Spitalfields Music has announced the full programme for the 2026 edition of the Spitalfields Music Festival, marking the start of its 50th anniversary celebrations.
The festival will take place from 26 June to 8 July across venues and locations throughout East London, with tickets now on sale.
Founded in 1976 by conductor Richard Hickox, Spitalfields Music enters its 50th year with a programme bringing together national and international artists working across contemporary, classical and cross-disciplinary forms.
The 2026 edition will feature 20 new commissions and premieres, continuing the organisation’s long-standing commitment to championing new music and emerging voices alongside established artists.
Sarah Gee, Chief Executive and Artistic Director of Spitalfields Music, said: “To kick off our 50th birthday celebrations, we have curated a world-beating selection of different styles of music and performers, from French and Italian baroque masterworks to contemporary classics with influences from Estonia, China, Pakistan and Japan. Every performance tells a different story, highlighting universal truths and human hopes for the next half century, while also considering what has changed since our foundation. As ever, we delight in the new, offering music for curious ears and minds, across the historic East End of London.”
Opening the festival, five artists will explore the question What does peace look like? through a programme performed by the City of London Sinfonia featuring music by George Walker, Reena Esmail, Arvo Pärt and Sibelius, alongside a new commission by Philip Herbert inspired by a quote from UN Secretary António Guterres.
Writer Ali Smith will collaborate with the New European Ensemble to present the UK premieres of four musical works inspired by her Seasonal Quartet novels, interspersed with readings from the books.
Mimi Doulton will perform three new commissions reflecting on what it means to be European today, ten years on from the Brexit referendum.
Carolyn Sampson will star in a theatrical reimagining of Elisabeth Jacquet de la Guerre’s Cantates Bibliques, produced by Mahogany Opera, Dunedin Consort and HERA.
The programme also includes a panel discussion marking the year 1976, performances by Standard Issue, Slide Action and The Carice Singers, a return by Tom Hickox, and collaborations reimagining British folk and historic choral music.
The festival will close with a concert at the Tower of London in collaboration with the Choir of the Chapels Royal, HM Tower of London, featuring Palestrina’s Missa Papae Marcelli.
Listings and ticket information can be found here.
