Calgary, AB — The 2026 Honens Festival, September 10 to 13, marks an ambitious new chapter in the organization’s approach to its annual programming. For the first time in its 12-year history, the Festival has been shaped by a guest curator: 2003 Honens Laureate and Canadian pianist Winston Choi. Titled Echoes & Transformations, the Festival explores how music reflects, distorts, and reinvents across time and genre. Featured artists include six pianists—Winston Choi, 2025 Honens Gold Laureate Élisabeth Pion, 2025 Honens Silver Laureate Carter Johnson, Honens Artistic Director Jon Kimura Parker, 2018 Honens Prize Laureate Nicolas Namoradze, and Canadian jazz pianist Chris Andrew—alongside violinist MingHuan Xu.
The Honens Festival is an ever-popular annual event, putting the piano at the centre of artistic life in Calgary. Echoes & Transformations is the most expansive Festival in recent years, comprising five concerts, four free events, and a full-day Honens Lab symposium valuable for both educators and performers. Programming spans a range of traditional recital programs, outdoor performances, family-friendly events, and a relaxed concert for neurodiverse audiences.
Throughout the Festival, artists use technology to expand the expressive possibilities of the piano. Steinway & Sons Spirio player-piano recordings allow pianists to layer live performance on top of past interpretations. 2025 Honens Gold Laureate Élisabeth Pion presents a solo recital, and 2018 Honens Prize Laureate Nicolas Namoradze offers his immersive Neurorecital, giving audiences direct insight into brain activity during performance.
“It was an honour to be invited to program the 2026 Honens Festival,” says Winston Choi. “As curator and performer, I wanted this Festival to explore how musical ideas resonate across time, allowing audiences to experience piano music in new and surprising ways. My time as a Honens Laureate transformed my career, and I am especially grateful to share the stage with recent Laureates, Honens Artistic Director, as well as other extraordinary collaborators. Together, we invite audiences into a festival of discovery, dialogue, and musical imagination.”
“Echoes & Transformations reflects a fresh perspective of Honens Festival and a natural extension of the Complete Artist philosophy, beyond our triennial Competition,” says Jon Kimura Parker. “This Festival puts the spotlight on our Laureates as Complete Artists. We’re asking them to not only perform, but to collaborate, curate, communicate, and innovate while exploring the piano’s evolving possibilities, and connecting with audiences in new ways.”
Four evening concerts will be preceded by pre-concert chats featuring various Festival artists, offering insight into the Honens Complete Artist philosophy.
The 2026 Honens Festival is made possible through valued collaborations across Calgary’s arts community including Studio Bell, home of the National Music Centre; TELUS Spark; Mount Royal University Conservatory; and High River Gift of Music. These partnerships reflect Honens’ commitment to working together to create meaningful and impactful artistic experiences.
Passes and single tickets are on sale now. For all up-to-date information, visit honens.com.
