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NCH

Spring/Summer

Classical Season 2026

National Concert Hall Earlsfort Terrace Saint Kevinʼs Dublin D02 N527

National Concert Hall

Classical Season 2026 nch.ie

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Contents Fáilte/Welcome

At a Glance

Season Events Spotlights

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Jessie Grimes Peter Whelan Anselm McDonnell Abel Selaocoe Kaija Saariaho & Gabriela Ortiz Alexander Shelley Voices from America: John Adams, Philip Glass, Jennifer Higdon, Julia Wolfe Gerald Barry Siobhán Cleary Hilary Hahn Angélique Kidjo Sir Simon Rattle

18 24 30 34 38 44 52

78 88 94 102 108

Tickets & Booking

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NCH Seating Plan

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— Front cover image: Alexander Shelley, National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Principal Conductor Designate 1

NATIONAL CONCERT HALL

Fáilte Welcome

It is our great pleasure to present the National Concert Hall’s Classical Season 2026. With National Symphony Orchestra Ireland at its heart, a five-concert International Orchestras & Recitals series, the wide-ranging NCH Discover programme, and a stellar roster of Irish and international musicians including world-class conductors, soloists, orchestral and choral ensembles, composers and presenters, there is much to look forward to.

at our schools and family concerts, to fans of orchestral and recital works from the Classical and Romantic eras through to today. We also support third-level students, emerging instrumentalists and composers, and film lovers who enjoy the thrill of iconic scores performed live to picture.

At the National Concert Hall, our goal is to create experiences that resonate – moments that stay with you, spark emotion, and offer a space to pause in a world that rarely slows down. Music has the power to connect, to uplift, and to offer a welcome escape – even just for a little while.

We invite you to explore anew masterpieces from the vast symphonic, choral, operatic and recital repertoire, and be a part of history with world and Irish premieres by Irish and international composers, and world premieres by new generation composers. Come to screenings of favourite movies with their thrilling scores performed live by National Symphony Orchestra Ireland for families and general audiences, and bespoke events for families and schools led by NCH Discover Artist-in-Residence Jessie Grimes. The season offers something for everyone.

We programme for audiences of all ages and musical tastes – from young listeners

For National Symphony Orchestra Ireland, this season is particularly significant.

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It marks the start of new relationships with two outstanding musicians: Alexander Shelley, as Principal Conductor Designate, and Peter Whelan, as an Artistic Partner. Both roles are major artistic milestones for the orchestra. Our warmest good wishes to Alexander and Peter in their new roles. We look forward to the music making to come as the relationships develop. Other distinguished performers collaborating with NSOI include conductors Anna Sułkowska-Migoń, Stephanie Childress, Jessica Cottis, Lina GonzálesGranados and Dennis Russell Davies; violinists Maxim Vengerov and Baiba Skride; pianists Barry Douglas, Louis Lortie, John O’Conor and Maki Namekawa; singers Celine Byrne, Angélique Kidjo, Robin Tritschler and Nardus Williams; and National Symphony Chorus Ireland. Composers with whom the orchestra will work closely are Siobhán Cleary and Anselm McDonnell for the world premieres of Canto and Hostile Summits respectively,

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and Gerald Barry for the Irish concert premiere of his opera Salome. Our International Orchestras & Recitals series includes Sir Simon Rattle with the internationally renowned period-instrument Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and violist Timothy Ridout; the Irish Chamber Orchestra with the captivating cellist, vocalist and director Abel Selaocoe, percussionist Bernhard Schimpelsberger and bassist Alan Keary; the National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine on its first visit to the National Concert Hall with inspirational conductor Volodymyr Sirenko and celebrated pianist Maria Pukhlianko; three-time Grammy Award-winning violinist Hilary Hahn returning with pianist Tom Poster; and pianistic giant Kirill Gerstein. NCH Discover’s valuable work for younger audiences, families, schools, high-level students and young/emerging professionals includes specially designed performances with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland, 3

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led by NCH Discover Artist-in-Residence Jessie Grimes, exploring great orchestral works, a Masterclass with Maxim Vengerov and National Symphony Orchestra Ireland, and live screenings in concert of the classic, much-loved children’s books Room on the Broom and The Snail and the Whale.

We are delighted to offer you a diverse range of works, performers, ideas and experiences. We encourage you to peruse this brochure at your leisure, and to also view our additional content on nch.ie and updates on our social media channels as the season progresses.

Making music accessible and affordable is important to us. Tickets this season start from €15 with €10 tickets (subject to availability) for students; a limited number of free child tickets for under-18s when purchased with a full-price ticket; and family-friendly pricing options for family events. Discounts of up to 25% are available for those who wish to buy from our range of multi-buy concert packages.

We hope you will find much to please, to surprise, to entertain, to provoke, and to reward you in your visits to the National Concert Hall this season. We thank you for your support, and we look forwarding to welcoming you.

Collaboration and partnerships continue to be key to our work. Special thanks must go to the many musicians, composers, promoters and organisations with whom we work closely. Key amongst these are RTÉ and RTÉ lyric fm, the Contemporary Music Centre, New Music Dublin and the Travel Department for their ongoing support this season.

Robert Read CEO

We are also fortunate to have close relationships with venues and organisations outside of our Dublin home, including this season the National Opera House in Wexford, and Leisureland and Music for Galway in Galway. We would also like to acknowledge the generous and committed support of the NCH Patrons, Friends, Season Friends, and audiences, and to thank Minister Patrick O’Donovan and his team at the Department of Culture, Communications and Sport for their vital and continuing support.

Maura McGrath Chairperson

Patron Michael D. Higgins President of Ireland NCH Board Members Maura McGrath Chair Clíona Doris Hilary Hough Peter McKenna Niamh Murray Michelle O’Sullivan Don Thornhill

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— National Symphony Orchestra Ireland and Leader Elaine Clarke

— National Symphony Orchestra Ireland

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At a glance

Date

Concert

Time

Page

01.01.26

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland New Year’s Day Gala Tom Fetherstonhaugh, conductor Ava Dodd, soprano

3.30pm

16.01.26

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Barry Douglas plays Shostakovich Anna Sułkowska-Migoń, conductor Barry Douglas, piano Darren Moore, trumpet

7.30pm

17.01.26

Symphony Shorts Discover Scheherazade: 1001 Tales to Save a Life National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Jessie Grimes, presenter

12.30pm

20.01.26

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Composer Lab Gavin Maloney, conductor David Fennessy, composer-mentor

8pm

23.01.26

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Peter Whelan conducts Mendelssohn’s ‘Scottish’ Peter Whelan, conductor Ellinor D’Melon, violin

7.30pm

30.01.26

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Tchaikovsky’s ‘Pathétique’ & Anselm McDonnell World Premiere Ryan McAdams, conductor Martin Johnson, cello

7.30pm

05.02.26

Irish Chamber Orchestra with Abel Selaocoe Abel Selaocoe, cello, vocals, director Bernhard Schimpelsberger, percussion Alan Keary, bass

8pm

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Date

Concert

Time

Page

06.02.26

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Ravel with Mirabelle Kajenjeri Diego Matheuz, conductor Mirabelle Kajenjeri, piano

7.30pm

08.02.26

Room on the Broom & The Snail and the Whale Live Screening in Concert National Symphony Orchestra Ireland David Brophy, conductor

12.30pm 3pm

13.02.26

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Alexander Shelley conducts Schumann’s Paradise and the Peri Alexander Shelley, conductor Nardus Williams, soprano Anna Devin, soprano Avery Amereau, mezzo-soprano Robin Tritschler, tenor Mark Stone, baritone National Symphony Chorus Ireland

7.30pm

19.02.26

Kirill Gerstein, piano Profound piano works by Liszt and Brahms

8pm

20.02.26

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Celine Byrne sings Four Last Songs Lio Kuokman, conductor Celine Byrne, soprano

7.30pm

27.02.26

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Maxim Vengerov plays Mendelssohn Kristian Sallinen, conductor Maxim Vengerov, violin

7.30pm

28.02.26

Concerto Masterclass with Maxim Vengerov and National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Kristian Sallinen, conductor Maxim Vengerov, violin

11am

03.03.26

Music in the Classroom: Junior Cycle with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Jessie Grimes, presenter

10.30am 12.30pm

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Date

Concert

Time

Page

10.03.26

Music in the Classroom: Primary Schools with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Jessie Grimes, presenter

10.30am 12.30pm

13.03.26

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Alexander Shelley conducts John Adams, Rachmaninov & Stravinsky Alexander Shelley, conductor Jaeden Izik-Dzurko, piano

7.30pm

14.03.26

Discover Orchestral Escapades with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Jessie Grimes, presenter

12.30pm

20.03.26

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Louis Lortie plays Chopin Jean-Luc Tingaud, conductor Louis Lortie, piano

7.30pm

23.03.26

National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine Maria Pukhlianko plays Beethoven Volodymyr Sirenko, conductor Maria Pukhlianko, piano

8pm

26.03.26

National Opera House, Wexford National Symphony Orchestra Ireland The Brendan Voyage & ‘New World’ Symphony David Brophy, conductor Mark Redmond, uilleann pipes

7.30pm

28.03.26

Leisureland, Galway National Symphony Orchestra Ireland The Brendan Voyage & ‘New World’ Symphony David Brophy, conductor Mark Redmond, uilleann pipes

7.30pm

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Date

Concert

Time

Page

03.04.26

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Music for Good Friday: Dvořák’s Stabat Mater Jiří Rožeň, conductor Masabane Cecilia Rangwanasha, soprano Niamh O’Sullivan, mezzo-soprano Valentyn Dytiuk, tenor Ashley Riches, bass National Symphony Chorus Ireland

3.30pm

17.04.26

New Music Dublin: Gerald Barry’s Salome with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Jérôme Kuhn, conductor Alison Scherzer, Salome Amy Ní Fhearraigh, The Queen Timur, The King Vincent Casagrande, The Prisoner Stefan Sevenich, The Young Syrian David Howes, Soldier

7.30pm

24.04.26

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Peter Whelan conducts Weber & Brahms Peter Whelan, conductor Carlos Ferreira, clarinet

7.30pm

26.04.26

Family Concert: Discover Peter and the Wolf & The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Karen Ní Bhroin, conductor Jessie Grimes, presenter Maeve Clancy & Neasa Ní Chuanaigh, shadow puppetry

12.30pm 3pm

30.04.26 01.05.26

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial in Concert Film with Live Orchestra Jessica Cottis, conductor

7.30pm

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Date

Concert

Time

Page

08.05.26

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Jessica Cottis conducts Tchaikovsky Four & Siobhán Cleary World Premiere Jessica Cottis, conductor Darragh Morgan, violin

7.30pm

12.05.26

Primary Schools Concert Discover Peter and the Wolf & The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Karen Ní Bhroin, conductor Jessie Grimes, presenter Maeve Clancy & Neasa Ní Chuanaigh, shadow puppetry

10.30am 12.30pm

14.05.26

Hilary Hahn, violin Tom Poster, piano Classical masterpieces by Ravel, Fauré, Debussy & Irish premieres by Bun-Ching Lam & Scott Tixier

8pm

15.05.26

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland John O’Conor plays Beethoven Lina Gonzáles-Granados, conductor John O’Conor, piano

7.30pm

29.05.26

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Jonas Alber conducts Mahler Five Jonas Alber, conductor Baiba Skride, violin

7.30pm

101

05.06.26

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Philip Glass Explored with Dennis Russell Davies & Angélique Kidjo Dennis Russell Davies, conductor Angélique Kidjo, voice

