About
The Festival d’Aix-en-Provence 2026 invites you into a world where opera becomes a living art — intimate, daring, and profoundly human. From July 2 to July 21, 2026, the sunlit city of Aix-en-Provence transforms into one of Europe’s most refined cultural stages, where historic courtyards, modern theatres, and open-air venues resonate with music of exceptional depth and imagination.
The 2026 edition unfolds under the poetic theme “In Search of Humanity,” offering a program that explores the fragile beauty of existence through opera and music. At its core lies a compelling operatic selection, where timeless masterpieces meet bold contemporary creation. Audiences will encounter The Magic Flute by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, reimagined with fresh theatrical vision, alongside The Woman Without a Shadow by Richard Strauss — a work of rare philosophical depth and sonic richness.
The festival also embraces innovation through powerful contemporary works, including the world premiere of Accabadora by Francesco Filidei, as well as striking music theatre such as El Cimarrón by Hans Werner Henze. Concert versions of Les Vêpres siciliennes and Bluebeard’s Castle further expand the repertoire, offering audiences a rare opportunity to experience these works in a concentrated musical form.
The concert program brings additional brilliance and intimacy. At the Grand Théâtre de Provence, internationally acclaimed soprano Sonya Yoncheva makes her festival debut, exploring the expressive world of Baroque music alongside Cappella Mediterranea and conductor Leonardo García Alarcón. Tenor Benjamin Bernheim offers a refined recital blending lyricism and poetry through works by Massenet, Bizet, Puccini, and Verdi, creating evenings of rare emotional nuance.
True to its legacy, the festival gathers a constellation of leading artists, conductors, and creative visionaries, while also nurturing the next generation through its renowned Académie. This unique dialogue between established excellence and emerging talent gives Aix its unmistakable artistic energy.
What defines the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence is its atmosphere — a delicate balance of elegance, innovation, and intellectual curiosity. Here, opera is not preserved as tradition alone, but continuously reinvented, inviting each listener into a deeper, more personal experience of music and meaning.
The Festival d’Aix-en-Provence 2026 is more than a cultural event — it is an invitation to rediscover opera as a living, breathing art form.
About the Festival d`Aix-en-Provence
International Opera and Classical Festival in Aix-en-Provence is one of the most significant musical events in Europe. It was first held in July 1948 and since then every summer has passed. He founded the festival Gabriel Dussiurges with the participation of Countess Lily Pastre, wanting to encourage the development of musical life in Marseille and the surrounding area. Dussurge himself led the festival until 1973.
Initially, all the performances took place in the open air, on the territory of the former Archbishop's Palace. Today, the festival occupies several venues, the main of which - the Grand Provence Theater (Grand Théâtre de Provence), the Jeu de Paume Theater and the Hotel Meunier (Maynier d’Oppède).
The festival traditionally pays special attention to Mozart’s operas, starting with the staging of the opera “Everybody Does It”, which opened the very first festival in Aix-en-Provence in 1948. Mozart’s works made up the bulk
festival programs until the early 1970s, when his repertoire replenished the operas of V. Bellini, G. Donizetti, J. Rossini. Since the early 1980s more and more baroque comes to Aix-en-Provence: the emphasis shifts towards the operas of K. Monteverdi, G. Purcell, J. B. Lully, A. Campra, F. Cavalli, J. F. Rameau, G. F. Handel and other composers.
In the XXI century, a significant part of the programs of the Aix-en-Provence festival is reserved for concerts of cantata-oratorio, orchestral, chamber instrumental and vocal music. In addition, since the late 1990s, sometimes
appearing operas by contemporary composers. So, in 2002, in Aix-en-Provence, P. Etvoche's opera Le Balcon was first presented to the public.
Among the directors of opera performances in Aix-en-Provence are Peter Brook, Peter Sellars, Luke Bondi, Dmitry Chernyakov. As the musical leaders of the festival in Claudio Abbado (since 1998), Daniel Harding, Simon Rattle, Esa Pekka Salonen have performed at various times.
Today, the festival is annually visited by tens of thousands of connoisseurs of opera and classical music. According to the official website, in 2009 the number of viewers almost reached 65 thousand. In 2014, the Aix-en-Provence Festival received the International Operas Awards in the nomination for Best Opera Festival. Every year festival events covered by several media at once: operas and concerts are broadcast by Arte, Mezzo, France 3 and NHK.
