Our self-image
Letter from the Executive Board to the university community, April 2026
Dear students, dear colleagues,
The 2026 summer term begins at a time that presents particular challenges for us as a university community, but also for each of us as individuals. The world around us is causing a level of uncertainty rarely seen before: conflicts and crises are having a direct impact on the lives of many people. This includes the lives of those who study, teach and work at our university. We know that some of you have concerns that extend far beyond everyday university life. We recognise these concerns. We take them seriously.
Three years ago, we designed a banner that has hung at the Fürstenhaus ever since. The six terms it bears – diverse, boundless, tolerant, unifying, cosmopolitan, virtuosic – are neither mere decoration nor empty promises. They define what this university stands for. They are more relevant today than ever.
We expressly reaffirm this commitment:
Diverse, for us, means recognising the diversity of our community as a strength and welcoming people in all their variety.
Boundless means that we see overcoming national, cultural and political boundaries within our community as both a task and an opportunity.
Being tolerant means taking a firm stand against exclusion, discrimination and extremism, both within our university and in our wider social environment.
Being unifying means creating spaces of trust where people come together despite – and because of – their different backgrounds.
Being cosmopolitan means that we see the origins and histories of all members and affiliates of our university as the foundation of our community.
Virtuosity means that, through our individual and collective achievements in musical practice, pedagogy and research, we also contribute to enduring the difficulties of our world and creating something new.
Weimar is a place that teaches us how closely new beginnings and danger, humanity and barbarism can lie side by side. This history imposes an obligation upon us. Yet at the same time, it gives us confidence: that education, art and science are capable of doing good.
We wish you a good start to the semester, filled with curiosity, strength and confidence.
The Executive Board of the FRANZ LISZT University of Music Weimar