7.30pm

105

06.06.26

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Philip Glass Explored with Dennis Russell Davies & Maki Namekawa Dennis Russell Davies, conductor Maki Namekawa, piano

7.30pm

107

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Date

Concert

Time

Page

11.06.26

Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment with Sir Simon Rattle Sir Simon Rattle, conductor Timothy Ridout, viola

8pm

111

19.06.26

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Season Finale Julia Wolfe, Rachmaninov & John Adams Stephanie Childress, conductor Nicolas Namoradze, piano National Symphony Chorus Ireland

7.30pm

113

International Orchestras and Recitals National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Family, Schools & Artist-in-Residence

— National Symphony Orchestra Ireland

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— Ava Dodd 14

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National Symphony Orchestra Ireland New Year’s Day Gala Thurs. 1 Jan. ’26 — 3.30pm

Ring out the old, ring in the new with all the Viennese glamour and gaiety of National Symphony Orchestra Ireland’s traditional New Year’s Day Gala with up-and-coming conductor Tom Fetherstonhaugh and Classic FM Rising Star, soprano Ava Dodd. Timeless favourites by the Strauss family (Die Fledermaus Overture, Tritsch-Tratsch-Polka and Radetzky March), Lehár’s romantic ‘Vilja-Lied’ from The Merry Widow, and Korngold’s glittering Straussiana are heard alongside vivacious rarities.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Tom Fetherstonhaugh conductor

Ava Dodd soprano Liz Nolan presenter,

RTÉ lyric fm

Tickets: €15, €27.50, €35, €42.50, €49

Joseph Hellmesberger’s Kleiner Anzeiger Galopp whips breathlessly along, Josef Arditi’s Il bacio is an irresistible invitation to ‘The Kiss’, the vocal version of the younger Johann Strauss’s Wiener Blut (Vienna Blood) as dreamily, deliriously romantic as the original. 15

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— Barry Douglas

— Anna Sułkowska-Migoń

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National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Barry Douglas plays Shostakovich Fri. 16 Jan. ’26 — 7.30pm ‘The new name to remember in the expanding galaxy of female conductors’ (Le Devoir), multi-award-winning Anna Sułkowska-Migoń makes her National Symphony Orchestra Ireland debut with master pianist Barry Douglas in a Shostakovich rarity, spellbinding Rimsky-Korsakov and soul-stirring Boulanger. Barry Douglas brings his renowned feeling and flair to Shostakovich’s exuberant Concerto for Piano, Trumpet, and String Orchestra, its high-spirited dialogue shared with NSOI principal trumpet, Darren Moore. Rimsky-Korsakov’s spectacular Scheherazade is a sensuous, dramatic and seductive blend of adventure and romance that never fails to enchant. The pioneering Lili Boulanger’s introspective, anguished D’un soir triste (Of a Sad Evening) includes complex, dark harmonies, sombre lyricism and a heartrending climax that fades resignedly away.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Anna Sułkowska-Migoń

conductor

Barry Douglas piano Darren Moore trumpet

Lili Boulanger D’un soir triste Shostakovich Concerto for Piano, Trumpet, and String Orchestra Rimsky-Korsakov Scheherazade Tickets €15, €25, €29, €34.50, €39 Pre-Concert Talk: 6.15pm – 6.50pm

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Spotlight

Jessie Grimes NCH Discover Artist-in-Residence

It is such an honour to be named Artist-in-Residence at the National Concert Hall again for the 2025-2026 season. Once was amazing, but twice means I must have done something right!

I’m thrilled to have more time to deepen my relationship with the newly named NCH Discover programme, (formerly Learning & Participation), and to continue my work with the vibrant National Symphony Orchestra Ireland and its inspiring members – particularly as they perform more and more with NCH Discover in its many varied programmes and locations. This season is a pivotal one for Discover, as we prepare for the exciting new Discover Centre – the first step in the NCH’s redevelopment. Even more exciting to me than a shiny, bespoke new building, is the chance to strengthen our engagement with communities all around Ireland during that transition, and far beyond. I also have the privilege of curating a series of workshops with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland to support them as they join us as creative partners in the wider work of Discover.

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Alongside all this expansion, I get to continue my favourite part: bringing the awe-inspiring might of symphonic music to audiences everywhere in fresh, joyful and accessible ways.

This year I’m delighted to incorporate my playing into the season with a clarinet masterclass, and we’re hoping to bring my award-winning Jacquin Trio to the hall in the Spring/Summer.

As I see it, the next generation of young music makers and listeners are the lifeline of culture on this island. That’s why they’re at the heart of my creative work this season. I want everyone to feel ownership of the music that happens at the NCH, and to know that they are welcome to come and make music with us.

My younger self wouldn’t have believed I’d be given the immense privilege of being Artist-in-Residence in that huge, fancy concert hall in my home town. Come join us this season, bring your mates, and let’s show that little kid just how fun and welcoming that big fancy place can be!

We’re continuing to revamp the Music in the Classroom series with vibrant programming and special guest artists; we’re offering more opportunities for schools to connect with live music through dedicated performances of Peter and the Wolf and The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra; and I’m continuing to dream up theatrical, engaging and outlandish ways to present great orchestral repertoire to new audiences with my beloved Symphony Shorts series. All of this means I get to share the sheer joy of experiencing truly great live music with other humans in one space – how life-giving it is to explore new sounds, and how powerful it is to feel the full force of National Symphony Orchestra Ireland up close. This residency also offers me a brilliant opportunity to share another huge part of my artistic life: being a clarinettist. Last season was a gloriously busy series of concerts I wrote and presented – but my poor instrument didn’t get a look in!

↓ Jessie Grimes with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Symphony Shorts: Discover Scheherazade: 1001 Tales to Save a Life Sat. 17 Jan. ’26 Music in the Classroom: Junior Cycle Tues. 3 Mar. ’26 Music in the Classroom: Primary Schools Tues. 10 Mar. ’26 Discover Orchestral Escapades Sat. 14 Mar. ’26 Family Concert Discover Peter and the Wolf & The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra Sun. 26 Apr. ’26 Primary Schools Concert Discover Peter and the Wolf & The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra Tues. 12 May ’26 19

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Family Concert Symphony Shorts: Discover Scheherazade: 1001 Tales to Save a Life with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Presented by Jessie Grimes NCH Discover Artist-in-Residence Sat. 17 Jan. ’26 — 12.30pm Once upon a time… a story could save your life. When a ruthless Sultan threatens to murder Scheherazade, she distracts him with dazzling tales – for 1001 nights!

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland

Rimsky-Korsakov’s glittering score brings her adventures to life, with stormy seas, daring princes and shimmering festivals bursting from National Symphony Orchestra Ireland, conducted by the awesome Anna Sułkowska-Migoń. Let charismatic presenter Jessie Grimes animate this orchestral masterpiece in her inimitable Symphony Shorts style! Packed with singing, body percussion and audience participation, this relaxed, ASD-friendly family concert invites everyone to step into Scheherazade’s thrilling world of music and storytelling. Perfect for ages 6 and up. This event includes Irish Sign Language (ISL) interpretation. A visual guide will also be available online in advance of the concert.

Scheherazade

Anna Sułkowska-Migoń conductor

Jessie Grimes presenter Rimsky-Korsakov

Tickets: Full Price: €20; Child: €15; Family Ticket €65 (4 tickets, maximum 2 adults)

Find out more. See: Spotlight: Jessie Grimes Page 18

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— Solfa Carlile

— Bianca Gannon

— Caterina Schembri

— Elis Czerniak

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National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Composer Lab Tues. 20 Jan. ’26 — 8pm

Composer Lab 2025 culminates with the world premiere performances of four new works by participants Solfa Carlile, Elis Czerniak, Bianca Gannon, and Caterina Schembri. Composer Lab is a professional development initiative delivered in partnership by National Symphony Orchestra Ireland, the Contemporary Music Centre and RTÉ lyric fm.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Gavin Maloney conductor David Fennessy composermentor

Solfa Carlile Lasair na Saoirse (Flame of Freedom) World Premiere Elis Czerniak COVER World Premiere Bianca Gannon Cabin Fever World Premiere Caterina Schembri Taraxacum World Premiere Tickets: Free, but ticketed.

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Spotlight

Peter Whelan National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Artistic Partner

There’s obvious glee in Peter Whelan’s voice when he describes what lies ahead for him as National Symphony Orchestra Ireland’s first Artistic Partner, a role that will see him conducting two concerts this season.

The appointment sees the globe-trotting Whelan returning home to his native Dublin, and to National Symphony Orchestra Ireland with whom he gave his first professional concerts as a bassoonist. ‘I’m very excited. Having a connection with where I’m from and the musicians and audiences who live there is special. I’ve performed with the orchestra in various capacities over the years, more recently as a conductor, so it’s wonderful to have the relationship blossom into something more.’ Whelan’s formative experiences left him with ‘a fondness’ for the musicians that has grown into ‘enormous respect and admiration’ as the relationship developed and changed. He is grateful for his early time in the

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orchestra’s rank and file: ‘Being a bassoonist was a very useful education. You get to see how everything works inside the orchestra, and you learn how to breathe with the music. That’s a good lesson for a conductor too.’ The bassoon also led Whelan towards the music of the Baroque, in which he is now a widely admired specialist. ‘The best music for bassoonists is Weber, Mozart and a whole lot of music in the Baroque. I love the freshness of the music and how directly it speaks to audiences.’ Whelan has come a long way in the short time since founding Ensemble Marsyas in 2011. As Artistic Director of the Irish Baroque Orchestra since 2017, he has been raising its profile with a coveted Olivier Award for Vivaldi’s Bajazet in 2022 and a BBC Proms appearance in

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2025. A curator for the Norwegian Wind Ensemble, he takes up Music Directorship of San Francisco’s Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra in 2026. How he juggles such commitments, Whelan explains: ‘The jigsaw fits together nicely. They’re complementary to what I’ll be doing with NSOI.’ His tenure as Artistic Partner begins with a reminder of his Baroque credentials in music by Joseph Bologne and Mozart alongside the Classical elegance of Mendelssohn. ‘It’s a balance between where I’m at and what the orchestra does. They play a huge range of music and it’s so impressive how open-hearted and ready to try new things they are.’ Of Bologne he pointedly comments: ‘we 25

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Spotlight

need to hear more of him’; of Mozart he remarks: ‘you always come away a better person for having listened to him’. Mendelssohn’s ‘Scottish’ Symphony and the two Brahms works in his second concert – including his Fourth Symphony ‘with its wonderful, Baroque-style passacaglia’ – finds Whelan ‘pushing out the boat in terms of repertoire for me, stretching into the Classical and beyond. But there are always connections to be found’. He will bring an approach rooted in ‘historically informed performance’ that has steadily worked its way into 19th-century music. ‘You can use it to approach any kind of music. What it boils down to is reassessing music; trying to imagine musicians and audiences are hearing and feeling it for the first time. It’s an attempt to keep music’s original impetus and vitality.’ His second concert features Weber’s virtuosic, First Clarinet Concerto, Whelan declaring himself ‘a big fan’ of the composer. ‘I love the language he uses; it’s fully operatic and pushes wind players to their extremes, and the clarinet into the reaches of the voice, with ample rewards for the audience.’ As for what his new National Symphony Orchestra Ireland role will bring, Whelan sanguinely offers: ‘You always have to leave enough space for what the musicians are telling you; keep the reins loose and be ready for anything to happen.’ 26

↓ Peter Whelan National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Fri. 23 Jan. ’26 ↓ Peter Whelan National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Fri. 24 Apr. ’26

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— National Symphony Orchestra Ireland

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— Peter Whelan

— Ellinor D’Melon

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National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Peter Whelan conducts Mendelssohn’s ‘Scottish’ Fri. 23 Jan ’26 — 7.30pm

Three master composers, two master musicians and National Symphony Orchestra Ireland with a lively Overture by Joseph Bologne, an elegant Mozart Violin Concerto, and Mendelssohn’s evocative ‘Scottish’ Symphony. National Symphony Orchestra Ireland’s new Artistic Partner, the ‘dynamic’ (The Times) Peter Whelan, makes the first of two podium appearances this season with the ‘simply fabulous’ (Irish Times) violinist Ellinor D’Melon making a welcome return. Bologne’s witty, elegant Overture to L’Amant anonyme shows why he was favourably compared to Mozart, whose youthful, infectious Third Violin Concerto boasts an ethereal Adagio at its heart. The sweeping romanticism of Mendelssohn’s Third Symphony evokes the rugged beauty of Scotland’s landscapes in a captivating musical postcard coloured by lively folk-inspired rhythms and a majestic, hymn-like finale.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Peter Whelan conductor Ellinor D’Melon violin Joseph Bologne Overture to L’Amant anonyme Mozart Violin Concerto No. 3 Mendelssohn Symphony No. 3, ‘Scottish’ Tickets €15, €25, €29, €34.50, €39 Pre-Concert Talk: 6.15pm – 6.50pm Find out more. See: Spotlight: Peter Whelan Page 24

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Spotlight

Anselm McDonnell

It’s not every would-be rock guitarist who becomes a composer. But it’s the route the 2024 Séan Ó Riada Competition winner Anselm McDonnell took, his attempts to write attention-grabbing solos and riffs gradually pulling him towards composition. That, in turn, pushed open the door to classical music, ‘and from day one, I was hooked’.

