PRINCESS GALYANI VADHANA INTERNATIONAL MUSIC FESTIVAL 2026

Mozart and Beyond

24–30 May 2026

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Why Mozart, and why now? More than 270 years after his birth, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart remains one of the most widely recognised figures in classical music, not only because of the beauty and brilliance of his works, but because his music continues to invite performance, reinterpretation, and debate. Mozart represents both a foundation and a provocation: a composer whose craft, theatricality, wit, and emotional clarity still shape musical thinking today. In this sense, a festival around Mozart is not simply an act of celebration, but an opportunity to ask how a historical figure continues to speak to contemporary artists and audiences, and how we, in turn, respond.

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This booklet begins that journey by reintroducing the question, “Who was Mozart, really?” through five short essays that revisit Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart through the lenses of genius, humanity, society, and legacy before the festival opens in performance. It then moves into the pre-festival talk, Mozart as Revolutionary, which frames Mozart not only as a historical icon, but as an artist of experimentation, invention, and forward motion, an entry point into the “and Beyond” of this year’s festival and the Resident Artist Concert series that follows.

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At the heart of the festival are the Resident Artist Concerts from 27–30 May 2026, featuring professors from the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, leading Thai artists, new creative works by PGVIM faculty, and a selected performance emerging from this year’s Call for Artists. These programs invite audiences to move beyond familiar ways of hearing Mozart and to encounter Mozart’s legacy through six artistic encounters: sound, question, method, drama, inheritance, and shared culture. Across these concerts, Mozart becomes not only a composer to be performed, but a point of departure for artistic imagination in the present.

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To further support artistic sustainability, the Business Model Ideation Academy: Global Pathway for Folk Music will take place from 25–29 May 2026. This workshop-based program supports Thai folk musicians and music practitioners in developing international pathways through folk music branding, business planning, portfolio development, and revenue creation. Participants will work with expert coaches and pitch their ideas for industry feedback, with two prizes of THB 25,000 awarded to the concepts demonstrating the strongest vision and feasibility.

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Hosted by the Princess Galyani Vadhana Institute of Music, PGMF2026 continues the Institute’s commitment to artistic excellence, education, and cultural dialogue. Bringing together performance, creative research, emerging voices, entrepreneurial thinking, and cross-disciplinary collaboration, this year’s festival offers a space where Mozart is not only remembered, but where the past speaks, the present responds, and music continues to move beyond itself.

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The festival extends beyond the concert hall through artistic responses from other creative fields. The visual identity of PGMF2026, created by Phayanchana, offers a distinctly Thai alphabets encounter with Mozart, while Sun to Sun contributes a sensory response that expands the festival into atmosphere, gathering, and shared experience. Together, these collaborations reflect the wider spirit of Mozart and Beyond: that Mozart’s legacy may continue to resonate not only through performance, but through image, design, and the textures of contemporary cultural life.

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The Call for Artists program extends this invitation to the next generation. Following an open call for young and emerging artists, shortlisted teams will present their works in a public showcase on 22–23 April 2026. In addition to three festival awards, one selected program will be invited to return as part of the Resident Artist Concert Series, creating a direct pathway from experimental proposal to full festival presentation.