First published 16 October 2025
The London Handel Festival has announced its 2026 programme, led for the second year by Arcangelo as Principal Ensemble in Residence.
Arcangelo will open the 2026 edition of the London Handel Festival with its first performance of the composer's "revolutionary masterpiece" Saul HWV53, the work with which the composer and librettist Charles Jennens launched their remarkable collaboration and imbued English Oratorio with a lasting new musical and dramatic amplitude. Christopher Purves, critically acclamed in the title role for Barrie Kosky's celebrated production for Glyndebourne Opera, leads an international cast of sopranos Emoke Barath, Jessica Cale, Hugh Cutting, Linard Vrielink, Liam Bonthrone and Neal Davies.
For its two further 2026 residency concerts, Arcangelo offers a chamber recital with debut collaborator Rachel Podger and guest soprano Hilary Cronin, and a second young artist platform for the outstanding young musicians of its Arcangelo New Ensemblists programme.
The wider festival programme, overseen by Arcangelo's Artistic Director Jonathan Cohen as Artistic Adviser to the LHF, includes concert performances by Gabrieli Consort, The English Concert, Opera Settecento, the finals of the 2026 International Handel Singing Competition, and a fully-staged performance of Handel's Tamerlano.
The full festival programme is now available to view at the London Handel Festival website. Tickets are on sale to the general public from 29 October 2025.
Further information
The London Handel Festival 2026
"From Heavenly Harmony" is the theme of the 2026 London Handel Festival, led by Arcangelo as Principal Ensemble in Residence. Click here to discover the full festival programme.