In addition to the Ó Riada imprimatur, McDonnell has amassed awards and accolades enough to fill a generous trophy cabinet, and is now an in-demand composer whose multi-faceted music has been fêted at home, throughout Europe and as far afield as Russia, Thailand and China. Still only 31, his output has already passed 100 pieces with more, including his first symphony, on the way. That prolific creativity is matched by an eclectic reach encompassing electronica, film, Rap music, collaborations with fashion designers, and much else besides every genre of classical music. ‘I try,’ he modestly comments, ‘to push myself to do lots of different kinds of projects.’

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the heavens-touching vastness of mountains, their forbidding majesty explored in a middle movement that ‘looks further back’ to when mountains were believed to be the homes of gods.

McDonnell’s eagerness to explore new sounds and new directions he credits to his rock band beginnings and his later studies with Piers Hellawell at Queen’s University, Belfast and Robert Fokkens at Cardiff University. ‘The band led me to explore extremes of expression and sound, combining noise and harmony. Piers and Robert, very different composers, were fantastic teachers who didn’t try to force me into their way of writing and encouraged me to develop my own voice.’ Just as meaningful has been his relationships with musicians, for one of whom, longtime collaborator Martin Johnson, he composed his first Cello Concerto, Hostile Summits. Commissioned by National Symphony Orchestra Ireland, who, with Martin Johnson, give its first performance, its title alludes to keen hiker McDonnell’s fascination with mountains and those who climb them – the ‘adrenaline junkies in pursuit of fear’ who first emerged in the Victorian era – imagined in the concerto’s first movement. The concerto pits the cello as a lone climber silhouetted against

It’s here McDonnell’s instinct to push towards extremes comes into play: ‘I take the cello right up into the top of its range – whisper sounds off the finger board – and half of the orchestra is removed to focus on the lower end of its voice’. The finale references the Biblical account of Jesus, newly Transfigured, descending from the heights to heal a sick child and reassure his disciples that faith can move mountains. There’s novelty, too, as the cello and string section combine ‘to mimic the sound of a giant guitar’. As for what audiences can expect from Hostile Summits, McDonnell says: ‘There’s a huge amount of drama in it, some unusual uses of the orchestra, particularly in the percussion writing, interesting combinations between instruments and the way they pair with the guitar-like nature of the cello. I hope it will show a different aspect of what the cello can do’.

↓ Anselm McDonnell Cello Concerto No. 1, Hostile Summits World Premiere National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Fri. 30 Jan. ’26 31

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— Martin Johnson

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National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Tchaikovsky’s ‘Pathétique’ & Anselm McDonnell World Premiere Fri. 30 Jan. ’26 — 7.30pm Epiphanies of the soul, heart and nature ring out in two luxurious orchestral showpieces and the world premiere of 2024 Séan Ó Riada Competition winner Anselm McDonnell’s First Cello Concerto performed by Martin Johnson. Ryan McAdams conducts with ‘bounding, generous energy’ (Journal of Music). Wagner’s Götterdämmerung interludes sweep from hushed sunrise to heroic adventure to evoke mythic love, fateful destiny, and the ever-flowing Rhine. Tchaikovsky’s ‘Pathétique’, his last, most searing symphony, is a powerful, poignant confessional filled with turbulent passion, restless energy and aching melodies. Anselm McDonnell’s Cello Concerto, Hostile Summits, ‘explores different aspects of our relationship with mountains, from their might and terrifying beauty to their symbolism as places of divine power’.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Ryan McAdams conductor Martin Johnson cello Wagner ‘Dawn’ and ‘Siegfried’s Rhine Journey’ from Götterdämmerung Anselm McDonnell Cello Concerto No. 1, Hostile Summits World Premiere NSOI Commission Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 6, ‘Pathétique’ Tickets €15, €25, €29, €34.50, €39 Pre-Concert Talk: 6.15pm – 6.50pm Find out more. See: Spotlight: Anselm McDonnell Page 30 33

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Spotlight

Abel Selaocoe

For once, believe the hype. Abel Selaocoe – a once in a generation, one of a kind musician – really is all that is claimed for him.

Even the most silver-tongued attempts to describe his astonishing artistry on the cello, his remarkable vocal skills, his imaginative blending of Western classical music with improvisatory jazz and his African heritage, or the emotional impact of his own richly crafted music, fall short of capturing the sheer thrill and exhilaration of seeing and hearing Selaocoe in concert. There is something of the seanachaí about his ability to transform a conventional concert into an unforgettable experience. Putting classical cello technique to expressive ends and glossing it with an emotive vocal style borrowing from Xhosainspired clicks and ‘throat singing’, Selaocoe is a musical chameleon. He is also a born communicator. British newspaper The Times commented on

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one performance: ‘Abel Selaocoe is billed as a cellist and composer, but that doesn’t begin to cover his talents… [he] also sings, improvises, dances and directs, seemingly sculpting sound with his hands…. Yet Selaocoe’s greatest gift is his irresistible energy, sweeping the audience up into the music in an entirely wholehearted way’. Born in the South African township of Sebokeng, it was Selaocoe’s early cello lessons with the pioneering Michael Masote in Johannesburg that helped inspire and shape a young, imaginative mind. After further studies at Manchester’s Royal Northern College of Music, he quickly made his mark as a soloist, composer and collaborator with the likes of the London Symphony Orchestra, BBC Singers, Manchester Collective, the Minnesota-based Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra (where he is an Artistic Partner), and his own Chesaba Trio and Bantu Ensemble. His wide-ranging musical interests have led to memorable partnerships with fellow classical cellist Yo-Yo Ma, jazz pianist Gwilym Simcock, kora virtuoso Seckou Keita and others. His three albums to date serve as impressionable calling cards for a singular talent. His concerts invariably bring together musicians from different genres for continents-spanning collaborations. This season he partners with the ‘top class’ (Arts Review) Irish Chamber Orchestra with its reputation for adventurous programming. And with two stunning soloists who share

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Selaocoe’s melting-pot approach to making music: bass player, Irishman Alan Keary, and Austrian percussionist Bernhard Schimpelsberger, ‘one of the most technically gifted and tasteful players we have seen in a long time’ (Drummer Magazine). Selaocoe himself is a robust, expressive performer, exuding warmth and the wisdom of ages, frequently interlaced with his own emotive vocals, switching fluidly between several languages. Alongside evocative Janáček, passionate Debussy, and tender Sibelius will be heard Selaocoe’s own uniquely vibrant music celebrating his African roots, love, and heroism in a fusion of classical forms and techniques laced with township rhythms, ancestral anthems, jazz inflections and voices. A highlight will be his ‘powerful, inventive and irresistibly enjoyable’ (BBC Music Magazine) Hymns of Bantu: Kea Morata, a thrilling standout track from his unique and spellbinding debut album. Of himself, Selaocoe simply says: ‘I’m an African person with African ideals, but those ideals are connected to the universalities of the world’.

↓ Irish Chamber Orchestra with Abel Selaocoe Thurs. 5 Feb. ’26

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— Abel Selaocoe

— Irish Chamber Orchestra

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Irish Chamber Orchestra with Abel Selaocoe Thurs. 5 Feb. ’26 — 8pm

‘[Abel] Selaocoe is a unique artist… among the most thrilling I’ve experienced.’ (Minneapolis Star Tribune)

Irish Chamber Orchestra

South African cellist, vocalist and director Abel Selaocoe is one of today’s most magnetic performers – a captivating, free-spirited presence on stage whose improvisational approach always generates an electric atmosphere. His own genre-blurring music brilliantly fuses his native folk traditions with Western classical music.

Bernhard Schimpelsberger

He leads the always inspirational Irish Chamber Orchestra, percussionist Bernhard Schimpelsberger and bassist Alan Keary for a thrilling blend of old and new in a dazzling fusion of Europe and Africa. Janáček’s evocative Suite for Strings, Debussy’s passionate Cello Sonata, and Sibelius’s tender Romance are heard alongside Selaocoe’s own uniquely vibrant music celebrating his African roots, love, and heroism.

Abel Selaocoe cello, vocals, director

percussion

Alan Keary bass Janáček Suite for Strings Selaocoe Lerato (Love) Debussy Cello Sonata Sibelius Romance in C major Selaocoe Qhawe (Hero) Selaocoe Ibuyile l’Africa (Africa is Back) Selaocoe Hymns of Bantu: Kea Morata Tickets €15, €26.50, €33, €39, €45 Find out more. See: Spotlight: Abel Selaocoe Page 34

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Spotlight

Kaija Saariaho & Gabriela Ortiz Of all the factors that shaped classical music in the second half of the last century – and continues to – the emergence of a generation of female composers was arguably the most significant. Certainly, the most exciting.

— Kaija Saariaho

— Gabriela Ortiz

The result has been an enrichment of the repertoire reflected in the seven very different female voices from the past century to the present day threaded throughout this season – from Lili Boulanger, Julia Wolfe and Jennifer Higdon to Bun-Ching Lam and Siobhán Cleary – each and all bringing new perspectives to challenge and to reward. Two other names, Kaija Saariaho and Gabriela Ortiz, both featuring as part of National Symphony Orchestra Ireland’s programming, are prime examples of the remarkable diversity and originality of style and substance that has brought female composers deservedly to the fore. No two composers are alike. The music of the Finnish Saariaho and Mexican Ortiz perfectly illustrates that. Drawn

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from cultural backgrounds far distant and different from each other, there is little risk of mistaking either’s music for the other’s. Yet both share a similar aim: a desire to add to, expand and deepen the emotional and expressive range of contemporary classical music. Born in Mexico City in 1964, Gabriela Ortiz studied in Mexico, Paris and London. Winner of three Grammy Awards for her 2024 album, Revolución Diamantina, and Composer-inResidence with New York’s Carnegie Hall in 2025, her profile is fast ascending. Gustavo Dudamel, who conducted that piece with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, hails Ortiz ‘one of the most talented composers in the world’. Kauyumari (blue deer), in its Irish premiere, is inspired by the folklore of the Huichol people from Mexico’s Sierra Madre. Its title refers to a spiritual guide encountered during a ritual involving the hallucinogenic peyote cactus to facilitate communication with ancestors and spiritual healing. Ortiz describes it as a ‘celebration of renewal’. The New York Times called it ‘a churning engine of sound’. Its driving rhythmic intensity, borrowing of a traditional Huichol melody, and bold working out of both casts a trance-like but invigorating spell.

