Welcome to the 2026 Canberra International Music Festival – a celebration of musical collaboration, cultural exchange and bold artistic imagination.

Spanish violinist Lina Tur Bonet brings fiery brilliance to both Baroque and contemporary stages, while accordionist James Crabb journeys from Bach and Dvořák to nuevo tango before joining Ensemble Contrechamps (Switzerland) for the Australian premiere of the monumental Tales of Fragile Sensations.

The Australian String Quartet, Ensemble Liaison, Luminescence Chamber Singers and Lyrebird Brass offer exclusive, ambitious programs for CIMF, complemented by pristine chamber interpretations of masterworks including Strauss’s Four Last Songs, Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring and Ravel’s Daphnis et Chloé.

Across the Festival, audiences encounter music deeply rooted in place and tradition, alongside expansive surveys of English and French repertoire. Composer-in-residence Fiona Hill and Indigenous artist-in-residence Aaron Wyatt anchor the season with powerful new works that speak to country, culture and the evolving future of Australian music.