The Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, Asia’s oldest and most influential symphony orchestra, will return to Australia in 2026 for a landmark concert tour, performing in Melbourne and Sydney, prior to concerts in Auckland and Singapore.

Led by conductor Long Yu – described by The New York Times as “China’s Herbert von Karajan” and “the most powerful figure in China’s classical music scene” – Shanghai Symphony wil offer a dynamic program of Eastern and Western repertoire, featuring contemporary Chinese works by Elliot Leung and Qigang Chen alongside orchestral works by Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninov.

Shanghai Symphony Orchestra. Photo supplied

Presented in partnership with Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Sydney Opera House, Te Ahurei Toi o Tāmaki Auckland Arts Festival and the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, the tour will open at Arts Centre Melbourne’s Hamer Hall on 13 March 2026. It continues to the Sydney Opera House (15 March), Auckland Arts Festival (19–20 March) and Esplanade Concert Hall in Singapore (23 March).

The 2026 tour features works by two of China’s most prominent contemporary...