The Léonie Sonning Music Prize 2026, Denmark’s highest musical honour, will be awarded to Kirill Petrenko, chief conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic since 2019. The Russian conductor will receive the distinction and its accompanying award of 1 million DKK (approximately €134,000) at a gala concert on 13 June 2026 at DR Koncerthuset in Copenhagen.
Founded in 1959, the Léonie Sonning Music Prize is presented annually by the Léonie Sonning Music Foundation to an internationally recognised composer, musician, conductor or singer. Previous recipients include Igor Stravinsky, Leonard Bernstein, Miles Davis, Kaija Saariaho, Daniel Barenboim, Cecilia Bartoli, Simon Rattle, and most recently, the Danish String Quartet in 2025. The honour also includes a diploma in Danish and a monotype by artist Maja Lisa Engelhardt.
For the gala concert, Petrenko will lead the DR Symphony Orchestra in a programme featuring Mendelssohn’s overture The Hebrides, Schumann’s Piano Concerto with Polina Osetinskaya as soloist, and Strauss’ Also sprach Zarathustra. The concert will be followed by the official award ceremony.
This appearance will mark Petrenko’s second performance in Denmark. His first took place in 2013, when he conducted Wagner’s Die Walküre with the Royal Danish Orchestra.
Born in Omsk in 1972, Petrenko built his career in opera before turning to symphonic work. He made his debut at the Vienna Volksoper in 1997 and went on to become Music Director of the Theater Meiningen, where his Ring cycle gained international attention. From 2002 to 2007 he was Music Director of the Komische Oper Berlin, and from 2013 to 2020 served as General Music Director of the Bavarian State Opera, conducting acclaimed productions including Wagner’s Ring at the Bayreuth Festival.
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