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A pioneer of Spectralism, combining live acoustic music and voice with electronics, Saariaho crafted unique soundscapes immersing the listener in evolving, enveloping sonic textures. The Irish premiere of the more conventionally cast Ciel d’hiver exploits the resources of a symphony orchestra to evoke the chilled sweep and vast breadth of the rise and fall of constellations in luminous, celestial orchestration. From shiver-inducing strings, harp and percussion to warming winds and brass and ethereal piano and cello, it’s an enthralling evocation of the majesty of the Winter Sky of its title.

↓ Gabriela Ortiz Kauyumari National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Fri. 6 Feb. ’26 ↓ Kaija Saariaho Ciel d’hiver National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Fri. 15 May ’26

That hypnotic quality is also to be found in the accolade-laden Kaija Saariaho’s music. Born in Helsinki, she died in 2023 aged 70, her legacy one of the most original catalogues of music in contemporary music. 39

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— Mirabelle Kajenjeri 40

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National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Ravel with Mirabelle Kajenjeri Fri. 6 Feb. ’26 — 7.30pm

Conductor Diego Matheuz returns to National Symphony Orchestra Ireland with exciting, young French pianist Mirabelle Kajenjeri for an electrifying evening of vivid classics and an Irish premiere for leading Mexican composer Gabriela Ortiz. Hailed as ‘one of the most talented composers in the world’ by conductor Gustavo Dudamel, Ortiz’s Kauyumari is a ‘celebration of renewal’ making vivid use of native folklore. Ravel’s jazz-infused Piano Concerto in G, with Kajenjeri as soloist, bursts with syncopated rhythms and bluesy harmonies, its sublime Adagio laced with Mozartian grace. Marking the 150th anniversary of his birth, De Falla’s The Three-Cornered Hat is a sparkling, dynamic, sun-drenched, castanet and guitar-led celebration of Andalusia. Bartók’s The Miraculous Mandarin pulses with raw energy, explosive orchestral colour and intensity, evoking a tale of desire, chaos, violence, and ultimately doomed love.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Diego Matheuz conductor Mirabelle Kajenjeri piano Gabriela Ortiz Kauyumari Irish Premiere Ravel Piano Concerto in G De Falla The Three-Cornered Hat Suite No. 2 Bartók The Miraculous Mandarin Suite Tickets €15, €25, €29, €34.50, €39 Pre-Concert Talk: 6.15pm – 6.50pm Find out more. See: Spotlight: Kaija Saariaho & Gabriela Ortiz Page 38

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— The Snail and the Whale

— Room on the Broom 42

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Room on the Broom & The Snail and the Whale Live Screening in Concert with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Sun. 8 Feb. ’26 — 12.30pm & 3pm National Symphony Orchestra Ireland, conducted by the inspirational David Brophy, performs René Aubry’s inspired scores with live screenings of the BAFTA-winning animations Room on the Broom and The Snail and the Whale from producers Magic Light Pictures, based on the books by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland David Brophy conductor Tickets Full Price: €30; Child €23; Family Tickets: €94 (4 tickets, maximum 2 adults); Restricted View: €15

Room on the Broom Room on the Broom is a magical tale about friendship and family based on the book by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler, creators of the hugely successful The Gruffalo and The Gruffalo’s Child. Magic Light Pictures presents Room on the Broom © Orange Eyes Ltd. 2012

The Snail and the Whale A beautiful tale of an unlikely friendship, a tour of the world and a heroic rescue. Based on the picture book written by Julia Donaldson and illustrated by Axel Scheffler. Magic Light Pictures presents The Snail and the Whale © Magic Light Pictures Ltd. 2019

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Spotlight

Alexander Shelley National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Principal Conductor Designate

Being the son of two acclaimed concert pianists – Howard Shelley and Hilary Macnamara – Alexander Shelley’s choice of career shouldn’t have surprised anyone. Except, perhaps his parents when he decided to follow his grandmother and take up the cello.

‘On the one hand it was an inevitability, but my parents didn’t push. They made sure I had broader interests and knew, because of the commitment it takes, that music had to be my choice.’ The urge to conduct he attributes to cassettes he would listen to when falling asleep as a child, drawing him ever closer to ‘the instrument of the orchestra with its endlessly varying and varied colours and ability to tell stories’. Since his beginnings ‘waving my arms around to music’ in his bedroom, Shelley’s conducting career has come a considerable way. Success in the 2005 Leeds Conductors Competition announced an exciting new talent who was soon in demand around the world. His appointment as National Symphony Orchestra Ireland’s new Principal

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Conductor Designate, taking up the role of Principal Conductor in September 2026, adds to a growing list of orchestras he has long and fruitful relationships with. Currently Music Director of Canada’s National Arts Centre Orchestra, Artistic and Music Director of the Florida-based Artis–Naples and Principal Associate Conductor with London’s Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, in 2026 he will assume the Artistic and Music Directorship of the Pacific Symphony in California. ‘To me, building a deep relationship with an orchestra and an audience,’ he says, ‘is the most rewarding thing a conductor can do.’ Having made guest appearances in Dublin over the past decade and more, Shelley considers National Symphony

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Orchestra Ireland’s strengths to be ‘their speed and flexibility, great musicianship, and the openness with which they respond to new ideas. They can deliver absolutely first-class performances across the broadest of repertoire’. The new role is something of a homecoming. His mother, whose parents were Macnamaras from Limerick and O’Gradys from Mayo, grew up in Dún Laoghaire and went to school in Monkstown. The association doesn’t end there: his mother’s cousin, Moya, married Michael O’Doherty, an architect for the last redevelopment of the Hall in the late 1970s. ‘It’s one of the many reasons,’ he says, ‘this appointment feels personal’. Now, as the Hall nears the next stage of its growth, Shelley sees it as ‘an 45

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exciting opportunity to play in other venues and to reach new communities and audiences’. Starting as he means to go on, his two concerts this season range far and wide, beginning with Schumann’s secular oratorio and concert hall rarity, Das Paradies und die Peri. ‘Schumann is very close to my heart and this has been on my “to do” list for some time. The blend of early Romantic, Germanic musical language and an exotic, mythical Persian fable sublimely works. That it’s based on Thomas Moore’s Lalla Rookh, seems like serendipity.’ His very different second concert collides John Adams, Rachmaninov and Stravinsky to illustrate how music speaks across time and borders. ‘It’s going to be an evening of fireworks. The bright streak of light of the Adams piece is a nod to America’s 250th anniversary of independence in 2026, the Stravinsky is a phenomenal score, and the soloist for the Rachmaninov, Jaeden Izik-Dzurko, is a fabulous pianist.’ For Shelley, the concert hall is ‘an entirely safe, shared space to explore experiences that can be joyful, challenging, transcendental and everything in between. Particularly in our times, it has enormous cultural, human value and relevance to all generations. As to what his future with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland might 46

hold, he says: ‘I want to add value to the life and soul of the orchestra, and to classical music in Ireland; for there to be a sharing of passion. It would feel like I’m giving back to my home country’.

↓ Alexander Shelley National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Fri. 13 Feb. ’26 ↓ Alexander Shelley National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Fri. 13 Mar. ’26

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— Alexander Shelley with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland

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— Alexander Shelley

— Nardus Williams

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National Symphony Chorus Ireland Alexander Shelley conducts Schumann’s Paradise and the Peri Fri. 13 Feb. ’26 — 7.30pm A world of wonder and redemption is conjured by National Symphony Orchestra Ireland’s new Principal Conductor Designate, Alexander Shelley, in Schumann’s radiant Das Paradies und die Peri with National Symphony Chorus Ireland and five internationally renowned soloists. Based on Thomas Moore’s Lalla Rookh, Schumann’s Peri – a spirit from Persian legend – seeks the one gift pure enough to re-open the gates of Paradise. Operatic drama and choral music grandeur combine in a magical tapestry as intimate as it is epic. Schumann’s lush score, soaring choruses and heartfelt solos create a world of wonder, hope, and redemption in a musical journey where earthly longing meets celestial joy.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Alexander Shelley conductor Nardus Williams soprano Anna Devin soprano Avery Amereau mezzo-soprano Robin Tritschler tenor Mark Stone baritone National Symphony Chorus Ireland David Young chorus director Schumann Das Paradies und die Peri (Paradise and the Peri) Tickets €15, €27.50, €35, €42.50, €49 Pre-Concert Talk: 6.15pm – 6.50pm Find out more. See: Spotlight: Alexander Shelley Page 44 49

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— Kirill Gerstein

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Kirill Gerstein piano Thurs. 19 Feb. ’26 — 8pm

‘The most versatile of piano virtuosos.’ (Daily Telegraph) A compelling recital by pianistic giant Kirill Gerstein journeys through some of the Romantic repertoire’s most profound piano works by the very different voices of Liszt and Brahms. Inspired by the passionate and poetic sonnets of the Italian Renaissance poet, Liszt’s Three Petrarch Sonnets marries virtuosic technique to expressive lyricism. His monumental Après une lecture de Dante: Fantasia quasi Sonata is a dramatic and intense reflection on Dante’s Divine Comedy.

Kirill Gerstein piano Liszt Three Petrarch Sonnets Liszt Après une lecture de Dante: Fantasia quasi Sonata Brahms Scherzo in E-flat minor Brahms Piano Sonata No. 3 Tickets €15, €26.50, €33, €39, €45 Pre-Concert Talk: 6.45pm - 7.20pm

Brahms’s Scherzo in E-flat minor is fiery and rhythmically-charged, his Piano Sonata No. 3 a masterful, richly textured showcase of robust romantic style and complexity.

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Spotlight

Voices from America John Adams, Philip Glass, Jennifer Higdon, Julia Wolfe

American classical music found its voice in the 20th century. But it was the generation of composers born in the middle of the century who were to re-define the vast continent’s musical accent by venturing off in startling new directions towards previously uncharted territory.

Threaded through National Symphony Orchestra Ireland’s season are four composers whose work changed the course and character of American music. Once contemporary music’s enfant terrible, Philip Glass is now a hugely influential elder statesman. Demurring from his anointing as ‘the Godfather of minimalism’, he insists, instead, he is a composer of ‘music with repetitive structures’. Across a prolific output – 15 operas, 14 symphonies, 12 concertos, numerous film scores, chamber and solo works – Glass has become that rarest of composers: one whose music is instantly recognisable as belonging only to him. Developed by the orchestra and Dennis Russell Davies – one of the composer’s longest and surely most articulate champions, having premiered many of his symphonies and much else besides

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— Philip Glass

— John Adams

– two Philip Glass Explored concerts include six Irish premieres.

Adams’ music rewards even as it challenges; music for him can be fun as well as serious, those opposites illustrated by the exhilarating (and accelerating) Short Ride in a Fast Machine and his mesmerising choral symphony Harmonium.

They showcase his astonishing range and ear-catching immediacy, from his first work for full symphony orchestra, The Light, and excerpts from the operas, Akhnaten and The Voyage, to the remarkable fusion of minimalism and African chant in the Ifè Songs composed for Angélique Kidjo, and the hypnotic Mishima Piano Concerto spun from his earlier film score. John Adams brought minimalism into the mainstream, threading it with American folk idioms and long-established classical traditions to boldly fuse old and new. His headline-grabbing operas addressed politics with a directness few other composers have dared, as did On the Transmigration of Souls, his powerful Pulitzer Prize-winning tribute to victims of the 9/11 atrocities for orchestra and chorus.

