Mahler and Beethoven at the centre of the season
The Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich and its Music Director Paavo Järvi have announced details of their 2026–27 season, a programme centred on Gustav Mahler, Ludwig van Beethoven, and Sergei Prokofiev, while also highlighting collaborations with artists including Khatia Buniatishvili, Wayne Marshall, Hilary Hahn, Daniil Trifonov, and Sol Gabetta.
The season marks Järvi’s eighth year as Music Director in Zürich and continues the orchestra’s Mahler cycle, launched in 2024. In November 2026, the orchestra will perform and record Mahler’s Symphony No. 6 at the Tonhalle Zürich before taking Symphonies Nos. 5 and 6 on tour to venues including the Concertgebouw, Elbphilharmonie, and the Wiener Konzerthaus. Alpha Classics is also scheduled to release the fourth recording in the cycle, Mahler’s “Resurrection” Symphony, featuring the Zürcher Sing-Akademie and soloists Mari Eriksmoen and Anna Lucia Richter.
Beethoven will also play a major role in the season, coinciding with the 200th anniversary of the composer’s death in 2027. Among the projects are performances of Mahler’s arrangement of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 and the Missa solemnis. Alpha Classics will additionally release a recording of Fidelio, captured from a semi-staged performance at the Tonhalle Zürich in 2023, featuring singers including Jacquelyn Wagner, Michael Schade, and Christof Fischesser.
A Prokofiev collaboration with Zurich Opera
A central theme of the season will be a Prokofiev focus developed jointly with Opernhaus Zürich and conductor Gianandrea Noseda. The collaboration will feature four Prokofiev symphonies alongside concertos performed by Gabetta, Hahn, Trifonov, and Japanese pianist Hayato Sumino. Swiss composer Dieter Ammann serves as the season’s “Creative Chair”, with several of his works included throughout the cycle.
Focus Artists and Georgian spotlight
Wayne Marshall and Khatia Buniatishvili have been named the season’s “Focus Artists”. Marshall will appear both as conductor and organist, including performances of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue and a New Year’s Eve programme ranging from Leonard Bernstein to Duke Ellington. Buniatishvili returns to Zürich for performances of Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 at the opening of the season and Grieg’s Piano Concerto during the orchestra’s open-air tonhalleAIR concerts.
The season will also place a spotlight on Georgia, featuring violinist Lisa Batiashvili and two young Georgian pianists, Tsotne Zedginidze and Giorgi Gigashvili, both making their orchestra debuts after participating in the Tonhalle Society Zürich’s Série jeunes programme.
Supporting the next generation
Järvi will also continue his work with young conductors through the orchestra’s annual Conductors’ Academy. The 2025 winner, Swiss conductor Gabriel Pernet, will join the Järvi Academy masterclasses in Pärnu this summer.
The season concludes with the second city-wide edition of tonhalleAIR at Münsterhof, where Järvi will lead a side-by-side performance bringing together members of the Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich and the Tonhalle Youth Orchestra Zürich. “I love this format because it brings us directly into the city,” Järvi said. “It embodies accessibility – open-air concerts are simple, joyful, and full of life – meeting audiences right in the heart of Zurich.”
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