The Endler Concert Series launches its first season of 2026 with an ambitious February-March programme in Stellenbosch, bringing together international star power and some of South Africa’s most compelling performers and ensembles.
Hosted in the Endler Hall and Fismer Hall at the Stellenbosch University Konservatorium, the opening weeks offer a rich blend of chamber music, jazz, orchestral repertoire, and a national festival that draws leading flutists and educators to the Winelands.
Season Opening: Cheng² Duo in Endler Hall
The season opens on Friday, 20 February, with the Cheng² Duo (pronounced “Cheng Squared Duo”), the JUNO-nominated sibling partnership of cellist Bryan Cheng and pianist Silvie Cheng. Born in Ottawa and Tokyo respectively and raised in Canada, the duo has built an international reputation for expressive, joyful performances and striking musical chemistry, with appearances across North America, Europe, Asia, and South Africa.
Bryan Cheng is the only musician in the past 40 years to have won prizes at both the Queen Elisabeth and Geneva International Music Competitions, while Silvie Cheng has held prestigious artistic residencies and fellowships.
Their Endler Hall recital offers a colourful musical journey spanning Spanish flair, English folksong, German Romanticism, and French elegance, with works by Joaquín Nin, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Robert Schumann, Nadia Boulanger, and Francis Poulenc.
Jazz Spotlight: Ramon Alexander Trio
Jazz takes centre stage on Tuesday, 24 February, in Fismer Hall, when pianist Ramon Alexander returns with his trio for a collaboration featuring German bassist Martin Zenker.
Rooted in soulful South African jazz while looking firmly to the future, the programme blends original compositions with reimagined standards, brought to life through groove, lyricism, and deep musical interplay.
War and Peace with the Wits Trio
On Friday, 27 February, Endler Hall hosts the Wits Trio in War and Peace, an emotionally charged programme placing two iconic piano trios in dialogue with history. Beethoven’s “Archduke” Trio, often associated with ideals of liberty and hope, is paired with Shostakovich’s Piano Trio No. 2, a searing response to the devastation of World War II.
A Sold-Out Tribute to Andrew Lloyd Webber
A special one-night-only orchestral event follows on Saturday, 28 February, when the Stellenbosch City Orchestra presents A Tribute to Andrew Lloyd Webber under the baton of Paul van Zuilenburg, with soloists Lynelle Kenned and Louis Loock. Featuring beloved selections from The Phantom of the Opera, Cats, Evita, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Sunset Boulevard, and more, the concert celebrates musical theatre on a grand scale and is already sold out.
South African Flute Festival Comes to Stellenbosch
From 28 February to 4 March, Stellenbosch becomes a national hub for flute performance and pedagogy as it hosts the inaugural South African Flute Festival (SAFF) across Endler and Fismer Hall.
Founded and directed by South African-born flutist Cobus du Toit, Associate Professor of Flute at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, and co-directed by Bridget Rennie-Salonen, the festival brings together students, educators, and professional flutists from across the country.
International guest artist Gareth McLearnon from Ireland features prominently in the programme. Endler Hall highlights include the Flute Choir Concert, One Voice, Many Colours, on Tuesday, 3 March, curated around McLearnon’s music and conducted by the composer, as well as the festival’s Gala Concert, Beyond Breath, on Wednesday, 4 March.
The gala features McLearnon and du Toit alongside pianist Nina Schumann and a professional flute ensemble, and includes the world premiere of a new flute trio by South African composer Hendrik Hofmeyr.
Vocal and Chamber Music Highlights in March
The Endler Concert Series continues on Friday, 6 March, with The Broad and Burning Moon, a luminous vocal chamber programme featuring South African baritone William Berger and the SAMA-nominated Juliet String Quartet. Berger, whose career includes appearances at the Royal Opera House in London and the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., brings an award-winning presence to an evocative programme themed around night and reflection.
The repertoire spans Respighi’s Il Tramonto and Barber’s Dover Beach, alongside intimate new transcriptions of songs by Clara Schumann, William Alwyn’s 3 Winter Poems for String Quartet, and Borodin’s beloved String Quartet No. 2.
Early Music: Cupid’s Arrow
Early music takes the spotlight on Friday, 13 March, when Lutesong Consort presents Cupid’s Arrow – Love Songs from the 17th Century. Exploring the pleasures and torments of love through Italian duets by Monteverdi, Strozzi, Sances, Kapsperger, Merula, and Frescobaldi, the concert features mezzo-sopranos Lente Louw and Lusibalwethu Sesanti. Performed on period instruments, the programme also includes Uwe Grosser on lute and baroque guitar and Vera Vukovič on chitarrone, bringing immediacy and colour to music of enduring emotional power.
USSO and a Luminous Orchestral Finale
Rounding off the March preview on Friday, 20 March, the USSO appears in Endler Hall under the direction of internationally active Dutch conductor Arjan Tien, with mezzo-soprano Minette du Toit-Pearce as soloist. Tien, currently Professor of Conducting at the conservatories of Amsterdam and Maastricht, is widely recognised for his work across symphonic and operatic repertoire and for his imaginative programming.
The programme features Ravel’s Pavane for a Dead Princess and Shéhérazade, alongside Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade, offering a richly coloured close to the season’s opening chapter.
Piano Symposium and National Competition
Later in March, the Konservatorium hosts the Stellenbosch International Piano Symposium from 25 to 29 March 2026. Presented biennially since 2006 by Stellenbosch University’s Department of Music Piano Division, the symposium offers an intensive programme of masterclasses, lectures, and concerts by South African and international pianists.
Running alongside the symposium is the National Hennie Joubert Piano Competition, taking place from 23 to 28 March 2026. The competition forms part of the symposium activities and provides a major platform for South Africa’s gifted young pianists, culminating in a final round with the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra and the popular Piano Extravaganza finale featuring ten pianos on stage.
Endler Concert Series Tickets and Booking Information
Tickets for Endler Concert Series concerts during this period are priced at R170 and R130. Maties students enter free, but must book their complimentary tickets online via Webtickets to guarantee admission.
Ticket prices for South African Flute Festival events vary per concert. The Stellenbosch City Orchestra’s A Tribute to Andrew Lloyd Webber is sold out.
Tickets are available via Webtickets.
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