More recent generations have seen female composers coming to the fore with striking contributions of their own. Fellow Pulitzer Prize-winner and child of the Sixties, Julia Wolfe came to prominence as co-founder of the influential New York-based Bang on a Can collective. Her issue-led music powerfully collides ‘high’ and ‘low’ art in a simmering compound of driving rock ’n’ roll and lyrical folk vernacular deftly contained within classical structures. The Irish premiere of Pretty finds Wolfe at her most ferocious in a bracing orchestral display she describes as ‘a raucous celebration – embracing the grit 53

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of fiddling, the relentlessness of work rhythms, and inspired by the distortion and reverberation of rock and roll’. Jennifer Higdon joined the elite cadre of Pulitzer Prize winners with her Violin Concerto in 2008. The influence of the open landscapes and folk melodies of her Tennessee childhood are everywhere to be found in her emotion-led music. A glowing reflection on love and loss, blue cathedral (another Irish premiere) is unabashedly anchored in the heart that beats and the soul that breathes within the very best of contemporary American music.

↓ Jennifer Higdon blue cathedral National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Fri. 20 Feb. ’26 ↓ John Adams Short Ride in a Fast Machine National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Fri. 13 Mar. ’26 ↓ Philip Glass Explored with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Dennis Russell Davies & Angélique Kidjo Fri. 5 Jun. ’26 54

— Jennifer Higdon

— Julia Wolfe

↓ Philip Glass Explored with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Dennis Russell Davies & Maki Namekawa Sat. 6 Jun. ’26 ↓ John Adams Harmonium Julia Wolfe Pretty National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Fri. 19 Jun. ’26

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— National Symphony Orchestra Ireland

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— Celine Byrne 56

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National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Celine Byrne sings Four Last Songs Fri. 20 Feb. ’26 — 7.30pm Emotions are high in a compelling concert with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland featuring Celine Byrne in Richard Strauss’s gorgeous and poignant Four Last Songs, and the Irish premiere of Jennifer Higdon’s blue cathedral, a moving memorial tribute to her brother, with Lio Kuokman conducting. Celine Byrne brings her ‘fine lyrical quality’ (Opera) to Strauss’s masterpiece reflecting on life and the leave-taking of it. Higdon’s reflection on loss is lit up by luminous, shimmering music moving from hushed introspection to ecstatic radiance. Blending lush Viennese waltzes, sparkling orchestral colour, and infectious lyricism, Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier Suite brims over with autumnal romance, bittersweet nostalgia, comic exuberance, and glittering orchestration. Ravel’s La valse transforms the waltz into a dizzy, unhinged mirror image of itself to create a wild, haunting vision of beauty unravelling.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Lio Kuokman conductor Celine Byrne soprano Jennifer Higdon blue cathedral Irish Premiere Richard Strauss Four Last Songs Richard Strauss Der Rosenkavalier Suite Ravel La valse Tickets €15, €26.50, €33, €39, €45 Pre-Concert Talk: 6.15pm – 6.50pm Find out more. See: Spotlight: Voices from America Page 52

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— Maxim Vengerov 58

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National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Maxim Vengerov plays Mendelssohn Fri. 27 Feb. ’26 — 7.30pm

Maxim Vengerov, ‘one of the greatest violinists in the world’ (The Courier), returns to National Symphony Orchestra Ireland with the vivacious love-letter that is Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto, with Kristian Sallinen, acclaimed in his native Finland as ‘a super-talented new conducting star’, on the podium for it and the mythic Nordic mystery of Sibelius’s En Saga and Bartók’s folk-infused Divertimento for Strings.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Kristian Sallinen conductor Maxim Vengerov violin Sibelius En Saga Bartók Divertimento for Strings Mendelssohn Violin Concerto Tickets €15, €30, €42.50, €54, €65

Expect to run the emotional gamut from the legendinspired romance of Sibelius’s En Saga to the vibrant, rustic energy of Bartók’s Divertimento for Strings and on to Mendelssohn’s fervently alive Violin Concerto in an evening of unforgettable orchestral storytelling.

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— Maxim Vengerov & National Symphony Orchestra Ireland

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Concerto Masterclass with Maxim Vengerov and National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Sat. 28 Feb. ’26 — 11am Three violinists will be selected for this Masterclass to work with Maxim Vengerov and National Symphony Orchestra Ireland on Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto. Each participant will be assigned a movement of the concerto to prepare. This Masterclass is aimed at high-level students and young/ emerging professionals.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Kristian Sallinen conductor Maxim Vengerov violin How to apply: Deadline: 5pm, Thursday 15 January, 2026 Please note you will need to provide your musical CV along with a link to a recent recording or video. If you are still in an educational institution, your teacher will also need to provide a brief reference. Please see nch.ie for more information and the application form. Tickets: Observer tickets: €10; Friend of the NCH: 10% discount. Patrons of the NCH: free of charge. 61

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— Jessie Grimes

— National Symphony Orchestra Ireland

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Music in the Classroom: Junior Cycle with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Presented by Jessie Grimes NCH Discover Artist-in-Residence Tues. 3 Mar. ’26 — 10.30am & 12.30pm

Built around the new Junior Cycle Music Learning Outcomes and using some of the greatest orchestral music ever written, National Symphony Orchestra Ireland and musician-presenter Jessie Grimes will explore how live music can provoke emotion, change mood and illustrate a scene.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Jessie Grimes presenter Tickets Students: €10. Accompanying teachers go free. Find out more. See: Spotlight: Jessie Grimes Page 18

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— Jessie Grimes & National Symphony Orchestra Ireland

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Music in the Classroom: Primary Schools with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Presented by Jessie Grimes NCH Discover Artist-in-Residence Tues. 10 Mar. ’26 — 10.30am & 12.30pm

Fun concerts for children aged 8-12. Join the adventure with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland! Let Jessie Grimes be your guide on an exciting musical journey. From soaring strings to thundering timpani, discover the wonders of orchestral music and unlock the secrets of symphonic storytelling!

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Jessie Grimes presenter Tickets Students: €10. Accompanying teachers go free. Find out more. See: Spotlight: Jessie Grimes Page 18

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— Jaeden Izik-Dzurko

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National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Alexander Shelley conducts John Adams, Rachmaninov & Stravinsky Fri. 13 Mar. ’26 — 7.30pm ‘Natural communicator, both on and off the podium’ (Daily Telegraph), National Symphony Orchestra Ireland’s Principal Conductor Designate Alexander Shelley returns with John Adams’ exhilarating Short Ride in a Fast Machine, the dazzling virtuosity of Rachmaninov’s Third Piano Concerto, and Stravinsky’s colour-saturated The Firebird together with vibrant new visuals.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland

John Adams’ Short Ride in a Fast Machine is a thrilling white-knuckle exercise in perpetual motion with relentless pulsating rhythms and extreme dynamics. Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No. 3, a Romantic masterpiece combining pulse-quickening passion and heart-stopping virtuosity, has 2024 Leeds International Piano Competition winner Jaeden Izik-Dzurko as soloist. A landmark of classical music, Stravinsky’s scorching The Firebird fuses magical Russian folklore with blazing orchestral colours and excitable rhythmic energy to conjure an ever-changing kaleidoscope of moods and atmospheres.

Tickets €15, €26.50, €33, €39, €45

Alexander Shelley conductor Jaeden Izik-Dzurko piano John Adams Short Ride in a Fast Machine Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No. 3 Stravinsky The Firebird with new visuals commissioned in partnership with Pacific Symphony and Artis-Naples

Pre-Concert Talk: 6.15pm – 6.50pm Find out more. See: Spotlight: Alexander Shelley Page 44 Spotlight: Voices from America Page 52

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— Jessie Grimes

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Family Concert Discover Orchestral Escapades with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Presented by Jessie Grimes NCH Discover Artist-in-Residence Sat. 14 Mar. ’26—12.30pm Let Jessie Grimes be your guide through her hand-picked mix of thrilling orchestral masterpieces by some of the world’s greatest composers! Sing, dance and join in with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland as you dive into tales of heroes and tricksters, faraway places, and the powerful feelings music can stir in us all. From soaring strings to thundering timpani, get up close to the mighty sound of your National Symphony Orchestra Ireland and feel its power to paint pictures and bring stories to life. Perfect for ages 6 and up, this interactive, relaxed event is for everyone. Whether it’s your first ever orchestral experience or you’re a symphony superfan, there’ll be fun for everyone. This event includes Irish Sign Language (ISL) interpretation. A visual guide will also be available online in advance of the concert.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Jessie Grimes presenter Tickets: Full Price: €20; Child: €15; Family Ticket €65 (4 tickets, maximum 2 adults

Find out more. See: Spotlight: Jessie Grimes Page 18

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— Louis Lortie

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National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Louis Lortie plays Chopin Fri. 20 Mar. ’26—7.30pm

Two essential cornerstones of the Romantic era – from two of their greatest champions: Louis Lortie, one of today’s most insightful Chopin interpreters, and acclaimed master of French music, Jean-Luc Tingaud.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland

Acclaimed as a ‘model Chopinist’ (BBC Music), Louis Lortie treats Chopin’s First Piano Concerto – all you would expect from a passionate 20-year-old: fiery, lyrical, youthful fervour, a melting slow movement and exuberant Polish spirit – with heart-on-sleeve poetry and bold, blazing virtuosity.

Tickets €15, €25, €29, €34.50, €39

Jean-Luc Tingaud conductor Louis Lortie piano Chopin Piano Concerto No. 1 Franck Symphony in D minor

Pre-Concert Talk: 6.15pm – 6.50pm

Admired for his conducting of the music of his native France, Jean-Luc Tingaud is the perfect guide to being swept up by the intricate design, rich orchestration and drama of Franck’s only symphony, shifting from haunting mystery to radiant triumph.

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— Volodymyr Sirenko

— Maria Pukhlianko

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National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine Maria Pukhlianko plays Beethoven Mon. 23 Mar. ’26—8pm

The National Concert Hall welcomes the National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine with the inspirational conductor Volodymyr Sirenko and celebrated pianist Maria Pukhlianko. Delius’s delicately impressionistic On Hearing the First Cuckoo of Spring and Summer Night on the River conjure the tranquil atmosphere and gentle beauty of nature as refuge and release from cares and affliction. Maria Pukhlianko takes centre stage for the stirring virtuosity and heroic energy of Beethoven’s majestic Piano Concerto No. 5, ‘Emperor’, one of the most iconic of all concertos. Beethoven’s electrifying ‘Eroica’ Symphony is an emotional rollercoaster from despair to triumph embodying his conviction in heroic ideals, personal resilience and profound humanity in the face of overwhelming adversity.

National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine Volodymyr Sirenko conductor Maria Pukhlianko piano Delius On Hearing the First Cuckoo of Spring Delius Summer Night on the River Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 5, ‘Emperor’ Beethoven Symphony No. 3, ‘Eroica’ Tickets €15, €28.50, €36, €44, €55 Pre-Concert Talk: 6.45pm - 7.20pm

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— Mark Redmond

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National Symphony Orchestra Ireland On Tour The Brendan Voyage & ‘New World’ Symphony Thurs. 26 Mar. ’26—7.30pm National Opera House, Wexford Sat. 28 Mar. ’26—7.30pm Leisureland, Galway

in association with Music for Galway

Two classic works, two thrilling musical journeys celebrating the spirit of adventure and discovery with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland and conductor David Brophy: Shaun Davey’s epic The Brendan Voyage and Dvořák’s monumental Ninth Symphony.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland

These performances of the groundbreaking The Brendan Voyage mark the 50th anniversary of historian Tim Severin’s re-creation of St. Brendan’s heroic Sixth-century crossing of the Atlantic in a primitive leather-skinned boat.

