Featuring timeless masterpieces, world premieres, and new Australian works by brilliant contemporary voices performed by classical music’s finest international and homegrown artists, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra has revealed its 2025 Season.
In 2025, the Orchestra will present 44 concert programs, featuring 17 Australian and 37 international artists from 18 different countries, 11 Sydney Symphony debuts, 10 programs showcasing Australian works, and seven world premieres in a season that forges new connections and welcomes back old friends.
“Music is all about connection. In 2025, we invite you to delve deeper into this extraordinary music as we reconnect with great works and great artists and make new connections with rising stars and less familiar masterpieces. 2025 promises to be a year of extraordinary excitement and richness,” said Sydney Symphony Orchestra’s Chief Conductor, Simone Young.
In her fourth season as Chief Conductor, Simone Young leads the Orchestra in six major programs, opening the season with Mahler’s unforgettable Third Symphony (19 – 22 February), and concluding it with Beethoven’s beloved Ninth alongside the premiere of a new commission by acclaimed First Nations composer William Barton (26 – 29 November).
In March Young explores lesser-known works by great composers including Elgar and Vaughan Williams (28 February – 2 March), and in September leads an exploration of the music of Richard Strauss (3 – 6 September).
The Sydney Symphony’s multi-year Ring Cycle in concert continues in November with Young leading the Orchestra in the third instalment of Wagner’s epic musical drama, Siegfried. In July this year, Young became the first Australian and first woman to lead the Ring Cycle at the internationally renowned Bayreuth Festival in Germany.
Throughout the season, the superb talents of the world’s greatest artists will be on full display, as the Orchestra reunites with superstar pianists Lang Lang, Daniil Trifonov, Sir Stephen Hough, Jean-Efflam Bavouzet and Javier Perianes; celebrated violinists James Ehnes and Arabella Steinbacher; and revered cellist Daniel Müller-Schott.
New connections are formed as 11 artists make their Sydney Symphony debuts, from established stars such as Marc-André Hamelin, Edward Gardner, Tomáš Netopil, Sasha Cooke, Lise de la Salle and Akiko Suwanai, to the new generation of talent including Kian Soltani, Daniel Lozakovich, Eva Gevorgyan, Finnegan Downie Dear and Roderick Cox.
The Sydney Symphony Orchestra’s Principal Guest Conductor Sir Donald Runnicles returns to conduct four programs including works by Mendelssohn (4 – 7 June), Strauss & Beethoven (13 – 14 June), Sibelius & Wagner (18 – 20 September), and Shostakovich’s beloved Fifth Symphony (12 – 14 September).
The Sydney Symphony Orchestra has also announced that Australian conductor and long-term collaborator Benjamin Northey has been appointed Conductor in Residence for the 2025 and 2026 seasons. This new role with see Northey supports the Orchestra’s Schools, Emerging Artists, and Regional Touring programs alongside the development of Australian conductors.
For more information about Sydney Symphony’s 2025 Season and subscription packages, visit: www.sydneysymphony.com for details.
Image: Simone Young AM – photo by Peter Brew-Bevan