NY Philharmonic to Add Concerts and Artists to Dudamel's First Season
Artist-in-residence Gustavo Santaolalla will join for a film screening and recital at David Geffen Hall.
The New York Philharmonic revealed updates to its 2026–27 season, including newly added concerts, artists, repertoire, and discussion series. Repertoire is announced for the concert commemorating the 25th anniversary of 9/11, September 11, 2026, at 3:30 p.m., Perelman Performing Arts Center. The program will include selections featuring the Soldiers’ Chorus of the U.S. Army Field Band, led by associate band master Capt. Jac’kel Smalls; Pezzo in forma di sonatina, from Tchaikovsky’s Serenade for Strings; Barber’s Adagio for Strings; Villa-Lobos’s Bachianas Brasileiras No. 4; and Bernstein’s arrangement of Lento assai, cantate e tranquillo, from Beethoven’s F-major String Quartet.
To conclude the program, the Philharmonic and the Soldiers’ Chorus of the U.S. Army Field Band will unite for the World Premiere of Julia Adolphe’s We the Living, commissioned by the New York Philharmonic and featuring texts by Safiya Sinclair; and Make Our Garden Grow, from Bernstein’s Candide, arranged by Derrick Hodge.
Invisible House is the title of Zosha Di Castri’s new work co-commissioned by the New York Philharmonic and Los Angeles Philharmonic. Dudamel will conduct the work on three separate concert programs: the September 16–19, 2026, subscription concerts at the Wu Tsai Theater, marking its World Premiere; the October 1, 2026, concert at the Wu Tsai Theater; and, on October 10, 12, 13, 19, and 22, 2026, as part of the European tour.
The Brooklyn Youth Chorus, directed by Dianne Berkun Menaker, will join the performances of Puccini’s Tosca in concert, November 13 and 15, 2026, Carnegie Hall.
Kaneza Schaal, in her Philharmonic debut, will direct the staged production of Bernstein’s MASS, June 9–12, 2027, Wu Tsai Theater at David Geffen Hall. The concerts will mark the World Premiere of the production conceived by Schaal.
Updates to the concerts featuring Marina Abramović and Gustavo Santaolalla — the 2026–27 season’s Mary and James J. Wallach Artists-in-Residence — at the Wu Tsai Theater, David Geffen Hall:
Nabil Elderkin (Philharmonic debut) will be the video designer for the Marina Abramović–directed production of Stravinsky’s The Soldier’s Tale and Falla’s El Amor brujo, March 10–12 and 14, 2027. Gustavo Dudamel conducts.
Newly added: Gustavo Santaolalla will perform as vocalist and multi-instrumentalist in a recital as part of the Philharmonic’s Artist Spotlight series, April 11, 2027, at 7:30 p.m. Santaolalla will join with musicians Barbarita Palacios, Javier Casalla, Nicolás Rainone, and Santiago Corregal to perform music from his classic 1998 album Ronroco, named for the Andean stringed instrument.
The New York Philharmonic will perform Gustavo Santaolalla’s original score to the 1931, Spanish-language version of Drácula — part of The Art of the Score series — featuring Santaolalla as guitar soloist, June 22, 2027, at 7:30 p.m. The conductor will be announced at a later date.
Additional updates to the New York Philharmonic’s orchestral concerts at the Wu Tsai Theater, David Geffen Hall:
Maxim Vengerov will appear as soloist in Brahms’s Violin Concerto, conducted by Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla, January 28–30, 2027. Vengerov replaces Yuja Wang, who has withdrawn from her appearances as soloist in Brahms’s Piano Concerto No. 2 due to scheduling conflicts.
David Newman will conduct the music of Mozart in Amadeus, part of The Art of the Score series, June 24, 25, and 27, 2027.