Tickets Wexford: See nationaloperahouse.ie Galway: See musicforgalway.ie

David Brophy conductor Mark Redmond uilleann pipes Shaun Davey The Brendan Voyage Dvořák Symphony No. 9, ‘From the New World’

Best known for its haunting Largo, soundtrack to countless films and adverts, Dvořák’s Ninth Symphony is one of the great symphonic showpieces. 75

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— National Symphony Chorus Ireland

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National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Music for Good Friday Fri. 3 Apr. ’26—3.30pm

A profoundly moving choral masterpiece for Good Friday with Czech music specialist Jiří Rožeň conducting National Symphony Orchestra Ireland, National Symphony Chorus Ireland and four exciting soloists. Moving from despair to hope, Dvořák’s Stabat Mater imagines the Virgin Mary’s suffering at the Crucifixion with immense depth and feeling. Composed in the aftermath of the death of three of Dvořák’s children, it is a searing personal statement, grief and faith reconciling in the transcendent consolation of its end.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Jiří Rožeň conductor Masabane Cecilia Rangwanasha soprano Niamh O’Sullivan mezzo-soprano Valentyn Dytiuk tenor Ashley Riches bass

National Symphony Chorus Ireland David Young chorus director Dvořák Stabat Mater Tickets €15, €27.50, €35, €42.50, €49

BBC Cardiff Singer of the World Competition Song Prize-winner, soprano Masabane Cecilia Rangwanasha, ‘very much on the rise’ (OperaWire), mezzo-soprano Niamh O’Sullivan, ‘dark and luminous’ (Classique News) tenor Valentyn Dytiuk, and ‘luxurious’ (Daily Telegraph) baritone Ashley Riches are the soloists. 77

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Spotlight

Gerald Barry Don’t be misled by Gerald Barry’s seemingly throwaway reason – ‘It seemed like a good thing to do’ – for setting Oscar Wilde’s Salome as an opera. There is considerably more to it than mere caprice.

Barry and Wilde have history together. Barry’s anarchic take on The Importance of Being Earnest, hailed by The Stage as ‘a virtuoso explosion from beginning to end’, heralded a meeting of kindred minds and spirits. ‘I feel very close to Wilde,’ Barry admits. ‘There is a craziness in him, an ecstatic kind of vertigo, light-headedness, dizziness. He reminds me of characters in Strindberg’s plays who say shocking, violent things, except Wilde does it flamboyantly.’ Since his first opera, 1990’s The Intelligence Park, the County Clareborn Barry has emerged as Ireland’s leading composer for the stage, his work widely seen – and acclaimed – in the UK, Europe and America. Salome, his seventh opera, follows Alice’s Adventures Under Ground, a freewheeling take on Lewis Carroll’s classic book, a concert performance of which took place under New Music Dublin’s aegis in 2017. ‘Wilde shares the same sense of unreality masquerading as reality as Carroll; they have the same surreal attitude, a kind of fantastic, subversive, murderous quality. There’s a madness in them that I feel very at home with.’

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Tellingly, all three operas set Barry’s own libretto. Typically, none are straight, line-for-line adaptations. That’s certainly true of Salome, which received its world premiere in Germany in 2024. Barry describes it as ‘an opera of voyeurism, the moon, french, God, punishment of sin, misunderstanding, sex, the metronome, suicide, hysteria, hunger, blood, typing, speaking correctly, sterility, The Blue Danube, the wind, fever, art, Wilde, dreaming, beheading, Frankenstein, kissing’. Something, you might say, for everyone. And Barry’s rationale for such pinball machine collisions of borrowings, thoughts and emotions? ‘If you took a picture of my brain while I was composing Salome, that’s what it would look like. I go where the mood takes me.’ Musically, Barry remembers Salome’s composition as ‘a stream of consciousness feeling my way along. I go as if I were in a dream-like state’. Barry’s moods changing on a sixpence, Salome offers as much illumination on Wilde’s original as it takes liberties. Sung in English, French and German, it zeroes in on what Barry describes as the playwright’s ‘dark, uncaring humour’. The result is a subversive turning inside out of its source material, such that only Salome retains her own name, other characters described as types, and the notorious femme fatale no longer a seductive dancer but a typist whose dexterity transcribing Wilde’s letter

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from Reading Gaol, De Profundis, excites Herod’s (Barry’s The King’s) desire instead of the notorious ‘Dance of the Seven Veils’, a moment captured in Richard Strauss’s operatic setting. It’s a signature scene as mischievous as it is macabre. ‘I never set out to be funny – or controversial. Or to be theatrical. I take my cue from my nervous system. It’s almost like attending a seance where you try to contact the “other side”. It’s like being a child again and having that extraordinary window into the fantastic. I try to keep that open as much as possible. It’s very easy to forget what innocence is, and very hard to keep it alive in you.’ The Irish premiere of Salome sees the world premiere cast, including Irish soprano Amy Ní Fhearraigh as The Queen, reassemble in Dublin for a concert performance with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland as part of New Music Dublin – something Barry is clearly happy about. ‘They’re a great cast who really understood what was being asked of them and brought something extra to it. Concert performances are often more powerful than stagings, allowing audiences’ imaginations to fly where they want.’

↓ Gerald Barry Salome National Symphony Orchestra Ireland New Music Dublin Fri. 17 Apr. ’26 79

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— Gerald Barry

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New Music Dublin: Gerald Barry’s Salome with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Fri. 17 Apr. ’26—7.30pm Two renowned Irish wits reunite for Gerald Barry’s ‘surreal and fantastical’ take on Oscar Wilde’s Salome in its Irish premiere with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland. Barry’s subversive libretto, vivid orchestral writing and biting vocal lines treats Wilde’s Biblical tragedy of corrupted sexual desire, power and grotesque beauty as thrilling, absurdist farce. Presented as part of New Music Dublin Festival, this unmissable concert performance features the world premiere cast including Alison Scherzer, ‘ideal as a brittle, unflinching Salome’ (Opera Now), and the ‘captivating’ (Arts Review) Amy Ní Fhearraigh as the Queen. Jérôme Kuhn again conducts with ‘energy and precision’ (Classica). ‘Barry’s distinctive, high-energy musical language transforms [Wilde’s] dark and scandalous drama into a whirlwind of absurdity, sharp wit, and gripping intensity’ (Gramophone).

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Jérôme Kuhn conductor Alison Scherzer Salome Amy Ní Fhearraigh The Queen Timur The King Vincent Casagrande The Prisoner Stefan Sevenich The Young Syrian David Howes Soldier Gerald Barry Salome (concert performance) Irish Premiere Tickets: €30 all seats, unreserved See newmusicdublin.ie for full festival details in January 2026 Find out more. See: Spotlight: Gerald Barry Page 78

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— Carlos Ferreira

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National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Peter Whelan conducts Weber & Brahms Fri. 24 Apr. ’26—7.30pm National Symphony Orchestra Ireland’s new Artistic Partner, the ‘jaw-dropping’ (Arts Desk) Peter Whelan, makes his second appearance this season, joined by fast-emerging clarinettist, Carlos Ferreira, in his NSOI debut with Weber’s First Clarinet Concerto. Peter Whelan is one of the brightest new conducting talents, acclaimed for his ‘rich insight, style and charisma’ (The Guardian) and winning ‘exuberance’ (Gramophone). Principal Clarinet of Amsterdam’s Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and a European Concert Hall Organisation Rising Star, Carlos Ferreira’s magnetic playing is guaranteed to light up the operatic flair and blazing virtuosity of Weber’s concerto.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Peter Whelan conductor Carlos Ferreira clarinet Brahms Variations on a Theme of Joseph Haydn Weber Clarinet Concerto No. 1 Brahms Symphony No. 4 Tickets €15, €25, €29, €34.50, €39 Pre-Concert Talk: 6.15pm – 6.50pm Find out more. See: Spotlight: Peter Whelan Page 24

Brahms’s Variations on a Theme of Joseph Haydn is an orchestral tour de force with a masterfully grand finale. His Fourth Symphony blends Classical rigour with Romantic passion. 83

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— Peter and the Wolf

— The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra

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Family Concert Discover Peter and the Wolf & The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Presented by Jessie Grimes NCH Discover Artist-in-Residence Sun. 26 Apr. ’26—12.30pm, 3pm Embark on a captivating musical journey with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland in a delightful family concert. Be enchanted by Prokofiev’s beloved Peter and the Wolf, reimagined with shadow puppetry by Maeve Clancy and Neasa Ní Chuanaigh, bringing the story to life in a whole new light. Explore Britten’s masterful The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra as Jessie Grimes unveils the beauty and diversity of orchestral sounds. Under the baton of conductor Karen Ní Bhroin, this concert promises an immersive experience for all ages, blending storytelling, puppetry, and orchestral brilliance into a magical fusion of sight and sound. Find out more. See: Spotlight: Jessie Grimes Page 18

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Karen Ní Bhroin conductor Jessie Grimes presenter Maeve Clancy & Neasa Ní Chuanaigh shadow puppetry

Britten The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra Prokofiev Peter and the Wolf with shadow puppetry Tickets: Full Price: €30; Child €23; Family Tickets: €94 (4 tickets, maximum 2 adults); Restricted View: €15

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National Symphony Orchestra Ireland E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial in Concert Film with Live Orchestra Thurs. 30 Apr. ’26—7.30pm* Fri. 1 May ’26—7.30pm

Director Steven Spielberg’s heart-warming masterpiece is one of the brightest stars in motion picture history. Filled with unparalleled magic and imagination, E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial follows the moving story of a 10-year-old boy named Elliott who befriends a lost little alien. Experience all the mystery and fun of their unforgettable adventure in the beloved movie that captivated audiences around the world, complete with John Williams’ Academy Award®-winning score performed live by a full symphony orchestra in sync to the film projected on a huge HD screen!

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Jessica Cottis conductor Tickets: €15 (restricted view), €34.50, €44.50, €49.50 *Pre-Concert Talk: 6.15pm – 6.50pm

©A.M.P.A.S.® Film classification: PG

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Spotlight

Siobhán Cleary Siobhán Cleary’s decision to become a composer was a product of nature as much as nurture.

