Early Music Vancouver Summer Festival celebrates the Power of Music

This year’s edition spans repertoires from the Middle Ages to early opera, bookended by landmark works by Monteverdi and Vivaldi

(Left to right) Rachel Podger; Lazaro Silva and Emma Galvin in *Bach Dances* (Jess Mac photo).

Early Music Vancouver presents Summer Festival 2026: The Power of Music at various venues from July 31 to August 7

EARLY MUSIC VANCOUVER HAS announced the full lineup for the 2026 edition of its annual Summer Festival, bookended by two beloved landmark works. The fest kicks off on July 31 with a fully staged version of Monteverdi’s tragic opera L’Orfeo. The production will feature a cast of 12 singers, with Marc Mauillon and Bahareh Poureslami in the lead roles of Orfeo and Euridice.

The festival concludes on August 7 with violinist Rachel Podger leading the Pacific Baroque Orchestra in Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons.

In between, the Summer Festival’s curators—EMV artistic and executive director Suzie LeBlanc and Pacific Baroque Orchestra artistic director Alexander Weimann—promise that audiences will come to fully appreciate why this year’s theme is “The Power of Music”.

“Together,” said LeBlanc in yesterday’s announcement, “we are thrilled to create a festival that celebrates music’s ability to move, transform, and connect us.”

Among the festival’s other highlights:

Bach Dances, August 1 at The Dance Centre: Dancers Will Jessup, Alexis Fletcher, Emma Galvin, and Lazaro Silva are featured in this collaboration between Israeli choreographer Idan Cohen and Canadian cellist Elinor Frey.
The Compass Rose, August 1 at West Vancouver United Church: Weimann plays J.S. Bach’s solo organ works, including his Toccata and Fugue, Concerto,s and Trio Sonata No. 5.
Songline: Musical Hike, August 6 at Malcolm Knapp Research Forest: EMV 2026 artist-in-residence Mauillon leads the audience on a 90-minute nature walk while he sings selections from Songline, his album for solo voice.
Florilegium, August 5 at Christ Church Cathedral: Ensemble COMTESSA offers a poetic meditation on the life cycle of flowers through a selection of English medieval songs.

Find the full Summer Festival lineup, and information on purchasing tickets, at the Early Music Vancouver website.

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John Lucas

John Lucas has covered music and the arts for longer than he cares to think about. He can also be found playing his guitar in dodgy rehearsal spaces and low-rent venues in and around Vancouver.

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