Event Marks New Season with the RT Concert Orchestra

RT 's Miriam O'Callaghan welcomed a range of specially invited guests to the National Concert Hall last week for a unique event to mark a new season with the RT Concert Orchestra. Speaking before the Stevie Wonder: Songs in the Key of Life concert, Director-General Kevin Bakhurst said that the RT Concert Orchestra is a real jewel in RT 's crown, and is one of Ireland's most important cultural institutions.

He continued: In 2025 alone, the RT Concert Orchestra's extensive agile and nimble output expanded across genres and regions, delivering an impressive 66 live performances to audiences numbering almost 90,000. This included live concerts, radio broadcasts, recording projects, podcast soundtracks and television projects and the repertoire ranged across movie music, jazz, popular, classical and traditional. The orchestra performed in Dublin, Wexford, Limerick, Offaly, Carlow, Galway, Laois, Louth and Mayo.

One of the things that makes the RT Concert Orchestra so valuable to RT and to audiences is its versatility. Such is the talent that exists in the orchestra that it successfully performs everything from classical masterpieces, opera and film scores to jazz, contemporary music, and collaborations with leading Irish artists. That breadth allows it to reach people who might never otherwise engage with orchestral music and ensures that culture is accessible rather than exclusive.

The Director-General welcomed a new season of concerts, saying that the orchestra has been a powerful platform for Irish creativity. Through collaborations with so many performers, it has helped celebrate and elevate Irish talent at home and abroad.

As part of Ireland's national public service media organisation, the RT Concert Orchestra extends its impact far beyond the country's concert halls. Through television, radio broadcasts on RT Radio 1, lyric fm, Raidi na Gaeltachta and 2fm, and online streams, it brings high-quality live music into homes and lives across the country, ensuring that cultural participation is not limited by geography or circumstance. Whether performing at major national moments, supporting Irish composers, revisiting iconic works of Irish music, or introducing young people to orchestral performance, the orchestra helps to preserve and develop Ireland's cultural heritage for future generations.

Kevin said: The RT Concert Orchestra is not simply an orchestra. It is a national cultural asset-one that enriches artistic life, supports Irish talent, broadens access to culture, and helps tell Ireland's story through music.

You can find out more about the orchestra's upcoming programme at www.rte.ie/co

LINK:	https://about.rte.ie/2026/08/13/event-marks-new-season-with-the-rte-co...
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