‘I grew up in a normal household where the radio was on a lot and though my parents didn’t actually play music themselves, my grandfather in Cavan was a keen traditional fiddler.’ Cleary was fortunate to be taught by a nun at school who had studied with Aloys Fleischmann and was herself a composer. With encouragement from the Sister, piano and singing lessons followed and from there formal studies in Maynooth University. All the while Cleary was ‘composing in my head but not thinking of myself as a composer’. In her early twenties, she emerged as part of a generation of young composers that promised to transform contemporary Irish music. ‘There was a number of us entering the scene at that time. There was a sense of optimism that things were progressing.’ While rock and pop music made their own impressions on the young

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composer-to-be, figures as diverse as Gerald Barry and Ennio Morricone became reference points in her early years composing. She cites Kaija Saariaho, Sofia Gubaidulina and Galina Ustvolskaya as more recent influences, adding ‘and traditional music was always there too’. Just as significant is her fascination with myths, drawn she says, ‘to their timelessness and their carrying something universal; they stand reinterpretation in every age and still remain relevant’. Myths often feed into Cleary’s music, not least in Canto, which she describes as ‘a tone poem and the most sustained of my single-movement pieces’. Commissioned by National Symphony Orchestra Ireland, it receives its world premiere this season with violinist Darragh Morgan as the soloist. Though setting a poem by the 19thcentury Italian poet Giacomo Leopardi, it’s a more recent Italian writer, Italo Calvino, Cleary quotes to explain her choice of text: ‘The ultimate meaning to which all stories refer has two faces: the continuity of life, the inevitability of death’. That dichotomy is very much present in Canto, composed in response to the death in 2024 of, and dedicated to, Cleary’s older sister, Eilish. ‘The image of the poem – a young woman sets out to meet her lover but is turned by fear of a storm into stone – would not let me go. I was able to pour myself into it, and the music flowed

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out. I’m lucky to have this outlet as a composer. It was emotionally difficult but the music came easily.’ The storm-laden world – ‘and you’ll hear the storm!’ – is summoned by the orchestra, the luckless young woman represented by the solo violin, the whole, Cleary says, ‘fragile at times, fighting the elements at times, and lamenting at times’, adding that the violin has ‘got its work cut out for it’. Canto reunites her with violinist Darragh Morgan (for whom she composed Will o’ the Wisp in 2023), of whom she approvingly comments: ‘He has a fantastic technique and a wealth of experience that includes some traditional music which gives his playing freedom – the slow passages sing, the fast passages are electric. I know he’ll perform it to his utmost’. In a world where words and their meaning are increasingly being bent out of shape and into their very opposites, music, says Cleary, ‘touches the areas that words don’t reach. I hope audiences feel something, anything at all, with Canto, but it’s not important they follow the story. I’m not trying to impose anything on them’.

↓ Siobhán Cleary Canto World Premiere National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Fri. 8 May ’26

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— Darragh Morgan

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National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Jessica Cottis conducts Tchaikovsky Four & Siobhán Cleary World Premiere Fri. 8 May ’26—7.30pm Acclaimed for her dynamic conducting, Jessica Cottis returns to National Symphony Orchestra Ireland with the ‘hugely impressive’ (The Strad) violinist Darragh Morgan for an evening bridging tradition and innovation. Darragh Morgan gives the world premiere of Canto, an evocative work composed for him by Siobhán Cleary. Dedicated to her late sister and inspired by the Italian philosopher-poet Giacomo Leopardi, it’s an ‘emotional journey shaped by love, fear, and the enduring impact of trauma’. Borrowing from Baroque dance forms and glossed with Norwegian folk accents and Grieg’s distinctive romanticism, his Holberg Suite charms with its elegance, buoyant rhythms and lyrical beauty.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Jessica Cottis conductor Darragh Morgan violin Grieg Holberg Suite Siobhán Cleary Canto World Premiere NSOI commission Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 4 Tickets €15, €25, €29, €34.50, €39 Pre-Concert Talk: 6.15pm – 6.50pm Find out more. See: Spotlight: Siobhán Cleary Page 88

Tchaikovsky’s impassioned Symphony No. 4 seethes and surges with dramatic emotional intensity from its baleful opening ‘fate’ motif through brooding darkness and playful asides to the life-affirming energy of its rousing finale. 91

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— Peter and the Wolf

— The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra

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Primary Schools Concert Discover Peter and the Wolf & The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Presented by Jessie Grimes NCH Discover Artist-in-Residence Tues. 12 May ’26—10.30am & 12.30pm Embark on a captivating musical journey with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland in this concert for primary school students. Be enchanted by Prokofiev’s beloved Peter and the Wolf, reimagined with shadow puppetry by Maeve Clancy and Neasa Ní Chuanaigh, bringing the story to life in a whole new light. Explore Britten’s masterful The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra as Jessie Grimes unveils the beauty and diversity of orchestral sounds. This concert for primary school students promises an immersive experience for all, blending storytelling, puppetry, and orchestral brilliance into a magical fusion of sight and sound.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Karen Ní Bhroin conductor Jessie Grimes presenter Maeve Clancy & Neasa Ní Chuanaigh shadow puppetry

Britten The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra Prokofiev Peter and the Wolf with shadow puppetry Tickets: Students: €10 Accompanying teachers go free. Find out more. See: Spotlight: Jessie Grimes Page 18

Designed for students of First Class and up.

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Spotlight

Hilary Hahn

Hilary Hahn is no ordinary violinist. That much was clear almost from the moment she first picked up the instrument weeks short of her fourth birthday. Aged 10, she became the youngest musician admitted to study at the prestigious Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, where she was taught by the venerable Jascha Brodsky.

The following year she made her professional debut with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and came to international attention with her first appearance in Germany with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra in 1995. Before the decade was out she had released her first CD and the die had been cast for what was to become one of the most significant and influential careers in classical music of the last quarter-century. The scholastic intensity that marked Hahn’s early performances has given way to a freer, more expressive interpretative approach that has illuminated afresh core repertoire pieces from Bach to Beethoven and Brahms, and all points beyond and in between.

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Having recently returned to performing after seven months away following a double pinched nerve injury, Hahn herself has determined the agenda for whatever lies ahead in her astonishing career: ‘I’m going to stay in every note and see what it wants me to do’. That aspiration whets the appetite for her National Concert Hall appearance with its Francophile focus on luxurious, open-hearted Violin Sonatas by Ravel, Debussy and Fauré, and Lili Boulanger’s exquisitely delicate Nocturne. But Hahn is also rooted in the here and now, as the many new works she has commissioned from the most diverse array of contemporary composers from Einojuhani Rautavaara and Mark-Anthony Turnage to Bun-Ching Lam and recent National Concert Hall Artist-in-Residence, Bryce Dessner, amply demonstrates.

Hahn’s ear always alert to the unfamiliar and the new, there is also the intriguing prospect of two Irish premieres: Chinese composer Bun-Ching Lam’s meditative Solitude d’Automne, and a new work by the eclectic, multi-award-winning French jazz violinist, Scott Tixier, for Hahn and her longtime collaborator, pianist Tom Poster.

Away from the concert platform, Hahn has won three Grammy Awards for her recordings, and is a supportive enthusiast for young musicians, giving countless masterclasses worldwide while also teaching at London’s Royal Academy of Music and New York’s Juilliard School. Her innovative #100DaysofPractice series on Instagram is fast approaching 500,000 followers.

↓ Hilary Hahn Thurs. 14 May ’26

But it is as a virtuoso violinist that Hahn is best known, conductor David Zinman appreciatively observing: ‘With Hilary, there is no façade. Every note is part of her soul. She plays with the mind of a soloist, the ears of a chamber musician, and the humility of an artist who serves the music’. 95

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— Hilary Hahn

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Hilary Hahn violin Tom Poster piano Thurs. 14 May ’26—8pm

‘[Hilary Hahn’s] golden-age richness and astonishing technique… have long made her a standout in a crowded field.’ (New York Times) The phenomenal, three-time Grammy Award-winning violinist Hilary Hahn makes an eagerly anticipated return for a characteristically imaginative evening spanning classical masterpieces, the unfamiliar, and the new. Pianist Tom Poster joins her for an evocative recital featuring treasured jewels of the French violin repertoire: Ravel’s lush Violin Sonata No. 2 and captivating Pièce en forme de Habanera, Lili Boulanger’s delicate Nocturne, Debussy’s introspective Violin Sonata, and Fauré’s intensely lyrical First Violin Sonata. Contemporary voices include the Irish premieres of Bun-Ching Lam’s contemplative Solitude d’Automne and a new duo work by five-time Grammy Awardwinner Scott Tixier.

Hilary Hahn violin Tom Poster piano Ravel Violin Sonata No. 2 Bun-Ching Lam Solitude d’Automne Irish Premiere Lili Boulanger Nocturne Ravel Pièce en forme de Habanera Debussy Violin Sonata Scott Tixier New Work Irish Premiere Fauré Violin Sonata No. 1 Tickets €15, €28.50, €36, €44, €55 Pre-Concert Talk: 6.45pm - 7.20pm Find out more. See: Spotlight: Hilary Hahn Page 94

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— John O’Conor

— Lina Gonzáles-Granados

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National Symphony Orchestra Ireland John O’Conor plays Beethoven Fri. 15 May ’26—7.30pm John O’Conor, ‘the world’s premier Beethoven interpreter’ (CD Review) joins forces with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland and the ‘increasingly in-demand’ (Chicago Tribune) conductor Lina Gonzáles-Granados for Beethoven’s spirited Piano Concerto No. 1 in a must-hear concert including Sibelius’s Second Symphony and the Irish premiere of Saariaho’s Ciel d’hiver. John O’Conor’s ‘world-class virtuosity’ (Gramophone) in Beethoven guarantees a memorable reading of the bold and daring, lyrical and introspective First Piano Concerto. Sibelius’s Second Symphony spins a simple three-note motif into sweeping, organic melodies. Its heroic finale and evocative Nordic atmosphere have made it a symbol of Finnish spirit and resilience.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Lina Gonzáles-Granados conductor

John O’Conor piano Kaija Saariaho Ciel d’hiver Irish Premiere Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 1 Sibelius Symphony No. 2 Tickets €15, €26.50, €33, €39, €45 Pre-Concert Talk: 6.15pm – 6.50pm Find out more. See: Spotlight: Kaija Saariaho & Gabriela Ortiz Page 38

Saariaho’s Ciel d’hiver evokes the chilled sweep and breadth of the Winter Sky of its title against the rise and fall of constellations in luminous, celestial orchestration. 99

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— Baiba Skride

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National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Jonas Alber conducts Mahler Five Fri. 29 May ’26—7.30pm The shimmering intensity of Britten’s Violin Concerto meets the sweeping drama of Mahler’s majestic Symphony No. 5 as in-demand conductor Jonas Alber and celebrated violinist Baiba Skride make welcome returns to National Symphony Orchestra Ireland for two essential masterpieces.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland

Marking the imminent 50th anniversary of Britten’s death, his concerto is a searing exploration of conflict and longing, with virtuosic solo passages and poignant lyricism culminating in a mesmerising finale. Baiba Skride’s recording of the work was lauded for its ‘melting beauty, propulsive energy and muscular anguish’ (The Strad).

Pre-Concert Talk: 6.15pm – 6.50pm

Jonas Alber conductor Baiba Skride violin Britten Violin Concerto Mahler Symphony No. 5 Tickets €15, €26.50, €33, €39, €45

Intensely poetic, deeply personal, Mahler’s Fifth Symphony is a love letter in music, an extended serenade in one long hypnotic breath. Its beating heart is the sublime Adagietto memorably heard in the iconic film, Death in Venice. 101

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Spotlight

Angélique Kidjo

How best to describe the uncategorisable phenomenon that is Angélique Kidjo?

That she is the recipient of five Grammy Awards – music’s Oscars – and the first Black African performer to receive a star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame, a winner of the Polar Music Prize, and named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine says much about the esteem she is held in. But those achievements merely gloss the remarkable and trailblazing career – now in its fifth decade – of a charismatic, supremely talented performer whose reach has extended to all four corners of the world and well beyond music. Born in then French Dahomey, now Benin, in West Africa, she inherited her musician-father and choreographermother’s taste for performing. By the age of six she was appearing with her

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Fluent in five languages, she sings in all of them. She’s just as eloquent musically, effortlessly blending traditional West African sounds and contemporary Afropop and Afrobeat with American R&B, funk, jazz, Latin and myriad other influences. It’s in her native Yoruba language that Kidjo sings the three Ifè Songs based on African creation myths set by Philip Glass to her own lyrics. What results is a compelling, multi-cultural fusion of time-honoured African heritage, primal universal themes, and one of the most iconoclastic composers of our age.

mother’s theatre troupe. As a teenager she sang with her brothers’ rock and R&B band. With rising political tensions at home, in 1983 she moved to Paris, immersing herself in the city’s vibrant, multicultural music scene. The experience left an indelible impression. Kidjo’s breakthrough album, 1991’s Logos, featured American jazz saxophone icon Branford Marsalis and African artists Manu Dibango and Ray Lema to set the genre-colliding template for all that followed. Nearly 20 albums later, Kidjo is an international superstar who has been variously hailed as ‘Africa’s premier Diva’ and, tributing her inheritance of the late and legendary Miriam Makeba’s mantle, the ‘New Mama Africa’.

