The New Zealand Symphony Orchestra will deliver a blockbuster lineup of music in 2026, featuring top international and local artists and welcoming two of the world’s most sought-after young musicians for their Aotearoa debut.

Throughout 2026, the orchestra will perform over 40 concerts in 15 cities and towns from Auckland to Dunedin, including 20 concerts and collaborations in Wellington.

Gemma New, NZSO Artistic Advisor and Principal Conductor, will lead four concerts. She will conduct the NZSO debut of GRAMMY® Award-winning Canadian violinist James Ehnes, the return of celebrated UK-Australian pianist Sir Stephen Hough, a solo performance by NZSO Principal Clarinettist Patrick Barry of Aaron Copland's Clarinet Concerto, and a programme featuring Beethoven’s epic Ninth Symphony.

The NZSO will showcase other orchestral giants, including Scottish conductor Sir Donald Runnicles, Finnish conductor Pietari Inkinen, and New Zealand opera great Simon O’Neill, taking audiences on a musical journey with an array of stars.

Spanish virtuoso María Dueñas, who won Young Artist of the Year and Best Instrumental Recording at the Gramophone Classical Music Awards in October, will open the NZSO’s season in Wellington with Beethoven’s beloved Violin Concerto, conducted by renowned Venezuelan Rodolfo Barráez.

Dueñas, who won the prestigious Menuhin Competition at 18, stunned audiences at Austria’s Salzburg Festival and New York’s Carnegie Hall last year. Critics, including The New York Times, hailed the 22-year-old as “a strong-willed young artist with something to say, and the skill to say it brilliantly.”

Chart-topping British pianist Isata Kanneh-Mason, the eldest sibling of the multi-talented Kanneh-Mason family, will also make her New Zealand debut. Her family’s album River of Music entered the British classical charts at No. 1 in September and remains in the top 10.

Sir Elton John personally sponsored Isata’s tuition at the Royal Academy of Music in London after hearing her play, and she has since performed with him. In October 2026, she will perform Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 27 in Wellington and Christchurch with the NZSO, led by acclaimed Kiwi conductor Tianyi Lu, followed by a solo recital in Auckland featuring three landmark piano works.

After dazzling audiences in the NZSO’s hit Creepy-Crawly Carnival with Bret McKenzie this year, 15-year-old New Zealand piano prodigy Shan Liu will take centre stage in 2026 to perform Prokofiev’s Third Piano Concerto, conducted by Spanish Maestro Jaime Martín.

Acclaimed Dutch trombonist Jörgen van Rijen will make his New Zealand debut, joining the NZSO under Music Director Designate André de Ridder for the world premiere of American composer Andrew Norman’s Trombone Concerto.

Maestro Pietari Inkinen will return for two programmes: one featuring Wagner pieces with tenor Simon O’Neill, and another showcasing works by Finnish composers Sibelius and Magnus Lindberg, with NZSO Concertmaster and fellow Finn Vesa-Matti Leppänen.

Maestro Runnicles will conduct an evening of Brahms and Richard Strauss, including Strauss’ Four Last Songs with Kiwi soprano star Madeleine Pierard.

NZSO Chief Executive Marc Feldman says the 2026 Season marks a new era for the national orchestra.

“We’ve centred the season around the concept of a classical haven, allowing us to embark on an exciting musical journey. We’ve curated a remarkable collection of cherished, timeless works alongside new pieces and discoveries that enhance the beauty and power of the concert experience.”

Under Maestra New, James Ehnes, Gramophone magazine’s 2021 Artist of the Year, will perform Korngold’s Violin Concerto in concerts featuring Mahler’s First Symphony ‘Titan’ and the New Zealand premiere of UK composer Thomas Adès’ The Origin of the Harp.

Maestra New will also lead the orchestra and soloist Sir Stephen Hough in Saint-Saëns’ Fifth Piano Concerto (The Egyptian), alongside Elgar’s Enigma Variations and the world premiere of New Zealand composer Ross Harris’ Concerto for Orchestra.

Maestra New says New Zealanders will experience both familiar favourites and new perspectives in NZSO performances next year.

“It’s an absolute joy to continue making music with this exceptional orchestra for our cherished audiences! We planned this season around the theme ‘Big Ideas, Big Emotions.’ I’m excited to share some of my personal favourites—Mahler 1, Beethoven 9, and Elgar’s Enigma—and I’m honoured to explore two new musical treasures by Aotearoa composers Ross Harris and Dame Gillian Karawe Whitehead.”

Australian conductor and virtuoso harpsichordist Erin Helyard will make his NZSO debut in December with Handel’s Messiah, featuring four international singers—Samantha Clarke, Ashlyn Tymms, Kyle Stegall, and Andrew O’Connor—and the Tudor Consort.

Other international stars appearing in 2026 include Chinese Australian cellist Li-Wei Qin, Australian conductors Benjamin Northey and Dane Lam, and NZSO Music Director Emeritus James Judd.

More featured New Zealand artists include soprano Anna Leese and NZSO Section Principal cellist Andrew Joyce. The orchestra will also showcase New Zealand works, including a world premiere by Anthony Ritchie.

In 2026, the NZSO will be part of the Aotearoa New Zealand Festival of the Arts in Wellington. During the festival the orchestra will partner with platinum-selling Silver Scroll-winning Māori artist Rob Ruha for the music experience TEIWA (7 March), collaborate with the New Zealand Dance Company and Co3 Contemporary Dance Australia for Gloria – A Triple Bill (12–14 March), perform with the Royal New Zealand Ballet for Macbeth (25-28 February) and the special music event Aura Hura – A Visionary Journey (15 March).

The NZSO also performs exclusively in Wellington in 2026 with award-winning singer-songwriter Bic Runga. Bic Runga & the NZSO is performed on 2 April.