Photo credits: Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo Instagram.
For over six decades, the Monte-Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra has transformed the Cour d’Honneur at the Prince’s Palace of Monaco into a stage of unparalleled elegance, where summer evenings resonate with the finest symphonic music. Initiated by Prince Rainier III and Princess Grace in 1959, these concerts, held in the palace’s historic courtyard, embody Monaco’s deep-rooted patronage of the arts, a legacy tracing back to the Grimaldi Princes’ friendships with composers like Couperin and Lully. This summer, from July 10 to August 7, 2025, the orchestra presents five concerts, including a special performance of Paul McCartney and Carl Davis’s Liverpool Oratorio, offering a rare blend of classical tradition and modern spectacle.
The 2025 season opens on July 10 in the Cour d’Honneur with veteran conductor Lawrence Foster leading the orchestra in Beethoven’s Creatures of Prometheus Overture, Henryk Wieniawski’s Violin Concerto No. 2, and Zoltán Kodály’s Háry János Suite, featuring the young Swedish violinist Daniel Lozakovich, lauded for his “effortless, unbroken purity” of tone. On July 20, Kazuki Yamada, the orchestra’s music director, conducts Weber’s Jubel Overture, Mendelssohn’s Concerto for Two Pianos, and Brahms’ Symphony No. 4, with Dutch pianists Lucas and Arthur Jussen, celebrated as “like driving a pair of BMWs” for their seamless synergy. The highlight arrives on July 27—not in the palace but at the Grimaldi Forum due to the work’s scale—where Yamada leads the Liverpool Oratorio, a monumental piece by McCartney and Davis, performed with the CBSO Chorus and the Académie Rainier III Children’s Choir. On July 31, Swiss conductor Charles Dutoit takes the podium for Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 1, Ravel’s Valses nobles et sentimentales, and Respighi’s Pines of Rome, with French pianist David Fray, known for his performances with the world’s finest orchestras. The series concludes on August 3 and 7 with Tianyi Lu and Emmanuel Tjeknavorian conducting works by Beethoven, Prokofiev, Liszt, Bruch, and Strauss, featuring soloists Georgijs Osokins and Sergey Khachatryan.
Set against the backdrop of the Prince’s Palace, these concerts are more than musical events—they are a testament to Monaco’s cultural heritage, where history and artistry converge under the Mediterranean stars. With the Liverpool Oratorio as a centerpiece, the 2025 season promises to captivate both seasoned concertgoers and newcomers, making it a must-experience moment in the Principality’s summer calendar.