The Concertgebouw Orchestra is set to begin a new concert season in Amsterdam’s Oosterpark. Join the Concertgebouw Orchestra’s Opening Night 2026 and experience a free open-air concert. Will you join? You don't need a ticket! 

Concertgebouw Orchestra Opening Night 2026

For the sixth time, Opening Night will be held in a special location in Amsterdam. Taking place in Oosterpark in Amsterdam’s Oost (East) district, the evening offers an exciting programme of classical highlights under the direction of Han-Na Chang, featuring well-known overtures by Wagner, Rossini and Glinka, plus irresistible excerpts from Bizet’s opera Carmen.

The orchestra will work closely with local entrepreneurs to offer a great music festival for everyone, with food and drinks available from several food trucks.

The concert starts at 8.15pm, preceded by a vibrant support programme featuring young talent and local musicians from 6.45pm.

Event details

• Date: Friday, September 11, 2026
• Start of support programme: 6.45pm
• Start of concert: 8.15pm
• End of concert: 10.15pm
• Location: Oosterpark 

Support programme featuring young and local talent

Between 6.45pm and 7.30pm, talented young musicians from Amsterdam and far beyond will come together at the intersection of classical music, jazz and big band. The Jazz Focus Big Band from Amsterdam East, conducted by Lorenzo Mignacca, and the Nederlands Jeugd Strijkorkest, conducted by Carel den Hertog, join forces with alumni of the Concertgebouw Orchestra’s youth project "Young" in works by composers such as Borodin, Tchaikovsky, Grieg, Gershwin, and Dvořák. 

The full programme

1. Mikhail Glinka; Overture to Ruslan and Lyudmila
2. Gioachino Rossini; William Tell Overture
3. Claude Debussy; Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune
4. Bernd Richard Deutsch; Balera
5. Georges Bizet; Music from the opera ‘Carmen’
6. Johann Strauss; Éljen a Magyar! (polka)
7. Richard Wagner; Tannhäuser Overture (Dresden version)

• Conductor: Han-Na Chang
• Orchestra: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra

Radio and television

The concert will be broadcast live on Dutch radio by AVROTROS via NPO Klassiek, and can be viewed on Dutch television on Sunday, September 13 at 6.15pm and at 11.45pm on NPO 2. 

For further information, visit the Concertgebouw Orchestra website. You don't need to purchase tickets, just turn up on the night.

The Opening Night of the Concertgebouw Orchestra is made possible by the support of Global Partners ING, Unilever and Booking.com, whose shared aim is to make classical music accessible to as wide an audience as possible.

About the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra

The Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra was founded in 1888. Its distinctive sound has made it one of the world’s leading orchestras. The orchestra is famous for its renditions of works by Gustav Mahler, Richard Strauss and Anton Bruckner, and for its long-standing concert traditions such as the St Matthew Passion in the week before Easter and the Christmas Matinee. It has always worked closely with contemporary composers.

The Concertgebouw Orchestra has had just seven chief conductors to date. The eighth was announced on June 10, 2022: Klaus Mäkelä joined as chief conductor designate in the 2022-2023 season and will become chief conductor in 2027.