The acclaimed American conductor and son of legendary violinist Isaac Stern leads the China Philharmonic, Guangzhou Symphony, and Shanghai Symphony in programs featuring prize-winners from the Shanghai Isaac Stern International Violin Competition
Armstrong Music & Arts is proud to announce the April 2026 China tour of renowned American conductor David Stern, represented and organized by the agency. The son of violin legend Isaac Stern and one of today’s most distinguished conductors, Stern will lead three of China’s finest orchestras—the China Philharmonic Orchestra, the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra, and the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra—in a series of three distinctive concert programs across Beijing, Guangzhou, and Shanghai.
The tour represents a major milestone in Sino-Western musical collaboration and showcases extraordinary emerging talent. Three prize-winners from the Shanghai Isaac Stern International Violin Competition—a competition Stern co-chairs—will appear as soloists throughout the tour, continuing the Stern family’s deep commitment to nurturing the next generation of artists.
A Renaissance Artist
While David Stern carries the legacy of his father, violin icon Isaac Stern, he has long established himself as a formidable artistic force in his own right. He stands among today’s most versatile figures in classical music, excelling equally in symphony, opera, and education.
Stern currently serves as Principal Conductor of Palm Beach Opera and has held previous music directorships at the Israeli Opera and Theater St. Gallen. His most personal artistic achievement is the founding of Opera Fuoco in 2003, a Paris-based orchestra and choir dedicated to Baroque and Classical repertoire. Through historically informed yet dramatically vivid performances, Opera Fuoco has revived forgotten masterpieces and redefined operatic presentation, earning widespread international acclaim.
Stern maintains deep ties to China’s musical life through his ongoing role as Co-Chair of the Jury at the Shanghai Isaac Stern International Violin Competition, extending his family’s profound connection to the country.
Three Cities, Three Orchestras, Curated Programs
For this tour, Stern has crafted three distinct programs with each orchestra, traversing the German, Russian, and French traditions.
Beijing | April 5, 2026 | Forbidden City Concert Hall
China Philharmonic Orchestra
The tour opens with Richard Strauss’s sensual “Dance of the Seven Veils” from Salome, followed by Szymanowski’s Violin Concerto No. 2 featuring a Stern Competition prize-winner. The program concludes with Tchaikovsky’s rousing Marche Slave and Prokofiev’s Violin Concerto No. 2 in G minor, showcasing both grandeur and introspection.
Guangzhou | April 9, 2026 | Xinghai Concert Hall
Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra
Stern leads the GSO in Debussy’s impressionistic Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune, followed by Saint-Saëns’ Violin Concerto No. 3 with violinist Thomas Lefort. The second half pairs Tchaikovsky’s Marche Slave with Prokofiev’s Second Violin Concerto, featuring violinist Felicitas Schiffner.
Shanghai | April 12, 2026 | Jaguar Shanghai Symphony Hall
Shanghai Symphony Orchestra
The tour finale presents an especially elegant dialogue between French and Polish impressionism: Chausson’s Poème and Szymanowski’s Violin Concerto No. 2, performed respectively by Felicitas Schiffner and Angela Sin Ying Chan. Following intermission, Thomas Lefort takes the spotlight for Saint-Saëns’ Third Concerto before Stern leads the SSO in Strauss’s “Dance of the Seven Veils”—a dazzling conclusion to this three-city journey.
Rising Stars: The Next Generation from the Stern Competition
All three soloists—Felicitas Schiffner, Thomas Lefort, and Angela Sin Ying Chan—are prize-winners of the Shanghai Isaac Stern International Violin Competition. As Jury Co-Chair, David Stern’s mentorship of these young artists on this tour embodies the competition’s mission and carries forward his family’s enduring commitment to artistic legacy through cross-generational dialogue.
“We are honored to present this significant tour, which brings together an artist of David Stern’s stature with three of China’s great orchestras and an exciting new generation of string talent,” said by Evita Zhang, CEO of Armstrong Music & Arts. “This is not simply a conductor’s visit, but a musical conversation across generations, and we are thrilled to share it with Chinese audiences.”
