Sydney Philharmonia Choirs will return to the international stage in 2026 with a performance at the BBC Proms and a major UK tour celebrating British choral music, alongside premieres by Australian composers.

The Sydney-based ensemble will appear at London’s Royal Albert Hall on 26 July as part of the BBC Proms, joining the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and its chorus for a performance of John Adams’ Harmonium. The concert marks the choir’s return to the festival after it became the first Australian choir to perform there in 2002.

Artistic and Music Director Brett Weymark will lead the combined forces, while the broader tour will see Sydney Philharmonia Choirs perform independently across England. It is the organisation’s first UK tour in 15 years.

Sydney Philharmonia Choirs and Brett Weymark. Photo © Keith Saunders

Framed around the idea of bringing British choral music “home”, the tour repertoire draws on the Anglican cathedral tradition that has long influenced the choir’s programming in Australia. Works by composers including Hubert Parry, William Harris, Benjamin Britten and Ralph Vaughan Williams will be performed in venues closely associated with the repertoire, including Ely Cathedral, Coventry Cathedral and Gloucester Cathedral as part of the Three Choirs Festival.

The program, titled Faire is the Heaven, also incorporates contemporary Australian voices, with UK premieres and a world premiere by composers Alice Chance and Joseph Twist. The inclusion of these works aims to present an evolving perspective on the sacred choral tradition shaped in Australia.

Ahead of the tour, Sydney audiences will have the opportunity to hear the program at a preview concert at St Andrew’s Cathedral on 12 July.

Weymark said international touring offered both artistic and developmental benefits for singers. “The choir comes back with a sense of how they fit into the wider world of classical music … they come back a better choir for the experience.”

For more information on the 2026 BBC Proms, visit bbc.co.uk/proms