Family Programs, Ensemble Concerts, and Discussion Series
Updates to the New York Philharmonic’s family programs (all of which are Relaxed Performances):
Additional details for the season’s Young People’s Concerts, each of which takes place at the Wu Tsai Theater, David Geffen Hall:
Tales from Peter and the Wolf, November 7, 2026: Rafael Payare will conduct the concert, which will include Prokofiev’s Peter and the Wolf.
The Adventures of The Firebird, January 13–15, 2027 (YPCs for Schools) and January 16, 2027: Tianyi Lu will conduct all four concerts, which will include the 1919 version of Stravinsky’s The Firebird Suite.
Music and Screen, March 13, 2027: Michelle Di Russo, in her Philharmonic debut, will conduct; the program will be announced at a later date.
Preludes and Poetry, April 3, 2027: The program will include Debussy’s Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun; Elim Chan, as previously announced, will conduct.
The season’s series of Very Young People’s Concerts — titled Philharmonic Playdates — will be held in Merkin Hall at Kaufman Music Center on December 5, 2026 (“Make Believe”), February 6, 2027 (“Games and Toys”), and June 5, 2027 (“Around Town”). The series will feature Associate Principal Viola Rebecca Young as host and Musicians from the New York Philharmonic, and will be designed and directed by Doug Fitch.
Repertoire for the season’s New York Philharmonic Ensembles concerts featuring Musicians from the New York Philharmonic — each of which will be held at Merkin Hall at Kaufman Music Center and begin at 3:00 p.m. — is as follows:
November 1, 2026: Shostakovich’s Five Pieces; Beethoven’s String Trio in C minor; Dvořák’s String Quintet No. 2
December 6, 2026: Bartók’s String Quartet No. 1; Beethoven’s Piano Trio, Archduke
January 17, 2027: Glinka’s Trio Pathétique; Mozart’s String Quartet No. 23; Hindemith’s Musikalisches Blumengärtlein und Leyptziger Allerley; Felix Mendelssohn’s Piano Trio No. 1
February 21, 2027: Brahms’s String Quartet No. 2; Penderecki’s Clarinet Quartet; Felix Mendelssohn’s Piano Trio No. 2
April 18, 2027: Wolf’s Italian Serenade; Kodály’s Duo for Violin and Cello; Brahms’s Piano Quartet No. 3
May 2, 2027: Sibelius’s En Saga, arranged for Septet by Gregory Barrett; Ewazen’s Quintet for Trumpet and Strings; Brahms’s Piano Quartet No. 1
The first two events in the season’s The Unanswered Questions — a free discussion series co presented with The Museum at FIT, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, and Macaulay Honors College — have been announced:
Doll Dressing: a talk-and-tour through an exhibition conceived by MFIT senior curator of costume Dr. Colleen Hill, followed by a mini-recital — featuring soprano Brandie Inez Sutton — exploring the relationship between dolls, fashion, popular culture, and play, September 23, 2026, at 11:00 a.m., The Museum at FIT; additional details to be announced.
Is That Fear I Hear?: inspired by Michael Abels’s score for Jordan Peele’s Get Out — which the Philharmonic performs in October 2026 as part of The Art of the Score — a discussion exploring how cultural appropriation, whitewashing, and artificial intelligence affect artists and audiences from historically oppressed communities, October 22, 2026, at 1:40 p.m., John Jay College of Criminal Justice; additional details to be announced.
Wellness Events and Additional Information
Additionally, two The Art of Wellbeing / Take a Breath events — free workshops focusing on the intersection of music and wellness, presented by the Philharmonic in collaboration with Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts and NewYork-Presbyterian, the official hospital of Lincoln Center — have been announced:
Music and Creativity, November 14, 2026, at 1:00 p.m., Karen and Richard LeFrak Lobby, David Geffen Hall; artists to be announced.
Songs of the Season, featuring Dr. Tyrone Clinton, Jr., as vocalist, December 5, 2026, at 2:00 p.m., Clark Studio Theater, Rose Building at Lincoln Center; additional artists be announced.
