Lakes Area Music Festival

The Lakes Area Music Festival is about more than just extraordinary performances. It's about fostering connections and nurturing a vibrant community in Minnesota's Lakes Area.

Every year, thousands of people from across Minnesota — and the country — come to Brainerd to hear more than 250 accomplished musicians from renowned orchestras, opera companies, and ensembles like the LA Phil, Dallas Symphony, Metropolitan Opera, and Minnesota Orchestra. What they all remark on, beyond the exceptional quality of the performances, is the spirit and vitality of music-making and the connections that are forged between the audience, musicians, and community.

When you make a gift to LAMF on Give to the Max Day, you're investing in a vibrant and connected community.

From chamber music to symphonies, Broadway to opera, LAMF's musicians bring transformative and awe-inspiring performances to the heart of Minnesota.

The Lakes Area Music Festival sparks connections between its central Minnesota community and the nation's top classical performers to create transformative musical experiences.

While they are in the Brainerd Lakes Area, LAMF's artists help inspire the next generation of musicians through classroom visits, a weeklong summer day camp, and concerts and programs tailored to kids and families.

Our kids came home from camp smiling every night. They were constantly singing, dancing, and finding household items to make music with.”

— Parent, Explore Music!

The Lakes Area Music Festival also brings performances out of the concert hall and into the community, playing at parks, senior centers, the Brainerd Public Library, and for audiences at the Relationship Safety Alliance, Crow Wing County Jail, and more.

“We performed Beethoven’s Op. 135, one of the last pieces he ever wrote, at the Crow Wing County Jail. When we got to the third movement of the quartet, which starts very still — the whole thing is very sentimental and reflective — several people in the audience were moved to tears. Most of them had never heard a string quartet or music by Beethoven before, and seeing how deeply they were moved was a much needed reminder of the profound ways music can connect us with ourselves and each other.”

— Alex Cox, cellist, Thalea String Quartet