Waterford Chamber Music Festival returns to Mount Congreve with ambitious 2026 programme

The Waterford Chamber Music Festival will return to Mount Congreve House and Gardens from July 24-26, bringing together leading Irish and international musicians for a weekend of chamber music, world premieres and innovative performances in one of Ireland’s most picturesque cultural settings.

The 2026 festival programme combines celebrated chamber music masterworks with new commissions, emerging artists and imaginative programming, offering audiences an intimate and immersive musical experience across three days.

The festival opens on Friday, July 24, with a 'Musical Promenade' through the gardens of Mount Congreve. Audiences will be guided through the scenic locations where solo performances will be interwoven with nature-inspired spoken word. A centrepiece of the opening event will be the world premiere of a newly commissioned work for solo French horn by Irish composer Seán Ó Dálaigh.

Supporting emerging talent remains a key focus of the festival, with the return of the Young Artists’ Recital. At the same time, audiences will also have the opportunity to gain greater insight into the music through a pre-concert talk by Dr Sophie Lee.

Sunday’s programme features 'Sean-nós in a New Style', an innovative project by Irish composer and pianist Seán Morgan-Rooney. Drawing on his background in traditional Irish music and classical performance, Morgan-Rooney reimagines 10 sean-nós songs as art songs for voice and piano. The work will be performed alongside internationally acclaimed mezzo-soprano Lotte Betts-Dean.

Across the festival’s three main concert programmes, audiences will hear works by Brahms, Schumann, J.S. Bach and Mozart, alongside music by Amy Beach, Bohuslav Martinů, Florence Price, Paul Hindemith and Jean Françaix.

The festival concludes with a celebration of wind chamber music, featuring Mozart’s Quintet for Piano and Winds, together with works by Price, Hindemith and Françaix.

Artistic Directors Billy O'Brien and Siobhán Doyle said the programme reflects the festival's commitment to both tradition and innovation.

"Our 2026 programme celebrates the richness and diversity of chamber music while bringing together established performers, emerging artists and new commissions.” 

The 2026 festival will feature performances by an international roster of musicians, including pianist Maxime Alberti, mezzo-soprano Lotte Betts-Dean, violinists Siobhán Doyle and Mairéad Hickey, pianist Billy O'Brien, composer and pianist Seán Morgan-Rooney, composer Seán Ó Dálaigh, and a distinguished ensemble of Irish and international chamber musicians.

The festival runs from 24 to 26 July at Mount Congreve House and Gardens. Tickets and programme details are available on the festival's website.