The 2026 Shanghai Summer Music Festival (MISA) runs from July 5 to 20 under the theme “Pioneers—Moving Forward with Music,” with 33 live performances. Among the festival’s most anticipated events is a July 10 appearance by the Randy Brecker Quintet, led by the seven-time Grammy Award winner.
One of the most influential trumpeters in jazz over the past half-century, Brecker will perform with his quintet and present classic works that helped shape modern jazz fusion. The concert offers longtime jazz fans a rare chance to revisit the music’s golden age.
A legendary figure in contemporary jazz, Brecker redefined the language of funk jazz and has had a lasting influence on generations of musicians. A seven-time Grammy winner, his trumpet playing combines technical precision with emotional depth. His explorations of jazz fusion have opened paths for countless artists who followed.
This high-energy concert will also launch MISA 2026’s City Lawn series. The Shanghai Summer Music Festival was founded jointly by the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra and the Shanghai Municipal Education Commission. Since its launch in 2010, it has become China’s first classical cross-genre music festival, with innovation across styles at its core.
Yu Long, MISA’s initiator and music director of the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, said: “For 147 years, the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra has upheld the classical tradition while bravely confronting and breaking through new boundaries and possibilities. We want to bring a pioneering spirit to all the possibilities of ‘Classical+.’”
This year’s festival will also feature a cross-disciplinary Hamlet concert starring Pu Cunxin and Feng Xianzhen, highlights from the film music of John Williams, a meeting of pipa player Wu Man and Silk Road instruments, the Asian debut of the Dark Voice Choir, and many other performances for a summer celebration of music.