There are very few places in the world where you can watch the New York Philharmonic perform under an open mountain sky. Vail is one of them.
Bravo! Vail is the only festival in North America to host four of the world’s finest orchestras in a single season and the 2026 edition runs nearly seven weeks, from late June through early August. Consistently cited as one of the top ten classical music festivals in the country, it draws music lovers from around the world to the Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater and intimate venues throughout Vail Village.
Staying at The Willows puts you within easy reach of every performance — no car, no logistics, just an evening stroll to one of the most celebrated stages in American classical music.
The 2026 Season at a Glance
Academy of St Martin in the Fields
June 25 – June 28
The London-based ensemble opens the festival’s 39th season with three evenings of Beethoven piano concertos performed by Anne-Marie McDermott, followed by a closing night with violin soloist Joshua Bell. An elegant and intimate way to begin the summer.
- Jun 25 — McDermott Plays Beethoven: The Middle Concertos (Piano Concertos Nos. 2, 4 & 3)
- Jun 27 — McDermott Plays Beethoven: The First & The Emperor (Nos. 1 & 5)
- Jun 28 — Joshua Bell with Academy of St Martin in the Fields (Saint-Saëns, Schumann)
Dallas Symphony Orchestra
July 2 – July 8
The DSO brings range and spectacle — from a family-friendly night of cinematic favorites to a grand Fourth of July patriotic concert to a full concert staging of Puccini’s Madama Butterfly.
- Jul 2 — Music of the Movies (Jaws, Star Wars, James Bond, Casablanca & more)
- Jul 4 — Patriotic Concert – Colorado 150 / America 250 (tickets via Vail Valley Foundation only — GRFA Box Office, July 1 at 8am)
- Jul 5 — Disco Divas (Donna Summer, Diana Ross, Earth Wind & Fire, The Bee Gees)
- Jul 6 — Luisi & Kavakos: Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto
- Jul 8 — Madama Butterfly in Concert (Puccini, full cast)
The Philadelphia Orchestra
July 10 – July 17
Conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin leads one of the festival’s most ambitious weeks, culminating in a full performance of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony and Disney’s Fantasia in Concert.
- Jul 10 — Nézet-Séguin & Hamelin: Brahms & Liszt
- Jul 11 — Hadelich Performs Brahms Violin Concerto
- Jul 12 — Nézet-Séguin Conducts Beethoven 9 (with Colorado Symphony Chorus)
- Jul 15 — Alsop & Himari: Sibelius Violin Concerto (world premiere: John Adams’ The Rock You Stand On)
- Jul 16 — Alsop & Sham: Mendelssohn Piano Concerto
- Jul 17 — Disney’s Fantasia in Concert
New York Philharmonic
July 22 – July 29
The festival’s grand finale brings six evenings with the NY Phil, featuring violinists James Ehnes and Nemanja Radulović, pianists Yefim Bronfman and Emanuel Ax, and a closing night of French masterworks including Ravel’s Bolero.
- Jul 22 — Chan & Ehnes: Korngold Violin Concerto (Stravinsky Firebird Suite)
- Jul 24 — Bronfman & McDermott: Mozart Concerto for Two Pianos
- Jul 25 — Prokofiev Violin Concerto with Nemanja Radulović
- Jul 26 — Rouvali Conducts NY Philharmonic (Mozart, Sibelius)
- Jul 28 — Emanuel Ax: John Williams Piano Concerto & Gershwin’s An American in Paris
- Jul 29 — Denève & Brey: French Masterworks (Debussy, Saint-Saëns, Ravel’s Bolero)
Chamber Music & Intimate Performances
Beyond the amphitheater, Bravo! Vail offers some of its most memorable evenings in smaller venues — closer, quieter, and just as extraordinary.
- Jun 30 — Alexander Kerr & Musicians of the DSO, Donovan Pavilion
- Jul 7 — Dover String Quartet & Marc-André Hamelin (Schubert, Mendelssohn, Franck), Donovan Pavilion
- Jul 13–14 — Immersive Experiences: Alisa Weilerstein performs all six Bach Cello Suites across two evenings, Donovan Pavilion
- Jul 21 — McDermott & Bronfman: Two Pianos (Brahms + world premiere of Aaron Jay Kernis’ Prayers for the Living), Vilar Performing Arts Center
- Jul 27 — Yuja Wang & People of Earth: an unexpected pairing of classical piano and Latin-Caribbean jazz, Vilar Performing Arts Center
- Aug 5–6 — Classically Uncorked I & II: an intimate piano series at the Vail Golf Course Clubhouse to close the season
Good to know:
Tickets go on sale to the public January 27, 2026. Popular performances sell out early — particularly the NY Philharmonic and Philadelphia Orchestra weeks. If you’re planning your stay around a specific concert, reserve both your tickets and your room well in advance.
View the full 2026 schedule and buy tickets at bravovail.org →
