100 people, 10 cities, 1 memorised piece: April 2026 saw Aurora Orchestra’s longest international tour yet. And if that wasn’t enough, it was with Stravinsky’s “The Rite of Spring”, of course performed by memory. Performances took them back to Southbank Centre London, Cologne Philharmonie, Isarphilharmonie Munich, Tonhalle Zurich, Bern Casino and Victoria Hall Geneva and they celebrated their debuts at Berlin Philharmonie, Audimax Regensburg, de Doelen Rotterdam and Philharmonie Essen.

The concert started with only violoncellos, violas and a single drummer on stage. One after another, orchestra musicians entered the hall, playing the catchy tune of Ravel’s Bolero in between audience members, until the entire hall was filled by the orchestra, surrounding the guests with their sound.

The Bolero was followed by a quick moment of audience participation, in which conductor Nicholas Collon led the audience in clapping some rhythms that he took straight into John Adam’s “Short Ride in a Fast Machine”.

Enter: Hayato Sumino. The Japanese pianist has taken not only Youtube but the classical music industry by storm in the past year. He performed Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” and added an extra jazzy twist by getting some orchestra musicians involved in an impromptu jazz ensemble cadenza, making the audience feel like a New York jazz club on a Friday night.

Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring” is a difficult piece as it is, let alone trying to play it from memory. But Aurora Orchestra once again excelled in their core competence and listening to it and listening to this powerful performance, one could get a feeling of how outrageous the audience must’ve felt at the time of the piece’s premiere.

This huge endeavour was received at the highest critical acclaim by the audiences, who gave standing ovations after every concert half, if not piece, as well as press and promoters. We can’t wait to do this again!