Beijing Music Festival 2026: Anoushka Shankar, Mozart and 12 October performances

Beijing’s 29th Music Festival will bring 12 performances to the city from 9 to 20 October 2026, with programmes ranging from Mozart and Handel to Indian sitar, contemporary crossover and symphonic rock.

The festival is spread across the National Centre for the Performing Arts, the Central Opera House, Poly Theatre and Zhongshan Park Music Hall. Ticket prices for the main programme run from RMB 80 to RMB 1,080, depending on the performance and seat.

What stands out in the 2026 programme

The opening concert takes place at the National Centre for the Performing Arts at 19:30 on Friday 9 October. Charles Dutoit conducts the Beijing Music Festival Orchestra, with pianist Elisabeth Leonskaja, in Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 22 and Respighi’s Roman Trilogy. Tickets are listed at RMB 100 to RMB 880.

Mozart’s The Magic Flute follows at the Central Opera House at 19:30 on 10 October and 15:00 on 11 October. The new production brings together Opera Hong Kong, State Opera South Australia, the Beijing Music Festival and the Central Opera House. Tickets range from RMB 180 to RMB 880.

The London Philharmonic Orchestra appears at the National Centre for the Performing Arts on 12 and 13 October, conducted by Edward Gardner. The first programme includes Mozart arias sung by baritone Liao Changyong alongside Mendelssohn’s “Scottish” Symphony and Mozart’s Symphony No. 40. Tickets for both concerts are listed at RMB 180 to RMB 1,080.

Anoushka Shankar brings the festival beyond the classical canon

Sitar player and composer Anoushka Shankar performs with Arun Kumar Ghosh on clarinet and keys, Thomas Walter Farmer on double bass, and Sarathy Ashok Korwar on drums and percussion at Poly Theatre at 19:30 on Wednesday 14 October.

The official programme lists material from Shankar’s recent work as well as Ravi Shankar’s “Fire Night” and “Traces of You”, her collaboration with Norah Jones. The 72-minute concert has no interval. Tickets are RMB 100, 280, 380, 680 and 880. Children under 1.2 metres are not admitted; taller children need their own ticket.

Shankar’s own tour schedule confirms the Beijing date between performances at Blue Note Tokyo and the Shanghai Oriental Art Center. It is the clearest world-music entry point in a festival otherwise centred on opera, orchestral repertoire and chamber music.

Opera, chamber music and a rock finale

Other main-programme dates include a chamber concert at the National Centre for the Performing Arts on 15 October, violinist Ning Feng playing all five Mozart violin concertos at Zhongshan Park Music Hall on 16 October, and a semi-staged performance of Handel’s Giulio Cesare at Poly Theatre on 18 October.

The closing concert on 20 October pairs the Beijing Symphony Orchestra with pianist Ju Xiaofu and Chinese rock musician Cui Jian. The programme moves from Leopold Mozart and Chopin to symphonic arrangements of Cui’s songs. Tickets are RMB 100 to RMB 880.

Tickets, booking and public events

The festival’s official programme lists all 12 performances with dates, venues and prices. Individual event pages link to the authorised booking route, and availability can change as each venue sells its allocation.

The organisers also plan more than 20 public activities, including open opera rehearsals, masterclasses, youth performances, markets and pop-up events. Some details and booking arrangements have not yet been published in full, so check the festival site before travelling.

The National Centre for the Performing Arts is beside Tian’anmen West station on Beijing Subway Line 1. Poly Theatre is connected to Dongsishitiao station on Line 2, while Zhongshan Park Music Hall is inside Zhongshan Park near Tian’anmen West. Allow extra time for security checks and venue entry.

Key dates at a glance

• 9 October, 19:30: Opening concert, NCPA Concert Hall, RMB 100–880
• 10 October, 19:30 and 11 October, 15:00: The Magic Flute, Central Opera House, RMB 180–880
• 12–13 October, 19:30: London Philharmonic Orchestra, NCPA Concert Hall, RMB 180–1,080
• 14 October, 19:30: Anoushka Shankar and Friends, Poly Theatre, RMB 100–880
• 18 October, 19:30: Handel’s Giulio Cesare, Poly Theatre, RMB 100–880
• 20 October, 19:30: Closing concert with Cui Jian, NCPA Concert Hall, RMB 100–880

Programme checked 4 October 2026 Beijing time. Details and ticket availability may change.

Featured image: Anoushka Shankar performing at Rudolstadt Festival in 2016. Photograph © Harald Krichel, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons. The image is an archive performance photograph, not the 2026 Beijing concert.