Hearing Kidjo perform the songs for the first time, Glass sent an appreciative message to her: ‘Angelique, together we have built a bridge that no one has walked on before’. Kidjo is an inveterate bridge builder. An active campaigner advocating for women’s rights, children’s education, and social justice, she is also a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, OXFAM Ambassador, and founder of the Batonga Foundation which supports the education of young girls in Africa. So, how best to describe Angélique Kidjo? The truth is that she simply defies description.

↓ Angélique Kidjo Philip Glass Explored National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Fri. 5 Jun. ’26 103

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— Angélique Kidjo

— Dennis Russell Davies

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National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Philip Glass Explored with Dennis Russell Davies & Angélique Kidjo Fri. 5 Jun. ’26—7.30pm

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland’s two-concert focus on Philip Glass begins with the composer’s most authoritative interpreter, conductor Dennis Russell Davies, and charismatic force of nature with a show-stopping voice, Angélique Kidjo. Hailed ‘Africa’s premier diva’ by Time magazine, multi-Grammy Award-winner Kidjo’s groundbreaking career has made her one of the most influential African artists of her generation. Glass’s own website declares ‘perhaps no person is closer to Philip Glass’s music-making than conductor Dennis Russell Davies’. Three Irish premieres include two mesmerising passages from Akhnaten; the Ifè Songs composed for Angélique Kidjo setting African creation poems and sung in her native Yoruba; and Symphony No. 8, treating orchestral sections to virtuoso writing as daring as it is beautiful.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Dennis Russell Davies conductor Angélique Kidjo voice Philip Glass Prelude and Dance (‘The City’) from Akhnaten Irish Premiere Ifè Songs Irish Premiere Symphony No. 8 Irish Premiere Tickets €15, €25, €29, €34.50, €39 Find out more. See: Spotlight: Voices from America Page 52 Spotlight: Angélique Kidjo Page 102

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— Maki Namekawa

— Dennis Russell Davies

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National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Philip Glass Explored with Dennis Russell Davies & Maki Namekawa Sat. 6 Jun. ’26—7.30pm

Two of Philip Glass’s most distinguished champions – conductor Dennis Russell Davies and pianist Maki Namekawa – return to conclude National Symphony Orchestra Ireland’s focus on one of the most unique and distinctive voices in American contemporary music with three Irish premieres. Glass has praised Dennis Russell Davies as ‘one of the world’s most inventive conductors’. He reunites with Glass specialist and muse, Maki Namekawa, to reprise their acclaimed 2023 world premiere of the Mishima Piano Concerto for its Irish debut. Crafted from the haunting soundtrack to the 1985 film, it retains its hypnotic, cinematic qualities while giving the piano a central, virtuosic role.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Dennis Russell Davies conductor Maki Namekawa piano Philip Glass The Light Irish premiere Interlude from The Voyage Irish premiere Piano Concerto, ‘Mishima’ Irish Premiere Tickets €15, €25, €29, €34.50, €39 Find out more. See Spotlight: Voices from America Page 52

The Light, Glass’s first score for a full symphony orchestra, and the Interlude from his opera, The Voyage, also receive Irish premieres. 107

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Spotlight

Sir Simon Rattle

Sir Simon Rattle was not yet out of his teens when his success in the John Player International Conducting Competition in 1974 announced a startling new conducting talent.

Fast forward five decades and Rattle has long out-lived the contest that brought him to attention, recognised and renowned now around the world as a conductor without compare for his reach and insights on the podium, his reimagining of the core repertoire, his championing of new music, and as a staunch advocate for music education. Born in 1955 in a Liverpool soon to become music’s focal point as The Beatles ushered in and defined the 1960s, the teenage Rattle’s own love of music took him in a different direction, studying piano and violin, and playing percussion with the Merseyside (now Liverpool Philharmonic) Youth Orchestra. His competition success – in the year he graduated from the Royal Academy of Music – led to his appointments

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as Assistant Conductor of the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and, from there, back home to the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic. Aged 21, he made his BBC Proms debut conducting the London Sinfonietta. The following year he became the youngest ever Principal Conductor of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, spending 18 years there to transform the orchestra’s – and his own – fortunes. Such was Rattle’s impact on British classical music that the conductorcomposer Kenneth Woods, looking back on the period, seemed to compare him with his Liverpudlian peers, The Beatles, hailing him ‘a pop star who replaced the stuffy old maestro’. He proved equally transformative as Chief Conductor of the venerable Berlin Philharmonic, the most soughtafter job in classical music, from 2002-2018, and as Music Director of the London Symphony Orchestra from 2017-2024. More recent appointments include Chief Conductor of the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and Principal Guest Conductor of the Czech Philharmonic. Put alongside all of that more than 100 recordings that have included landmark accounts of Mahler, Brahms, Bruckner and Stravinsky together with significant premieres by Thomas Adès, Mark-Anthony Turnage, Jörg Widmann and others, and Rattle can readily claim to have been at the centre and the forefront of classical music over the past half-century.

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His association with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment dates back to its founding in 1986, when he conducted Mozart’s Idomeneo with the period instrument ensemble. In 1992 he was made its Principal Guest Conductor. He returns now to the National Concert Hall in the orchestra’s 40th year as its Principal Artist with violist Timothy Ridout for two masterpieces by Berlioz, a composer who has long fascinated Rattle, drawn to music he describes as ‘seething with drama’. Inspired by Lord Byron’s poetry and commissioned by the virtuoso soloist Niccolò Paganini, Harold in Italy depicts the various encounters of a wandering ‘melancholy dreamer’ (voiced by the viola) on his lonely travels in the Italian mountains. The Symphonie fantastique, a feverish, opium-laced phantasmagoria of love pursued but always out of reach, shows Berlioz, says Rattle, as a ‘determined innovator and quintessential Romantic’.

↓ Sir Simon Rattle Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment Thurs. 11 Jun. ’26

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— Sir Simon Rattle

— Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment

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SPRING/SUMMER ‘26

Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment with Sir Simon Rattle Symphonie fantastique Thurs. 11 Jun. ’26—8pm

‘[Sir Simon] Rattle lifts orchestras to soaring heights with his infectious energy and meticulous attention to detail.’ (Gramophone) Arguably the world’s most famous conductor, Sir Simon Rattle reimagines two symphonic masterpieces by Berlioz with the internationally renowned period-instrument Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and Timothy Ridout, acclaimed by Le Monde as being ‘in the very closed circle of great violists’. Harold in Italy is awash with unforgettable orchestral colour and incident, the expressive solo viola a ‘melancholic dreamer’ traversing mountains, encountering pilgrims and a bandits’ orgy along the way.

Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment Sir Simon Rattle conductor Timothy Ridout viola Berlioz Harold in Italy Berlioz Symphonie fantastique Tickets €15, €39, €60, €74, €95 Pre-Concert Talk: 6.45pm - 7.20pm Find out more. See Spotlight: Sir Simon Rattle Page 108

Infatuated by the Irish actress Harriet Smithson, Berlioz poured his desire for her into the Symphonie fantastique, a whirlwind ride through opium-fuelled visions culminating in a grotesque march to the hangman’s scaffold and a demonic Witches’ Sabbath. 111

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— Stephanie Childress

— National Symphony Chorus Ireland

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SPRING/SUMMER ‘26

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Season Finale Julia Wolfe, Rachmaninov & John Adams Fri. 19 Jun. ’26—7.30pm A sensational Season Finale offers two defining contemporary American voices, Pulitzer Prize winners Julia Wolfe and John Adams, framing an iconic Romantic masterpiece. National Symphony Orchestra Ireland partners with the ‘seriously exciting’ (Operissima) Stephanie Childress, ‘astonishing’ (International Piano) Nicolas Namoradze, and National Symphony Chorus Ireland. Julia Wolfe’s Pretty is ‘a raucous celebration… inspired by the distortion and reverberation of rock and roll’. John Adams’ Harmonium is a resounding choral symphony inspired by the poetry of John Donne and Emily Dickinson. Minimalist rhythmic pulses, shifting harmonies and dramatic text settings fuse into a mesmerising journey through love, mortality and ecstatic release. Nicolas Namoradze is the soloist for Rachmaninov’s passionate Second Piano Concerto, its aching Adagio made famous by David Lean’s film, Brief Encounter.

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland Stephanie Childress conductor Nicolas Namoradze piano

National Symphony Chorus Ireland David Young chorus director Julia Wolfe Pretty Irish Premiere Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No. 2 John Adams Harmonium Tickets €15, €25, €29, €34.50, €39 Find out more. See: Spotlight: Voices from America Page 52

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Tickets & Booking Prices & Discounts NCH Friends

Multi-buy Packages

— 18+ concerts. Save 25%. — Individual concerts. Save 10%.

— Discounts of up to 25% on Multi-buy Packages. — Group discounts: — 10% discount when purchasing 10-39 tickets. — 20% discount when purchasing 40+ tickets.

General Pricing — Tickets from €15. — Student tickets: €10. (Limited availability) — Children and Under-18 tickets: a limited number of free child tickets for under-18s are available when purchased with a full-price ticket. — Family-Friendly price options for family concerts. — Concession discounts for all performances as noted below. Please note: only 1 discount applies at any one time.

— Persons with Disability and Carer: 50% discount. Please note. Wheelchair spaces must be reserved at time of ticket purchase. Subject to availability. Early booking advised.

— Senior Citizens and Unwaged: 5% discount.

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Multi-buy Options Buy

Discount

5–10 concerts

10%

11–17 concerts

15%

18+ concerts

20%

NCH Friends 18+

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SPRING/SUMMER ʼ26

Booking How to Book

When to Book

Online www.nch.ie

NCH Patrons and NCH Season Friends Friday 24 October, 10am

Phone NCH Box Office: +353 (0)1 417 0000 Opening Hours Monday to Friday, 10am – 2pm In Person NCH Box Office Opening Hours: Monday to Friday, 10am – 6pm and 2 hours prior to Main Stage evening concerts NCH Friends Dedicated Booking Line +353 (0)1 408 6777 NCH Friends Membership Office +353 (0)1 417 0067 friends@nch.ie

NCH Friends Wednesday 29 October, 10am General Bookers & Groups Friday 31 October, 10am

Ticket Exchange The NCH understands that plans regarding concert attendance can change. We are happy to offer all package buyers the opportunity to exchange their ticket(s) to another event in the NCH Spring/Summer 2026 period. See nch.ie for terms and conditions.

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Choir Balcony

Organ

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Green Side Balcony

Red Side Balcony

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Thank You to our Corporate and Individual Supporters We would like to acknowledge with appreciation and gratitude the generous support of our Corporate Partners, Corporate Members, Patrons, John Field Society Members and Friends.

Programme Partners

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Corporate Members — Ovation

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Friends, Season Friends & Supporting Friends

Please get in touch with a member of the Partnerships & Philanthropy Team to learn more and find out how you can support your National Concert Hall today: Aisling Kennedy Corporate Development Executive aisling.kennedy@nch.ie: Emmet McSwiney Individual Giving Executive emmet.mcswiney@nch.ie

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