Bourgie Hall Reveals 94-Concert Season Featuring Thibaudet, Kronos Quartet & More

The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts' Bourgie Hall has announced its 2026–2027 season, featuring 94 concerts and 3 masterclasses.

Artists From The International And Local Scenes

Bourgie Hall offers an ambitious programme that brings together some of the most prominent artists on the international scene, while also showcasing the richness of local talent. Among the highlights, the concert on October 21 and 22 will bring together for the first time in Montreal three exceptional soloists—Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Lisa Batiashvili, and Gautier Capuçon—in a chamber music program of rare intensity. Also noteworthy is the remarkable presence of four of the world's leading string quartets: the Takács Quartet, the Goldmund Quartet, the Juilliard String Quartet, and the Kronos Quartet. French harpsichordist Jean Rondeau will also make a highly anticipated return, while major figures in the piano world such as Piotr Anderszewski and Pierre-Laurent Aimard, or composer George Benjamin will present captivating artistic encounters. British cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason will make his Montreal debut alongside pianist Benjamin Grosvenor. These prestigious guests will be joined by Quebec and Canadian artists who play a key role in the season's success, such as Charles-Richard Hamelin, Andrew Wan and the Orchestre de l'Agora.

A Season Of Dynamic Collaborations With Festivals

This 16th season features a rich program, highlighted by major names, audacious initiatives, and creative cross-disciplinary collaborations. It is also distinguished by a truly festive spirit. Throughout the year, Bourgie Hall becomes a hub of events, where music engages with literature, film, and the visual arts. This dynamic unfolds through strong artistic partnerships that punctuate the season.

As part of the Festival international de la littérature (FIL), Bourgie Hall will present, on September 30, an event highlighting National Truth and Reconciliation Day, featuring a text by Natasha Kanapé Fontaine—inspired by a work from the Museum's collection—set to music by Cris Derksen and performed by Élisabeth St-Gelais. It is also partnering with the FIL for Simon Leclerc and Gilles Vigneault: A Musical Meeting on October 3, featuring the premiere of a song cycle for voice and piano based on poems by Gilles Vigneault, some of which have never been published.

In January, as part of the Philip Glass Festival, Bourgie Hall will celebrate the composer's 90th birthday, featuring distinguished guests including the Kronos Quartet, countertenor Anthony Roth Costanzo, and Les Violons du Roy.

During the Pierre-Mercure Festival, a tribute to this leading figure in Quebec's modern musical scene will take place in February 2027 to mark the 100th anniversary of the composer's birth. The festivities will open with a special evening featuring a masterclass by Claudine Caron and Mario Gauthier, followed by a concert. Two other events will round out the week: Pierre Mercure on the Screen, at Cinéma du Musée, and Mercure Remix, a concert dedicated to his electroacoustic work, in collaboration with Akousma.

In March, Beethoven Festival will mark the 200th anniversary of his death with major concerts featuring the Trio Wanderer, the Arion Baroque Orchestra with Élisabeth Pion, the Goldmund and Juilliard Quartets, pianist François-Frédéric Guy, and baritone Thomas Dolié.

In its first collaboration with the Festival TransAmériques (FTA), Bourgie Hall will host U. (un canto) in May 2027, a concert-performance conceived by Alessandro Sciarroni. Performed by seven a cappella singers, the work features an Italian repertoire composed between 1968 and 2019, in which voices, silences, and movements toward the audience create an experience that is both sensitive and immersive.

Love Across Works and Eras

Throughout this season, a single theme runs through the works and eras: love. Starting with the opening concert on September 24, featuring Love's Blindness—Il gioco della cieca by the Swiss ensemble Concerto di Margherita, Italian Renaissance music sets the tone for a program in which the passions of love, in all their complexity, are explored through the early vocal and instrumental repertoire. This theme runs through several concerts: Tormento Seicento by Opera Prima, Delirio amoroso by Ensemble Les Ondes, or The Mad Lover by Théotime Langlois de Swarte and Thomas Dunford..

Among the projects that define Bourgie Hall's unique character, the Music From Here and Abroad series promises discoveries that broaden horizons, including, among others, the concert The Art of the Afghan Rubab and Tabla presented by Salar Nader and Quraishi, and the renowned ensemble trad Lúnasa in their lively concert An Irish Christmas. The Complete Schubert Lieder series continues into its third highly anticipated year. Building on its growing popularity, this series stands out as a unique experience, thanks in particular to the projection of poems translated into French and English and outstanding masterclasses by Jean Portugais, who has been involved with this series since its beginning. Leading performers, including Konstantin Krimmel and Christian Immler, will bring this journey through the repertoire to life. The series will also feature two leading Quebec singers: Mireille Lebel and Marianne Lambert.

Eager to reach an ever-wider audience, Bourgie Hall is also placing an emphasis on Musical Matinees. It is also enriching its programming with an increased focus on Baroque and Early Music, notably led by the Ensemble Correspondances (France), which will perform early cantatas by J.S. Bach. As part of Black History Month, it will host the concert Because: a concert of spirituals and gospel songs featuring countertenor Reginald Mobley and pianist Baptiste Trotignon.