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SM Entertainment’s classical and jazz label SM Classics will join forces with the renowned Wiener Symphoniker, or Vienna Symphony Orchestra, to stage a K-pop orchestra concert in Austria’s capital next year, the company announced Friday.
Titled “Wiener Symphoniker X K-pop,” the performance will be held on Feb. 16, 2026, at the iconic Konzerthaus Wien concert hall in Vienna — a city long considered the spiritual home of classical music.
The concert is part of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra’s official 2025-2026 season program and marks a significant crossover event where K-pop enters the European classical stage as a standalone act — an unprecedented step that blurs genre boundaries and showcases the global resonance of K-pop culture.
Since its launch in 2020, SM Classics has reimagined SM’s signature K-pop tracks with orchestral and jazz arrangements, expanding the musical scope of K-pop and building original intellectual property rooted in classical reinterpretation.
In February, the label successfully held the first-ever K-pop orchestra concert in collaboration with the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra to commemorate SM Entertainment’s 30th anniversary.
The upcoming collaboration with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra aims to elevate that concept further by pairing K-pop’s melodic identity with the rich and immersive sound of a world-class symphony orchestra.
Founded in 1900, the Vienna Symphony Orchestra is one of Austria’s most respected orchestras and a cultural ambassador for Vienna. Known for its wide repertoire — from traditional to contemporary classical — and over 150 performances per season, the ensemble leads Europe’s classical music scene with innovation and heritage alike.
SM Classics plans to expand its IP through licensing for concerts and orchestral sheet music, spreading its original repertoire worldwide. A Seoul concert at Lotte Concert Hall is also scheduled for August.
