It was in a spirit of openness and sharing that the Philharmonie Luxembourg presented its new 2025-2026 season, featuring several members of the team, along with many enthusiasts and specialists, who detailed their approach to this new programming.
The season will begin with one of today’s most prestigious symphony orchestras, the Berliner Philharmoniker, performing Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No 9. Other big names include the musicians of Teatro alla Scala (Riccardo Chailly) and the conductor Sir Simon Rattle in his return to Luxembourg. The great violinists Anne-Sophie Mutter and Leonidas Kavakos and pianist Martha Argerich will also be in attendance. This year’s artists-in-residence are the violinist and conductor Renaud Capuçon, the pianist, organist, conductor and composer Kit Armstrong and Michael Wollny, a free-spirited figure in European jazz.
An unprecedented season for the OPL
For the first time in its history, the Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg will be without an artistic director, as Gustavo Gimeno has completed his mandate. , will not officially arrive until October 2026. However, this year will not be a quiet one for the OPL. Far from it: it’s an opportunity for the orchestra to work with prestigious guests such as Sir John Eliot Gardiner, Tugan Sokhiev, Paavo Järi, Leopold Hager, Daniele Rustioni and Robin Ticciati. In this context, the musicians are invited to become more autonomous and to assert their own voices, in a spirit of greater freedom, but also with more challenges. The public will therefore find them in symphonic form at the Philharmonie, but also in the pit of the Grand Théâtre or active in educational projects. This season, however, will see Rajna at the podium as he conducts Strauss’ Ein Heldenleben on 27 March and will be on stage for the outdoor summer concerts at Kinnekswiss.
Not just classical music
But the Philharmonie Luxembourg is not just about classical music. The programme gives pride of place to contemporary and world music. Nick Cave returns for two dates that are sure to be very popular. The artist Camille will take to the stage (after a concert cancelled last season and postponed this season). Gast Waltzing brings together an exceptional lineup including Angélique Kidjo, Dobet Gnahoré and Kyle Eastwood.
There will be a special focus on film music this year, with three ciné-concerts dedicated to the films of Alfred Hitchcock, the project In Dreams: David Lynch Revisited or the music of Alexandre Desplat (Grand Budapest Hotel, Godzilla, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows...).
A cycle of concerts is devoted to Indian music is also planned, with--amongst others--a tribute to Zakir Hussain, a performance of the multimedia project Rites of Holi by Vijay Iyer and Prashant Bhargava or a concert by the bewitching singer Anoushka Shankar.
Festival Atlantico’s ninth edition will focus on emerging music talent from Portuguese-speaking countries such as Leo Middea, Bia Ferreira and the Luxembourg-based Carisa Dias.
Work begins
This season will also see the launch of . Estimated to last two years, this construction work should not have too much impact on concerts, as the work will take place during the day and the performances in the evening. Eventually, the Philharmonie will be able to benefit from more space, with a new multi-purpose hall, a restaurant with a terrace, a lounge area and a new, more comfortable canteen for orchestras and teams.
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This article was originally published in .