Taipei, August 13, 2026. The Evergreen Symphony Orchestra (ESO) will travel to Japan's Kansai region for the final two concerts of its 2026 Asia tour: October 28 in Osaka and October 30 in Kyoto. Ticket sales for both concerts are expected to begin shortly through local ticketing channels. Leading the orchestra will be its Artist-in-Residence, conductor Jaap van Zweden, former Music Director of the New York Philharmonic and the Hong Kong Philharmonic. These final concerts follow the orchestra's July performances in Tokyo and Niigata, which were enthusiastically received by local audiences. Joining the orchestra as soloist is Taiwanese American pianist Eric Lu, gold medalist at the 19th Chopin International Piano Competition in 2025.

On the first half of the program, the orchestra will perform Maurice Ravel's La valse, which opens with an elegant Viennese waltz before spinning slowly toward collapse, at once dazzling and unsettling. Eric Lu will then join and perform Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor, Op. 23. The work was once dismissed as nearly unplayable, but the composer refused to change a single note. It went on to become one of the best-loved piano concertos ever written. The Guardian has called Lu a poet of the keyboard, and here with the ESO, he will share his artistry in Tchaikovsky's powerful concerto.

The program’s second half will close with Dmitri Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 5 in D minor, Op. 47. Written at a time when the composer was under intense political pressure, the symphony combines a monumental scale with undercurrents of anguish, restraint, and tension. Its journey from the dark conflict of the opening movement and the deeply moving third movement to the seemingly triumphant finale has inspired a wide range of interpretations. Following their performance of the symphony in Singapore in late June, van Zweden and the ESO will revisit this twentieth-century masterpiece in Japan, bringing the orchestra’s 2026 Asia tour to a triumphant close.

Additionally, the Evergreen Symphony Orchestra and EverFun Travel have created 'A Kansai Arts Journey,' a tour package for fans wishing to travel to Japan with the orchestra. Along with experiencing the exciting concerts and Japan's most beautiful autumn foliage and forest scenery, participants will receive a specially prepared gift package from the orchestra: items include a custom Chinese-language program book signed by van Zweden and Eric Lu with commemorative card and an NFC keepsake card that plays excerpts of the orchestra's performances. Schedule permitting, a meet-and-greet is also planned with Artist-in-Residence Jaap van Zweden, concertmasters Ting-shuo Chang and William Wei, and the orchestra's section principals. For itinerary and registration details, please visit the Official ESO Website, its social media, or EverFun Travel.