2026 Berkeley Festival & Exhibition “Pay What You Can” (June 5-14)
primarily in Berkeley, but also in San Francisco and Palo Alto | Berkeley
Event Details
Welcome to the 19th biennial Berkeley Festival and Exhibition—or as we like to refer to it, BFX! Founded in 1990 and produced by the San Francisco Early Music Society (SFEMS), the Festival has become one of the world’s largest and most important early music conclaves, deemed “a remarkable institution on the American musical scene” by The New York Times. This summer, enjoy 21 main stage concerts—including two in Palo Alto and San Francisco—as well as special events, a three-day exhibition, community workshops, and dozens of Fringe presentations. There is truly something for everyone! From Boethius and Bach to gamelan and Gershwin, this year’s lineup promises to entice and enthrall.
Building off the success of BFX 2024, our mainstage concerts will continue to be pay-what-you-can, which have brought record-breaking crowds to SFEMS in recent years. As always, we encourage patrons to “pay it forward”—consider purchasing a subscription to ensure premium seating, and to undergird our commitment to
financial accessibility in early music.
Highlights of this year’s main stage presentations include opening concerts featuring Kaleidoscope Vocal Ensemble and Cantata Collective performing Johann Sebastian Bach’s St John Passion under the baton of legendary conductor Nicholas McGegan. Internationally-acclaimed local luminaries such as Chanticleer, Voices of Music (as Voice of the Viol), Philharmonia Baroque, Musica Pacifica, and Cut Circle will demonstrate the depth and breadth of the Bay Area’s early music scene. We’ll also celebrate the diversity of historically informed performance with presentations from Studio for the Early American Musical, Gamelan Sekar Jaya, and Melody of China. From further afield, we will welcome Music of the Regiment and New York Baroque Dance Company in a celebration of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, as well as Pacific MusicWorks in a scintillating cabaret production. Medieval legends Sequentia will return to BFX after eight years, and keyboard lovers will enjoy presentations from organ virtuoso Jonathan Dimmock and harpsichordist Lillian Gordis, now based in France but originally from Berkeley. The newly-formed Berkeley Youth Choir—a project of SFEMS—will also make its debut. Finally, the Festival will feature an opera for the first time in over two decades, with a semi-staged production of George Frideric Handel’s Alcina, co-produced by Festival Opera and conducted by Festival director Derek Tam.
One of the unique aspects of BFX is the continued strength of the Fringe, a series of independently-produced concerts by soloists and ensembles from around the world. At the 2024 Festival, over 30 Fringe concerts took place, and a similar number will keep music flowing in between main stage events.
Also be sure to check out this year’s Exhibition and Marketplace, a three-day bazaar featuring dozens of national and international makers and sellers of historical instruments, music scores, books, and paraphernalia, as well as abundant information for all early music lovers.
Originally conceived by then-Director of Cal Performances Robert Cole and the late Joseph Spencer, proprietor of the Berkeley institution The Musical Offering Café, the Festival has presented unique and amazing events: Mark Morris Dance Group’s interpretation of Jean-Philippe Rameau’s Platée; “Le Carousel du Roi,” featuring dressage horses and riders executing elaborate ballets from 17th-century France accompanied by shawms and sackbuts in their natural setting (outdoors); and the North American premiere of a long-lost Mass by Alessandro Striggio for 40 and 60 voices. Until his retirement in 2018, Cole served as the Festival’s artistic director. Derek Tam, SFEMS’ executive and artistic director, has served as leader since 2020.
Disclaimer: Please double check event information with the event organizer as events can be canceled, details can change after they are added to our calendar, and errors do occur.
Cost: FREE*
