Eurovision Classical Concerts – the first new Eurovision music co-production with the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) since Eurovision Young Musicians first aired in 1982 – is to launch on BBC TV in February 2026.
The series celebrates four versatile ensembles – the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, WDR Symphony Orchestra, Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Gulbenkian Orchestra – in repertoire designed to highlight their individual identities.
Filmed at Aviva Studios in Manchester, Grande Auditório in Lisbon, Philharmonie in Cologne and The Music House in Helsinki, the four performances will be broadcast on BBC Four and iPlayer and offered to all 113 EBU Member organisations across 56 countries, to a potential audience of millions.
Suzy Klein, head of BBC Arts and Classical Music TV, said:
'BBC Arts is delighted to be partnering with some of the leading broadcasters of the EBU, joining forces to present some of the great classical ensembles of Europe. Together, we wanted to show how richly talented these orchestras are, and to present them side by side under the banner of our shared vision of public service broadcasting.'
When and where will Eurovision Classical Concerts take place?
Dates are subject to change...
BBC Broadcast: 8 February 2026
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, Ben Gernon (conductor); Aviva Studios, Manchester, United Kingdom
John Adams A short ride in a fast machine
Tchaikovsky Swan Lake - selection
Vaughan Williams Fantasia on Greensleeves
Thomas Adès Dante – 'The Earthly Paradise', 'The Heavenly Procession', 'The Ascent'
Jerome Moross The Big Country – main title
BBC Broadcast: 15 February 2026
WDR Symphony Orchestra, Marie Jacquot (conductor); Philharmonie in Cologne, Germany
Lyadov The Enchanted Lake
Stravinsky Petrushka (1947 version)
BBC Broadcast: 22 February 2026
Gulbenkian Orchestra, Aziz Shokhkimov (conductor); Grande Auditório of the Gulbenkian Foundation, Lisbon, Portugal
Smetana Vltava
Debussy La Mer
Ravel La Valse
BBC Broadcast: 1 March 2026
Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Nicholas Collon (conductor); The Music House in Helsinki, Finland
Kaija Saariaho Ciel d'hiver
Uuno Klami Kalevala-Suite
Sibelius Finlandia
What is the EBU?
The European Broadcasting Union is the world’s leading alliance of public service media – with 113 member organisations in 56 countries and 31 associates in Asia, Africa, Australasia and the Americas. The EBU's members operate nearly 2,000 television, radio and online channels and services to reach an audience of more than one billion people around the world.
