Rising Stars

14-16 November 2025

In mid November each year, the stars come down from the sky and descend upon Müpa’s Festival Theatre as the ECHO Rising Stars series introduces Europe’s most tantalising performers and calls upon them to dazzle the continent’s top concert halls with their dedication to their craft and outstanding talent. Getting invited on the programme is a major achievement as the performers are nominated by leading concert halls and given the opportunity to prove their worth in front of an international audience.

The year 2025 brings a particularly diverse range of performers promising remarkable encounters at the boundaries of genre, exciting instrumentation and music from a variety of stylistic eras. At the concert by cimbalom player Áron Horváth, classical music and improvisation will merge into one, while the young Georgian pianist Giorgi Gigashvili will unearth new paths from the classical masters to today’s electronic sounds, and Trio Concept will arrive from Italy to light the flame of romance. The cello-accordion duo formed by the Austrian Valerie Fritz and Goran Stevanovich promises to be full of surprises as their programme extends from the Baroque to the contemporary and even includes improvisation. The Dutch-Portuguese Maat Saxophone Quartet navigates the world of female composers with a repertoire extending from the Middle Ages to the present day, and even including music of The Beatles.

At the five concerts, we will once again hear the Hungarian and, in two cases, world premières of works commissioned by young musicians and ECHO. The pieces composed by Charlotte Bray, Natalie Beridze, Clemens K. Thomas, Jennifer Walshe and Alexandra Vrebalov are sure to contribute new chapters to music history. Following the concerts, moderated discussions will make the experience even more profound as they bring the thoughts and inspiration of the artists within touching distance of the audience. All those wishing to get to know Europe’s latest stars can expect an unforgettable weekend.