Sun Valley Music Festival Announces 42nd Summer Season: July 27-August 20, 2026

The largest privately funded, admission-free classical music festival in the United States presents four weeks of world-class performances this summer in a beautiful outdoor alpine setting, featuring the Festival’s all-star orchestra led by Music Director Alasdair Neale.

Renowned guest artists include the American Festival Chorus, baritone Benjamin Appl, pianist Alexander Malofeev, soprano Christina Pier, violinist Gil Shaham, and pianist Orion Weiss.

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Sun Valley, Idaho—January 28, 2026—The Sun Valley Music Festival proudly announces its 42nd season, from July 27 to August 20, at the Sun Valley Pavilion, in the beautiful, natural surroundings of Sun Valley—the country’s original destination ski resort. Curated by Music Director Alasdair Neale, the 2026 summer season will feature the all-star Festival Orchestra—the finest musicians from orchestras throughout North America—performing with world-renowned guest artists including pianists Alexander Malofeev and Orion Weiss, violinist Gil Shaham, baritone Benjamin Appl, soprano Christina Pier, and the American Festival Chorus directed by Craig Jessop.

“I’m so excited about the lineup of works and artists for the season ahead,” commented Music Director Alasdair Neale. “From a brand-new commissioned work by Anna Clyne to a Pops Night celebration of the Great American Songbook, there truly is something for everyone. The orchestra shows its mettle in such symphonic classics as Mahler’s First Symphony and Elgar’s Enigma Variations. And last but not least there’s Brahms’s A German Requiem, sure to be a moving highlight of the season.”

The music
In its 42nd season, the Music Festival welcomes back acclaimed pianist Orion Weiss for a pair of concerts. Widely regarded as a “brilliant pianist” (The New York Times) with a “powerful technique and exceptional insight” (The Washington Post), Weiss will open the Music Festival’s Summer Season with Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 1.

Grammy-award winning violinist Gil Shaham also returns for two programs—in the first he’ll offer Barber’s Violin Concerto; in the second, he’ll collaborate with Festival Orchestra musicians to perform Beethoven’s String Quintet in A Major, “Kreutzer.” Acclaimed pianist Alexander Malofeev—who “manifests the piano mastery of the new millennium in itself” (Il Giornale)—makes his Sun Valley debut playing Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 3.

Conductor Stephanie Childress returns for a fourth season to lead two programs, including Elgar’s Enigma Variations and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 1, and Euan Shields joins the Festival as Associate Conductor, conducting Ravel’s Rapsodie espagnole and Thomas Adès’s “Inferno” from Dante.

Major orchestra repertoire includes Brahms’s A German Requiem featuring soprano Christina Pier, baritone Benjamin Appl, and the American Festival Chorus, as well as Mahler’s titanic Symphony No. 1 in the season finale. All concerts are offered free of charge, with ample seating inside the Sun Valley Pavilion and on the lawn, featuring a state-of-the-art big screen and sound system.

Education Programs: Sun Valley Music Festival Music Institute
In addition to presenting first-rate classical music performances, the Sun Valley Music Festival is dedicated to bringing the joy of music into young people’s lives. Now in its 28th year, the Festival’s Music Institute provides year-round music education programs for students of all abilities, from second graders to college undergraduates. This summer, students in grades 2-12 can attend programs for most orchestral instruments, voice and piano from August 3 to 7. College undergraduates and exceptional high school students studying piano, strings and voice can participate in the Advanced Chamber Program from July 27 to August 8. Students hone their skills and work on select pieces with Festival musicians, conductors, and guest artists—including Stephanie Childress, Orion Weiss, Christina Pier, and Benjamin Appl—and attend orchestra rehearsals and concerts. Their experience culminates with an opportunity to perform on the Sun Valley Pavilion stage. Thanks to the generosity of Music Festival donors, students pay only nominal registration and materials fees. More information about education programs, including registration (which is now open), can be found at svmusicfestival.org/summer-programs.

How to attend
Summer concerts offer an exciting social experience, where people from all walks of life can enjoy music together—for free. While some seats in the Pavilion may be reserved in advance by donors at certain levels, great admission-free seats are always available to the public both in the Pavilion and on the lawn. For concert dates, details, and updates, please visit svmusicfestival.org or subscribe to the Festival’s e-news at svmusicfestival.org/subscribe.

Details about the fundraising Gala will be announced in February. This concert is the only ticketed event of the year; sales help keep the rest of the concerts admission-free.