical journey from indigenous cradle songs to the great masterpieces of classical tradition.

International stars will share the stage with rising talents from across South America. Many have traveled far to be in São Paulo, each bringing with them a piece of where they come from—a sound, a song, a word, a memory — to share with the audience.

Classical music is sometimes seen as exclusive —a fancy ivory tower open only to a chosen few. But at its heart, classical music is a home where everyone is welcome.

At Ilumina, we celebrate this, and we will leave the door open.

2026 Artists

In this edition, Ilumina welcomes celebrated artists who share the stage — and their knowledge — with rising talents from across Latin America.

Jennifer Stumm

Founder and Artistic Director of Ilumina

Violist, artistic director, and speaker Jennifer Stumm follows a boldly creative path, leading projects that combine musical passion with transformative social innovation. Known for the “opaline beauty” (The Washington Post) of her sound, Jennifer performs around the world as both a viola soloist and as Ilumina’s Artistic Director. She founded the Ilumina project in 2015 as a new vision for 21st century creativity, united with social activism and community-led artistry.

A committed speaker and writer, Jennifer lectures regularly at NASA on how the arts can drive innovation for a better world. Her viral TEDx talk on the viola and the blessings of being different, The Imperfect Instrument, was selected by TED editors as one of their all-time favorites and led to her solo debut with the Berlin Philharmonic.

Born in Atlanta, Jennifer grew up in a family of singers immersed in Appalachian tradition. She studied at the Curtis Institute of Music and The Juilliard School, while also developing an interest in politics at the University of Pennsylvania. Jennifer Stumm is Professor of Viola at the Music and Arts University of the City of Vienna and performs on a 1589 Gasparo da Salò viola, generously on loan from a private trust.

A Musical Laboratory

The Ilumina Festival began in 2015 as a musical and social experiment on a farm in the mountains of the São Paulo countryside, when Jennifer Stumm brought together a small group of musicians to play three concerts in a magical blue church. The idea was that uniting super-talented young musicians from diverse backgrounds together with leading artists to live, eat, work and perform side-by-side would accelerate understanding, opportunity, and creativity for all participants, and hopefully make waves for equity and inclusion in the wider world of classical music. Since then, the festival has rocketed to prominence as an example of what an artist-led project can achieve, with a staggering percentage of young musicians going on to study at leading institutions around the world, and a family of international artists investing deeply in making sure the next generation gets a fair chance. An audience of thousands, for whom festival concerts are often their only access to live music, returns year after year.

Violin

Alexandre Pinatto

Ana Carolina Rebouças Guimarães

André Felipe Lima

André Silva

Ariel Santos Polycarpo

Arnaldo Abrahan Figueroa Perez

Artur Lima

Barbara de Jesus

Bogdan Hudzelaits

Breno Albuquerque

Bruna Dantas

Dan Tolomony

Daniel Maldonado de Souza

Diego Adnolfi

Eliel Santana

Ellen Caroline da Silveira

Emiliano Octavio Perea Caparotta

Felipe Bueno 

Fernando Batista

Gabriel Moreira Mira

Gabriel Pereira da Silva

Gideoni Loamir Veríssimo

Guilherme Calebe S Martins

Guilherme Peres Silva Oliveira

Guilherme Prado Perez

Gustavo Lennertz Gonçalves Penha

Henrique Lima Oliveira Silva

Ingrid Comazzetto

Isabella Rangel

Iury Santos 

Jamile Costa Destro

Jessé Xavier Reis

Jhonnisvan Da Cruz Campos

Jose de Jesus Dominguez Juarez

Karen Nino

Leandro Gustavo Vicente Hauxwell

Leonardo Aniceto

Lucas Bernardo

Lucas Dos Santos Silva

Lucas Henrique Bernardo Gonçalves

Lucas Santa Clara dos Santos

Lucio Mariano Luis

Malena Verduga Martínez

Marcela Macedo de Oliveira

Maressa Portilho 

Maria Fernanda Lago

Maria Júlia Segura de Azevedo

Marina Vilaça Pinho Caputo

Michael Junior da Silva Alves

Monique Cabral 

Murilo de Sá Barreto Callou Peixoto

Nathalia Sousa Oliveira

Nathan  Amaral

Nycollas Novais Queiroz da Silva

Paloma Silveira Rossatto

Rafael de Almeida Marinho

Rafael Sanches 

Robinho Carmo

Sara Pomim de Oliveira

Sol Irais Duran Moreno

Syllas Hanan Moura Gomes Santos

Tamiris Paes Souza

Thierry de Lucas Neves

Uiler Moreira de Souza

Valentina Isabel Fuentes Lizana

Vangelis Lopes

Veronica Lopes 

Victor Gonzalez Bigai

Vinicius Gomes de Oliveira Sousa

Vinicius Henrique Batista