Commencing in the 2026/27 season, the five-year partnership will see Meyers and the orchestra work together to expand violin and orchestra repertoire
Violinist Anne Akiko Meyers and the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra will form an official association beginning in the 2026/27 season.
Meyers will assume the role of artistic partner in a joint effort to expand the violin and orchestra repertoire, through commissions, concert performances and recordings. The appointment of Meyers, set to extend through 2031/32, is one of only a few official collaborations in the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra’s history.
Meyers and Orpheus appeared together in Carnegie Hall in spring 2025 with the world premiere of The Pacific Has No Memory by Eric Whitacre, commissioned in the wake of the Palisades fires.
’I’m deeply honoured to be named artistic partner,’ said Meyers. ’From our first collaborations, the musicians of the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra have inspired me with their extraordinary artistry, trust, and shared sense of purpose.
’Orpheus’s unique musical democracy creates a space where ideas flourish and music-making becomes a truly collective experience. I am especially passionate about working with the composers of our time, giving voice to new stories and expanding the violin repertoire.
’I look forward to what Orpheus and I will imagine, commission, and bring to life together over the next five years.’
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra executive director Alexander Scheirle said: ’We are thrilled to announce the appointment of Anne Akiko Meyers as artistic partner of Orpheus for a five-year term beginning in 2026.
’This partnership reflects a shared commitment to innovation, artistic excellence, and expanding the violin-with-orchestra repertoire for the 21st century.’
Orpheus violinist and artistic director Abi Fayette stated that Meyers would work alongside the artistic directors, collaborating on a selection of composers to commission and helping to shape programmes around those works.
’Rather than centralising authority, the partnership extends the circle of artistic dialogue and reinforces Orpheus’s core values of distributed leadership, mutual listening, and shared artistic ownership,’ said Fayette.
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