The opening concert, scheduled for October 2, will include Szymanowski’s Stabat Mater and Veni Creator, Bacewicz's Cello Concerto No. 2 with German-French cellist Nicolas Altstaedt as soloist, and Kilar’s Krzesany.
The orchestra will perform under the baton of its music and artistic director, Krzysztof Urbański, who told a news conference that the coming season would feature a distinguished roster of guest conductors, including Marc Minkowski, Charles Dutoit and Mikhail Pletnev.
Among the season's highlights are appearances by the BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Sakari Oramo and the Mahler Chamber Orchestra under Sir Simon Rattle.
Fans of piano music will have the chance to hear Leif Ove Andsnes in a recital marking the bicentenary of Ludwig van Beethoven’s death, as well as Igor Levit, Grigory Sokolov, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Paul Lewis, Arcadi Volodos, Tianyao Lyu, Ingrid Fliter, Alexander Melnikov and Peter Jablonski.
Other guest performers will include cellist Steven Isserlis, violinists Simone Lamsma, María Dueñas and Leila Josefowicz, violist Timothy Ridout, clarinetist Martin Fröst and flautist Emmanuel Pahud.
Vocal recitals will feature German soprano Diana Damrau and Polish countertenor Jakub Józef Orliński.
The Warsaw Philharmonic is set to mark the 50th anniversary of the death of British composer Benjamin Britten with performances of his War Requiem, conducted by Charles Dutoit, and the cantata Saint Nicolas with tenor Ian Bostridge and Paul Goodwin on the conductor’s podium.
Urbański told the media he would conduct the Warsaw Philharmonic in an upcoming Deutsche Grammophon recording of Chopin’s Piano Concertos, with Canadian-Polish pianist Jan Lisiecki as soloist.
The orchestra is also scheduled to tour Amsterdam and Turin in March next year.
Alongside its regular concert programme, the Warsaw Philharmonic will continue its educational and outreach initiatives for children and young audiences.
The 2026/2027 season will be the 125th in the orchestra's history. The Warsaw Philharmonic gave its inaugural concert on November 5, 1901.
(mk/gs)