This page is also available in / Cette page est également disponible en:
Français (French)
Montreal, April 14, 2026—On April 22, 1962, the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal gave its first concert abroad, conducted by Zubin Mehta. A little over 64 years later, the OSM stands out more prominently than ever as a major cultural ambassador for Montreal on the world’s most prestigious stages. From August 15 to 29, the Orchestra will undertake its 60th international tour; less than two months later, the OSM will land in California to commence its 61st. After South Korea, Europe, and the United States, these will be the OSM’s fifth and sixth tours under the baton of Rafael Payare.
“To lead the OSM on its 60th international tour, within major European festivals, marks a deeply meaningful milestone—a moment to reflect on the Orchestra’s extraordinary journey while bringing our sound to places where musical tradition feels almost tangible. As we continue with the 61st tour in California, particularly in San Diego, the experience becomes more personal, where different parts of my musical life come together. These tours bring Canadian composers and soloists into dialogue with the international repertoire, fulfilling our mission to share Montréal’s unique musical voice with audiences around the world.”
Rafael Payare, OSM Music Director
Photo: Antoine Saito
On August 15, the Orchestra will embark on a tour of European festivals. From August 19 to 28, our musicians will shine brightly on stages in Edinburgh, Warsaw, Aarhus, and Hamburg, under the inspired direction of Rafael Payare. The OSM will be joined by several distinguished soloists for this tour featuring various programs. In two concerts at the renowned Edinburgh International Festival, the OSM will perform Samuel Coleridge-Taylor’s monumental Song of Hiawatha with the Festival Chorus. Indigenous sopranos Elisabeth St-Gelais and Emma Pennell will then join the Orchestra in a performance of two Canadian works by Ana Sokolović and Ian Cusson, set to libretti by Indigenous poets Michelle Sylliboy and Natasha Kanapé Fontaine. Brilliant cellist Alisa Weilerstein will also team up with the OSM in a performance of Gabriela Ortiz’s Dzonot, which recently won a Grammy for Best Contemporary Composition. She will perform this same work with the OSM in Aarhus, during the Orchestra’s very first visit to Denmark, and again in Hamburg. On a final stop in Warsaw, Chopin will be celebrated in two concerts: on August 23, Canadian pianist Kevin Chen, second prize winner of the most recent Chopin Competition, will join the Orchestra; then on August 24, Eric Lu, winner of the same competition, will share the stage.
EUROPEAN FESTIVALS TOUR
August 19 and 20—USHER HALL—Edinburgh, Scotland
August 23 and 24—NATIONAL PHILHARMONIC—Warsaw, Poland
August 26—MUSIKHUSET—Aarhus, Denmark
August 28—ELBPHILHARMONIE—Hamburg, Germany
CALIFORNIA TOUR
October 25—LOUISE M. DAVIES SYMPHONY HALL—San Francisco
October 27—WALT DISNEY CONCERT HALL—Los Angeles
October 29—JACOBS MUSIC CENTER—San Diego
Sopranos Elisabeth St-Gelais and Emma Pennell, the OSM and Rafael Payare, Montreal, May 28, 2025. Photo: Gabriel Fournier
From October 24 to 31, the OSM will return to California to give three concerts, respectively in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and San Diego. The OSM will perform as a guest of the prestigious Los Angeles Philharmonic and of the equally renowned San Francisco Symphony for the very first time in 37 years—an honour for the Orchestra. For this occasion, renowned violinist Leonidas Kavakos will join the OSM to perform Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto in D major, op. 35 and Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E minor, op. 64. Shostakovich’s Symphony no. 10 is also on the program for these two concerts, and the Orchestra will present Elysium by Montreal composer Samy Moussa at the concert on October 27 in Los Angeles. To conclude this California tour, Rafael Payare will have the pleasure of conducting the OSM for the San Diego public, who already knows him well, as he is also the Musical and Artistic Director of the San Diego Symphony. For this concert, the OSM will perform Stravinsky’s The Firebird, a work that is in the Orchestra’s DNA, as well as Moussa’s Elysium and Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto in D major, op. 35, with Kavakos.
EUROPEAN FESTIVALS 2026
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 19, 7 PM – USHER HALL, EDINBURGH
Samuel COLERIDGE-TAYLOR, The Song of Hiawatha, op. 30
Edinburgh Festival Chorus
James Grossmith, Chorus Director
Nicky Spence, tenor
Francesca Chiejina, soprano
Christopher Maltman, baritone
THURSDAY, AUGUST 20, 7:30 PM – USHER HALL, EDINBURGH
Ana SOKOLOVIĆ, You Can Die Properly Now (text by Michelle Sylliboy)
(Emma Pennell, soprano)
Ian CUSSON, Un cri s’élève en moi (text by Natasha Kanapé Fontaine)
(Elisabeth St-Gelais, soprano)
Gabriela ORTIZ, Dzonot
(Alisa Weilerstein, cello)
Richard STRAUSS, Ein Heldenleben, op. 40
SUNDAY, AUGUST 23, 7 PM – WARSAW PHILHARMONIC CONCERT HALL, WARSAW
Krysztof PENDERECKI, Sinfonietta no. 1 for string orchestra
Frédéric CHOPIN, Piano Concerto no. 2 in F minor, op. 21
(Kevin Chen, piano)
Dmitri SHOSTAKOVICH, Symphony no. 10 in E minor, op. 93
MONDAY, AUGUST 24, 7 PM – WARSAW PHILHARMONIC CONCERT HALL, WARSAW
Claude DEBUSSY, l’Isle joyeuse, CD 109; L. 106 (orch. Molinari)
Frédéric CHOPIN, Piano Concerto no. 1 in E minor, op. 11
(Eric Lu, piano)
Richard STRAUSS, Ein Heldenleben, op. 40
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 26, 7:30 PM – MUSIKHUSET, AARHUS
Claude DEBUSSY, l’Isle joyeuse, CD 109; L. 106 (orch. Molinari)
Gabriela ORTIZ, Dzonot
(Alisa Weilerstein, cello)
Richard STRAUSS, Ein Heldenleben, op. 40
FRIDAY, AUGUST 28, 8 PM – ELBPHILHARMONIE, HAMBURG
Claude DEBUSSY, l’Isle joyeuse, CD 109; L. 106 (orch. Molinari)
Gabriela ORTIZ, Dzonot
(Alisa Weilerstein, cello)
Richard STRAUSS, Ein Heldenleben, op. 40
CALIFORNIA 2026
Soloist: Leonidas Kavakos, violin
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 25, 2 PM – LOUISE M. DAVIES SYMPHONY HALL, SAN FRANCISCO
Pyotr Ilyich TCHAIKOVSKY, Violin Concerto in D major, op. 35
Dmitri SHOSTAKOVICH, Symphony no. 10 in E minor, op. 93
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 27, 8 PM – WALT DISNEY CONCERT HALL, LOS ANGELES
Samy MOUSSA, Elysium (12 min)
Felix MENDELSSOHN, Violin Concerto in E minor, op. 64
Dmitri SHOSTAKOVICH, Symphony no. 10 in E minor, op. 93
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 29, 7:30 PM – JACOBS MUSIC CENTER, SAN DIEGO
Samy MOUSSA, Elysium (12 min)
Pyotr Ilyich TCHAIKOVSKY, Violin Concerto in D major, op. 35
Igor STRAVINSKY, The Firebird, K010 (complete ballet)
This page is also available in / Cette page est également disponible en:
Français (French)
