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News Success Professor Lilo Kraus Honoured with Bavarian Order of Merit

Photo: Bayerische Staatskanzlei

The renowned Nuremberg harpist Professor Lilo Kraus was awarded the Bavarian Order of Merit on 3 July 2026. During a formal ceremony held in the Antiquarium of the Munich Residenz, Minister-President Markus Söder presented the prestigious distinction to Professor Kraus, alongside 67 other distinguished individuals honoured for their outstanding contributions to society. We extend our warmest congratulations to Professor Kraus on this well-deserved recognition.

Lilo Kraus was the principal harpist at the Nuremberg State Philharmonic for 40 years, retiring in the summer of 2022. She now teaches as an honorary professor at the Nuremberg University of Music. As well as performing in classical orchestras and at the Bayreuth Festival, she is renowned for her willingness to break genre boundaries, bringing the harp into the independent music scene by appearing at rock festivals and collaborating on blues projects.

Since 1957, the Minister-President has awarded the Bavarian Order of Merit – the second-highest order of the Free State of Bavaria after the Bavarian Order of Maximilian for Science and the Arts – "as a token of honour and gratitude for outstanding services to the Free State of Bavaria and the Bavarian people".

Previous recipients include the cabaret artists Willy Astor and Bruno Jonas, film producer Oliver Berben, and extreme mountaineer Thomas Huber. Politicians such as Dorothee Bär, the Federal Minister of State for Digital Affairs, have also received the Bavarian Order of Merit.

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