Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra Concerts

The EBU has a 5-year distribution agreement with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra running until 2027, under which it acquired TV and radio broadcast rights for a package of three classical concerts per year. Dozens of EBU Members subscribe to this package. More than double that number outside the EBU area also broadcast the annual New Year's Day Concert.

New Year's Day Concert

Broadcast live from the ornate Musikverein concert hall in Vienna, the New Year’s Day Concert is one of the most sought-after TV properties in the world. Hosted by the EBU's Austrian Member ORF, the concert achieves staggering market shares of over 40% in several countries and reaches over 40 million television viewers around the world via the Eurovision satellite network.

The orchestra performs a different musical programme every year with works from the vast repertoire of the Johann Strauss family and its contemporaries under the baton of the world’s most prestigious conductors.

The New Year's Concert 2023 took place under the musical direction of Franz Welser-Möst, who conducted this prestigious concert for the third time after 2011 and 2013. Read our interview with him.

More details about this year's event are available here.

Summer Night Concert

The second concert of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra package is the annual Summer Night Concert, an outdoor production from the gardens of Vienna’s picturesque Schönbrunn Castle broadcast to several million TV viewers. Like the New Year’s Day concert, TV production is by Austrian EBU member ORF, and the concert is carried to audiences around the world via the Eurovision satellite network.

The 2023 concert took place on 8 June 2023 and was conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin. You can find the 2023 Broadcaster Circular here (English) and here (German).

Take a look at the 2023 programme information booklet from ORF here (English) and here (German), and the concert's end credit list here (.docx).

The music Cue Sheet is now available and can be downloaded here (.xls).

More details on the Vienna Philharmonic are available on their dedicated website.

Special Concert

Each autumn, the VPO performs a special concert at different locations around the world. Recent concerts have been held in Japan, at Versailles in Paris and at Barcelona's Sagrada Familia.

The 2023 Special Concert of the EBU-VPO concert package will be produced by Czech Television on Wednesday, 13 September 2023 at 8 pm CEST at the Rudolfinum in Prague.

The Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra will perform under the direction of Jakub Hrůša in a programme featuring soloist Igor Levit at the piano. The programme will include Johannes Brahms “Concerto for Piano No. 2 in B-flat Major, op. 83” and Antonín Dvořák “Symphony No. 8 in G major, op. 88”.

You can find the 2023 Broadcaster Circular here (English).

Take a look at the 2023 programme information documents from Czech TV below: