British pianist Benjamin Grosvenor returns to Hong Kong for two nights this September, opening Hong Kong Sinfonietta's new 2026/27 season with a solo recital and a Brahms piano concerto on consecutive weekends at Hong Kong City Hall Concert Hall.
In This Guide
Who is Benjamin Grosvenor?
Benjamin Grosvenor is one of the most acclaimed pianists of his generation, with a DECCA Classics discography that has picked up Gramophone Awards, a Diapason d'Or de l'Année and a Choc de l'année. He has appeared with the Chicago Symphony, Boston Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, Gewandhausorchester Leipzig and NHK Symphony, working with conductors including Marin Alsop, Edward Gardner and Kazuki Yamada. The Financial Times has called him simply "the real deal."
His September visit gives Hong Kong audiences two very different sides of his playing: an intimate, unaccompanied recital, and a full-scale Romantic concerto with orchestra — both anchoring the opening weeks of Hong Kong Sinfonietta's new season.
The solo recital: 9 September
Grosvenor opens with a solo recital on Wednesday 9 September 2026 at 8pm, part of the HKS Recital Series. The programme moves from Mozart's Piano Sonata No. 13 in B flat major "Linz" through Beethoven's "Moonlight" Sonata, three of Liszt's Petrarch Sonnets from Années de pèlerinage, and closes with Chopin's Piano Sonata No. 2, the one built around the famous Funeral March. It is a programme that runs from classical restraint to full Romantic drama inside ninety minutes.
The Brahms concerto: 12 September
Three days later, on Saturday 12 September at 8pm, Grosvenor returns with the full orchestra for Brahms' Piano Concerto No. 1 in D minor, conducted by Holly Hyun Choe — Principal Conductor of the Norwegian Radio Orchestra and winner of the 2025 Sir Georg Solti Conducting Award, making her Hong Kong Sinfonietta debut. The programme also includes the Asian premiere of Swedish composer Albert Schnelzer's "Burn My Letters: Remembering Clara" (2019) and Nielsen's Symphony No. 1.
Brahms' First Piano Concerto began life as a symphony before the composer reworked it into one of the concerto repertoire's most demanding works for the soloist — a fitting choice to show off Grosvenor's range on the same stage where, a week earlier, he played entirely alone.
Why does this matter for Hong Kong's concert season?
Both concerts open Hong Kong Sinfonietta's 2026/27 season, themed "Sound Palette," which runs over 40 programmes through the year in collaboration with local and international artists. Landing a pianist of Grosvenor's stature for two distinct programmes in the same fortnight is a strong opening statement, and sits alongside other September highlights on the city's live music calendar, including violinist Kevin Zhu's HKS debut later in the month and the Hong Kong Philharmonic's own season opener under Manfred Honeck.
Dates, venue and tickets
HKS Recital Series: Benjamin Grosvenor Piano Recital
A single-artist recital with no interval works — just under two hours of solo piano moving from Mozart's Classical poise to Chopin's Funeral March sonata.
Great Piano Concertos: Benjamin Grosvenor Plays Brahms
Concession tickets (half-price) are typically available for full-time students, seniors and people with disabilities plus one minder; check URBTIX for current group-booking discounts.
Good to know: the two concerts are sold separately, so you can catch either the recital or the concerto without committing to both — though hearing the same pianist in two completely different settings a few days apart is a rare chance for Hong Kong audiences. For more of the city's autumn concert calendar, see our guide to Hong Kong's autumn 2026 concerts and the wider Hong Kong arts and culture guide.
Frequently Asked Questions
A rare double-bill from one of Britain's finest pianists
Benjamin Grosvenor's two September dates open Hong Kong Sinfonietta's new season with real ambition — catch him solo, with the orchestra, or both. Book through URBTIX before the best seats go.