Following two successful visits to Mauritius, the Philharmonia Orchestra returns in January 2027 with its biggest Festival on the island to date. 75 world-class musicians will take over the Trianon Convention Centre for 10 days, from 22 to 31 January.

The Philharmonia Festival will feature a rich programme of orchestral performances, Mauritian collaborations and activities involving young people and local communities. It will also be the first multi-date festival by an international symphony orchestra at the Trianon Convention Centre.

The musical programme spans two very different worlds. Audiences will hear all nine of Beethoven’s symphonies, performed across the Festival, alongside two concerts devoted to the music of John Williams, featuring some of his most celebrated film compositions.

A Festival rooted in musical exchange

Beyond the orchestral programme, Mauritian artists will feature throughout the Festival, with performances and collaborations taking place both as part of and around the concert programme. These partnerships build on relationships established during the Philharmonia’s previous visits and form part of a wider ambition to create meaningful opportunities for cultural exchange between the Orchestra and artists in Mauritius.

Ahead of the Festival, from 5 to 10 October 2026, the Orchestra will work with young people and communities through an extensive programme of workshops, masterclasses and activities. The programme will culminate in January with a free orchestral concert for local schools and will also feature demonstrations of the Philharmonia’s groundbreaking Virtual Orchestra virtual reality experience.

Thorben Dittes, Chief Executive of the Philharmonia Orchestra, says: “The extraordinary response from Mauritian audiences to our first two visits has encouraged us to build a long-term relationship with the island. In 2027, we return with our full symphony orchestra for the first complete Beethoven cycle ever performed in Mauritius, alongside the iconic music of John Williams.”

“But the Festival is about more than bringing an orchestra to Mauritius. Through our growing collaborations with Mauritian artists, young people and communities, we hope to create lasting opportunities for cultural exchange and contribute to the development of the performing arts on the island.”

The complete Beethoven cycle

The Philharmonia will perform all nine Beethoven symphonies across five evenings, marking 200 years since the composer’s death. Renowned journalist, author and broadcaster John Suchet OBE will join the Orchestra to guide audiences through Beethoven’s dramatic life story and the evolution of his symphonies.

Ryan Bancroft will conduct Symphonies Nos. 1–6, while Paul McCreesh CBE will conduct Symphonies Nos. 7–9.

For the Festival finale, McCreesh will bring his acclaimed interpretation of Beethoven’s choral works to the Ode to Joy. The Orchestra will be joined by Island Voices Mauritius Choir and the Francis Thomé Choir from the Conservatoire National de Musique François-Mitterrand.

The Ode to Joy will be sung in Creole, English and French, continuing the Philharmonia’s growing relationship with both Mauritian choirs following collaborations during the Orchestra’s previous visits in 2024 and 2026.

A new work celebrating Mauritius

The Festival will also feature the world premiere of William Mival’s Louis en Maurice, performed alongside Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9.

Commissioned especially for the Festival, the new work by Mival, Professor of Composition at the Royal College of Music, celebrates Mauritius’s heritage and diversity while paying homage to Beethoven’s setting of the Ode to Joy. Conceived specifically for the Festival, the piece will bring musicians from Mauritius together with the Philharmonia on the Trianon Convention Centre stage.

Soloists for Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony will join the Philharmonia from London’s Royal College of Music (RCM), continuing the Orchestra’s collaboration with the institution while creating an international performance opportunity for some of its outstanding young musicians.

Beethoven meets Mauritian artists

The first four Beethoven concerts will each feature a specially commissioned orchestral encore on a Mauritian theme, composed by Richard Birchall.

The concerts will also introduce four Half-Time Shows, in which Mauritian artists from different musical genres and art forms respond to Beethoven and themes including heroism, rhythm and nature.

The programme will bring together musicians Sarah Honoré, Nina Hellis, Arvind Bhujun and Neriyen Veerapin, alongside dance companies Les Frères Joseph and Kritya Fusion, as well as acrobats and performers from Impulsion Events.

These collaborations will create a different perspective on Beethoven’s music, connecting the classical repertoire with contemporary Mauritian artistic expression.

The music of John Williams

The Festival will conclude its orchestral programme with two concerts dedicated to acclaimed film composer John Williams, conducted by Stephen Bell.

Marking 50 years since the release of Star Wars: A New Hope and Williams’ iconic score, the concerts will feature the Star Wars Suite alongside selections from some of his most celebrated film scores, including Jurassic Park and Jaws.

Together, the Beethoven cycle, new commissions, Mauritian collaborations and John Williams concerts will give the Festival a broad musical identity — bringing together landmark orchestral works, contemporary local creativity and some of the most recognisable film music ever written.

The program:

Friday 22 January

BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 1
Half-Time Show
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 2

Saturday 23 January

BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 3, ‘Eroica’
Half-Time Show
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 4

Sunday 24 January

BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 5
Half-Time Show
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 6, ‘Pastoral’

Thursday 28 January

John Williams Greatest Hits: From Star Wars to Jurassic Park

Friday 29 January

BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 7
Half-Time Show
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 8

Saturday 30 January

John Williams Greatest Hits: From Star Wars to Jurassic Park

Sunday 31 January

MIVAL Louis en Maurice
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 9, ‘Choral’

About the Philharmonia

Founded in 1945, the Philharmonia Orchestra is one of the world’s great orchestras.Finnish conductor Santtu-Matias Rouvali took up the baton as Principal Conductor in 2021, and Marin Alsop joined him as Principal Guest Conductor in 2023.

They follow in illustrious footsteps: Herbert von Karajan, Otto Klemperer, Riccardo Muti, Giuseppe Sinopoli, Christoph von Dohnányi, Vladimir Ashkenazy and Esa-Pekka Salonen are some of the key figures who have shaped the renowned Philharmonia sound over eight decades.

The Orchestra has premiered works by Richard Strauss, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, Kaija Saariaho, Errollyn Wallen, Laufey and many others, and performs with many of the world’s most admired soloists.

The Philharmonia thrives on creative collaborations: in the 2026/27 season, pianist Nobuyuki Tsujii and cellist Sol Gabetta are Featured Artists. The Philharmonia’s Emerging Artists Programme nurtures and develops the next generation of instrumentalists and composers, with a focus on increasing diversity within the classical music industry.