Concerts 2026
From 27 October to 13 November, the ARĒNA New Music Festival will take place in Riga for the 25th time, presenting five concerts in which light meets darkness, faith encounters fear, prophecies intertwine with myths, and silence, electronics and sounds yet unheard come together. The festival will open with the Pēteris Vasks Quartet, performing music by Pēteris Vasks, Arvo Pärt and Olivier Messiaen, and will culminate in one of ARĒNA’s most ambitious events – the premiere of The Abduction of Europa, a chamber opera by Gundega Šmite and Dimitris Maronidis. Another highlight will be two world premieres at the concert Prophecies – new works by Klaus Lang and Santa Bušs. This autumn also marks a new chapter in the festival’s history for composer Santa Bušs, who joins ARĒNA as its new Artistic Director.
MORE tickets
Festival Opening Concert. PĒTERIS VASKS QUARTET
Tuesday, October 27, 7:00 p.m. at Riga Reformed Church
Performers: Pēteris Vasks Quartet: Magdalēna Geka (violin), Egīls Šēfers (clarinet), Kristaps Bergs (cello), Iveta Cālīte (piano)
Programme: Olivier Messiaen, Arvo Pärt, Pēteris Vasks
PROPHECIES
Thursday, October 29, 7:00 p.m. at Riga Reformed Church
Performers: Helēna Sorokina (voice), Krassimir Sterev (accordion, Austria), Marco Sala (clarinets, Austria)
Programme: Giacinto Scelsi, Beat Furrer, Chaya Czernowin, Rebecca Saunders, Samir Odeh-Tamimi, and premieres of new works by Klaus Lang and Santa Bušs
THE LIGHT OF DARKNESS
Sunday, November 1, 6:00 p.m. at Riga Reformed Church
Performers: Woodpecker Project: Andris Dzenītis, Gatis Zaķis, Ritvars Garoza (electronics), Arvīds Kazlausks (saxophones), and students of the Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music
Programme: Works by Woodpecker Project and composition students of the Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music
CONVERSATIONS WITH FELDMAN
Thursday, November 5, 7:00 p.m. at Riga Reformed Church
Performers: Andrzej Karałow (piano), Kaspars Kurdeko (percussion)
Programme: Morton Feldman, improvisations by Andrzej Karałow and Kaspars Kurdeko
THE ABDUCTION OF EUROPA. A Chamber Opera by Gundega Šmite and Dimitris Maronidis
Friday, November 13, 7:00 p.m. at Hanzas perons
Performers: Ensemble EUNOIA, Katrīna Neiburga (scenography), Oskars Pauliņš (lighting design)
Programme: World premiere of the chamber opera by Gundega Šmite and Dimitris Maronidis
