Now it's time for music!
Classical music stars in Solothurn
Classionata Solothurn
19 and 21 June 2026
In June, Solothurn becomes a musical extra class for two days. Since 2019, the Classionata Solothurn has been a centre of attraction for fans of classical music. Conductor and artistic director Andreas Spörri, internationally renowned soloists and the Vienna Opera Ball Orchestra delight the music-loving audience.
Music meets joie de vivre: On 19 and 21 June 2026, the Solothurn Concert Hall will become a stage for high culture in music – and at the same time a meeting place for all those who love music and appreciate something special.
The focus: The orchestra of the world-famous Vienna Opera Ball, the ‘ball of balls’ with an annual TV audience of 2.5 million and over 5,000 ball guests, has been a regular guest in Switzerland since 2003, conducted by its deputy chief conductor Andreas Spörri. In 2026, Andreas Spörri will conduct the Vienna Opera Ball at the Vienna State Opera for the 12th time.
Together with the magnificent soloists Claudia Goebl (soprano) and Iurie Ciobanu (tenor), the Vienna Opera Ball Orchestra will present highlights from Viennese classical music, romantic soundscapes and popular operetta gems – the programme will be performed twice, promising an emotional, rousing and brilliant experience.
A summery magic of sound flows through Vienna: from Franz von Suppè's cheerful city scenes to Mendelssohn's summer night dreams, Smetana's famous symphonic poem ‘The Moldau’, Strauss' charming clock duet and Dvořák's wistful ‘New World’. Bernstein brings Broadway flair, Ponchielli and Kálmán provide dances and duets, while Offenbach, Sieczyński and Schönherr bring Viennese melodies and stories to life. Singing, orchestra, melodies – an evening and a morning that let you breathe the Viennese summer air.
Andreas Spörri
Music director
The program consists mainly of touching classics of Viennese operetta and symphonic works of the Romantic period.
The founder and conductor of the Classionata Solothurn comes from Aargau and now lives in Solothurn's Schwarzbubenland. In 1999, he founded the International Classionata Music Festival, which has been held in Solothurn since 2019. Spörri conducts orchestras in concert halls all over the world, has been conductor of the Vienna Opera Ball Orchestra since 2003 and has also conducted at the Vienna Opera Ball at the Vienna State Opera every year since 2010.
