Geneva, 15 December 2025 – For more than 80 years, one of the world’s most revered orchestras, the Vienna Philharmonic, has welcomed the New Year with a mesmerizing concert, which demonstrates the power of music to connect people worldwide. The Vienna Philharmonic’s New Year’s Concert, presented by Rolex since 2009 and celebrating artistic heritage, will be performed on the morning of 1 January in the Golden Hall of the city’s historic Musikverein. With a global television and streaming audience of approximately 50 million viewers in more than 150 countries, it is the most watched classical concert on the planet.

Some of the music world’s greatest maestros have conducted the concert, including Herbert von Karajan, Carlos Kleiber, Zubin Mehta, Riccardo Muti, Daniel Barenboim and Rolex Testimonee Gustavo Dudamel. This year, the 2026 concert will see a new name take up the baton: Canadian conductor and Rolex Testimonee Yannick Nézet-Séguin.

“It is an immense honour for me to join my friends of the Vienna Philharmonic and take part in the unique and world-renowned tradition of the New Year’s Concert. As a musician, and as a human being, my passion is to build a bridge from the traditional to the contemporary, to broaden the message of classical music. This programme reflects that vision.” – Yannick Nézet-Séguin.

Renowned for his vibrant vision and spirited conducting, Nézet-Séguin is one of the most influential conductors of his generation.

Among his many honours, the multiple Grammy Award-winner was appointed Companion to the Order of the Arts and Letters of Quebec in 2015 and received Musical America’s Artist of the Year in 2016.

Nézet-Séguin has collaborated with the Vienna Philharmonic since 2010, regularly conducting the orchestra during concerts in Vienna, Salzburg and on tour, as well as at the historic Summer Night Concert in 2023. At the New Year’s Concert – a programme famously consisting of music by composer Johann Strauss – the Rolex Testimonee will bring to life the music of Austrian composer Josephine Weinlich, as well as Florence Price, who in 1933 became the first black female composer to have a symphony performed by a major American orchestra.

The New Year’s Concert, traditionally a celebration of the music of the Strauss dynasty and their contemporaries, is broadcast on television and streamed on Rolex partner medici.tv.

Rolex has been Exclusive Partner of the Vienna Philharmonic since 2008, and the Exclusive Sponsor of the New Year’s Concert since January 2009.

Yannick Nézet-Séguin is one of the world’s leading conductors who is famous for his unconventional style, dynamic leadership and innovative contributions to classical music. In 2018, he was appointed Music Director of the Metropolitan Opera. Since then, the ‘Met’ has embraced a programme that includes more contemporary music. At the age of 25, he was appointed Artistic Director of Montreal’s Orchestre Métropolitain, where he now has a lifetime contract. He joined the Philadelphia Orchestra as Music Director in 2012, revitalizing it by engaging younger audiences with new works. He enjoys close collaborations with the Berlin and Vienna Philharmonics, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and Chamber Orchestra of Europe and has led performances at Teatro alla Scala, the Royal Ballet and Opera, Dutch National Opera, the Vienna State Opera, as well as major festivals such as the Salzburg Festival. He became a Rolex Testimonee in 2024.

ABOUT THE VIENNA PHILHARMONIC
The Vienna Philharmonic is widely acknowledged as one of the world’s most revered orchestras, upholding the greatest traditions in classical music. Founded in 1842 and with more than 180 years of artistic contribution, it is known for its individuality and lustrous sound, as well as for its exacting standards, maintaining artistic integrity and communicating music’s humanitarian message around the world. Today, this is carried out by way of two notable events which are broadcast in numerous countries around the world: the New Year’s Concert and the open-air Summer Night Concert, where, every May or June, over 50,000 people gather in the Palace and Gardens of Schönbrunn in Vienna, known as the capital city of music.

ABOUT ROLEX AND MUSIC
Rolex celebrates human achievement as a journey marked by milestones, emotions and defining moments. For more than half a century, the brand has partnered some of the world’s most talented artists and leading cultural institutions to promote excellence and the transmission of artistic heritage, creating a link between the past, present and future.

Through the Perpetual Arts Initiative, a broad portfolio of arts that extends through architecture, cinema, dance, music, literature, theatre and visual arts, the brand confirms its long-term commitment to global culture.

Rolex has partnerships with internationally renowned opera houses including Teatro alla Scala, the Royal Ballet and Opera, Metropolitan Opera, Opéra national de Paris, Teatro Colón, Opéra de Monte-Carlo and the Opernhaus Zürich. It also supports performing arts centres such as the National Center for the Performing Arts and the Elbphilharmonie.

Rolex promotes music through prestigious festivals and orchestras, including the Salzburg and Whitsun festivals, as well as the Vienna Philharmonic. It also partners ventures that encourage rising young artists such as Operalia – the World Opera Competition, the Kiri Te Kanawa Foundation, the Vienna Philharmonic Academy and the Herbert von Karajan Young Conductors Award.

Rolex Testimonees in music are world-leading artists including Cecilia Bartoli, Benjamin Bernheim, Michael Bublé, Renaud Capuçon, Gustavo Dudamel, Juan Diego Flórez, Hélène Grimaud, Jonas Kaufmann, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Jakub Orlinski, Anoushka Shankar, Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, Sir Bryn Terfel, Rolando Villazón, Sonya Yoncheva and Yuja Wang.

ABOUT ROLEX AN UNRIVALLED REPUTATION FOR QUALITY AND EXPERTISE
Rolex is an integrated and independent Swiss watch manufacture. Headquartered in Geneva, the brand is recognized the world over for its expertise and the quality of its products – symbols of excellence, elegance and prestige. The movements of its Oyster Perpetual and Perpetual watches are certified by COSC, then tested inhouse for their precision, performance and reliability. The Superlative Chronometer certification, symbolized by the green seal, confirms that each watch has successfully undergone tests conducted by Rolex in its own laboratories according to its own criteria. These are periodically validated by an independent external organization.

The word ‘Perpetual’ is inscribed on every Rolex Oyster watch. But more than just a word on a dial, it is a philosophy that embodies the company’s vision and values. Hans Wilsdorf, the founder of the company, instilled a notion of perpetual excellence that would drive the company forward. This led Rolex to pioneer the development of the wristwatch and numerous major watchmaking innovations, such as the Oyster, the first waterproof wristwatch, launched in 1926, and the Perpetual rotor self-winding mechanism, invented in 1931. In the course of its history, Rolex has registered over 600 patents. At its four sites in Switzerland, the brand designs, develops and produces the majority of its watch components. A fifth site, also in Switzerland, is under construction and is expected to open in 2029. Rolex carries out its own manufacturing operations, from casting the gold alloys to machining, crafting, assembling and finishing the movement, case, dial and bracelet. Furthermore, the brand is actively involved in supporting the arts and culture, sport and exploration, as well as those who are devising solutions to preserve the planet.