Dr. Peggy DeMers' research and performances on the Alphorn have been recognized as truly authentic. Her most recent accomplishment is the publication of The Little Alphorn Book in English, which has become a significant highlight in the field of Alphorn music. She completed her research with the assistance of the Swiss cultural administrator Pro Helvetia in 1992, producing the first complete history of the Alphorn. Dr. DeMers won 2nd place in the Champion solo category at the 2023 Nendaz, Switzerland, International Cor des Alps competition. In her first appearance at the competition in 2017, she placed in the top 10% of soloists. 

 

She has been featured on the cover of the AAA travel magazine, the Minnesota American Traveler, and at the Anaheim Disney Oktoberfest with members of the Midwest Alphorn Retreat. She has also been a guest artist performer at the 2006 Sigma Alpha Iota national convention and at the Swiss Embassy for the opening of the IMAX Eiger documentary.

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In 1991, she began conducting clinics and workshops at the IHS national and regional symposiums, along with numerous other organizations. In 2009, along with founder John Griffith, they established the Midwest Alphorn Retreat—an immersion program in Alphorn culture. This retreat gathers up to 25 Alphornists each summer to learn and perform Alphorn music. Participants have performed at numerous events across the United States, Canada, and Switzerland. In conjunction with the IHS and MAR, she has performed and commissioned numerous pieces for multiple keyed Alphorns and two solo Alphorns in different keys, including A Noble Calling. Her performances can be seen on YouTube and the MSR Classics label.

 

Her extensive teaching, orchestral, and ensemble experience includes serving as principal horn with the Minnesota Opera Orchestra, Opera in the Heights (Houston), and orchestras in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and New York. Currently, she is the principal horn of the Lake Charles Symphony in Louisiana and served as faculty/guest artist at the Assisi Performing Arts music festival in Assisi, Italy. From 1993 to 1998, she was a member of the Spoleto Festival USA and the Festival of Two Worlds in Spoleto, Italy. She has also appeared as a guest artist (principal horn soloist) at the Mezzogiorno Concert series sponsored by Gian Carlo Menotti in conjunction with the Festival of Two Worlds, Spoleto, Italy.