The Riga Jurmala Music Festival has announced the formation of the Mariss Jansons Festival Orchestra.

Per a press release, the formation of the ensemble was triggered by the cancelation of the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra. The orchestra will include members of the former Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra as well as members of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, the Concertgebouworkest, the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich and the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra.

The orchestra will honor the legacy of the late Mariss Jansons, who passed away in 2019.

“Mariss loved all the musicians in his orchestras and the musicians loved him. And I think this mutual emotional bond could also be felt by the audience in the performances. He was a great admirer of Claudio Abbado and his Festival Orchestra; somehow Mariss had always wished for something similar. It means a lot to me that this wish is now being granted to him,” said Jansons’ widow Irina Jansons, who approved of her late husband’s name for the orchestra.