Announcing the 2026 Winter Season, featuring Benjamin Beilman in concert with Alasdair Neale and Festival Musicians

The Sun Valley Music Festival announced today its eighth Winter Season, March 19-21, 2026. The 2026 Winter Season features guest curator and violinist Benjamin Beilman. Praised for his passionate performances and distinctive tone — which The New York Times described as  “muscular with a glint of violence” — Mr. Beilman last performed with Music Director Alasdair Neale and the Festival Orchestra in 2018, playing Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E Minor. An accomplished chamber musician, he’ll join forces with Festival Orchestra musicians in a program featuring Aaron Copland’s Appalachian Spring Suite and John Adams’s Road Movies, as well as Vivaldi’s popular Four Seasons. Mr. Beilman will open each program with a piece for solo violin called Sanguineum, which was written for him by the composer Gabriella Smith.

“I’m thrilled to welcome back Benjamin Beilman to the Music Festival, this time as both performer in and curator of the Winter Season’s program. He is an immensely versatile and thoughtful musician who is as comfortably at home in the 18th century as he is in the 21st, as you’ll see from the fascinating and varied program he’s assembled.” – Music Director Alasdair Neale

The program will be performed each of the three evenings, March 19, 20, and 21, 2026. The concerts will take place at the Argyros Performing Arts Center in Ketchum, starting at 7:00 PM (the Argyros lobby opens at 6:00 PM, and doors open at 6:30 PM). The concerts are about two hours long, including an intermission. As always, admission is free, but reservations are required. Information on attending winter performances is below.

On Wednesday, March 18, 2026, at 5:30 PM, the Music Festival will present “Upbeat with Alasdair” featuring Alasdair Neale and Benjamin Beilman in conversation. The event will be held at The Community Library in Ketchum and livestreamed on the Music Festival’s website. Reservations to attend will open to the public through The Community Library’s calendar on Wednesday, March 4, 2026, at 9:00 AM (Mountain Time). Also, during the week, Mr. Beilman and Winter Festival musicians will interact with local students, offering demonstrations, coaching, and master classes.

WINTER SEASON ADMISSION IS FREE, BUT SPACE IS LIMITED AND RESERVATIONS ARE REQUIRED:

• • Concert reservations are limited to two per household for one of the three performances.
  • Public concert reservations begin Wednesday, February 18, 2026, at 9:00 AM (Mountain Time) online at svmusicfestival.org.
  • Festival donors at the Patron ($6,000) level and up may make concert reservations early, beginning Wednesday, February 11, 2026, at 9:00 AM (Mountain Time), by calling the Festival office at 208.622.5607.
  • Upbeat with Alasdair reservations open to the public through The Community Library’s calendar at https://thecommunitylibrary.libcal.com/event/15583152 on Wednesday, March 4, 2026, at 9:00 AM (Mountain Time).

 

For the latest news and information on the Sun Valley Music Festival and Winter Season, including reservations and details on attending, visit the Festival website at svmusicfestival.org or sign up for e-news at svmusicfestival.org/subscribe.