The New York Philharmonic and Shanghai Symphony Orchestra will extend their partnership—known as the Shanghai Orchestra Academy and Partnership—for four years, through the summer of 2022. The New York Philharmonic will tour to China annually and the orchestra’s musicians, members of Local 802 (New York City) will teach at the Shanghai Orchestra Academy (SOA) four times per season. In addition, SOA students may be selected by audition to travel to New York City to participate in the New York Philharmonic’s Zarin Mehta Fellowship Program, a weeklong immersion into the lives of orchestra musicians.

The Shanghai Orchestra Academy and Partnership, established in 2014, is a two-year post-graduate program designed to address the need for advanced orchestral training in China. Highlights have included New York Philharmonic performances at Shanghai’s MISA festival; master classes, private lessons and chamber music coaching with New York Philharmonic musicians; side-by-side rehearsals and performances; Very Young Composers workshops and performances; Young People’s Concerts; and a free outdoor concert by the New York Philharmonic Principal Brass Quintet.