Joe Hisaishi is making New York City his home this summer.
In addition to playing huge concert halls and symphony centers all over North America, the renowned composer has booked nine (!) Big Apple summer concerts.
They are set to take place:
Friday, July 10
Carnegie Hall
Saturday, July 11
Carnegie Hall
Tuesday, Aug. 11
Radio City Music Hall
Wednesday, Aug. 12
Radio City Music Hall
Thursday, Aug. 13
Radio City Music Hall
Friday, Aug. 14
Radio City Music Hall
Saturday, Aug. 15
Radio City Music Hall
Sunday, Aug. 16
Radio City Music Hall
Monday, Aug. 17
Radio City Music Hall
According to the 75-year-old’s Instagram, he’ll be “performing the music of Studio Ghibli classics, plus scores from Takeshi Kitano, Isao Takahata, and more.”
At past concerts, the “Spirited Away” conductor delivered a two-set, two-encore show complete with music from “Howl’s Moving Castle,” “My Neighbor Totoro” and more, according to Set List FM.
As for the visuals, The Guardian claimed in a review of a September 2023 London gig that Hisaishi’s show is made up of “small clips cut between live footage of the performers.”
They added “while ‘Kiki’s Delivery Service,’ ‘Howl’s Moving Castle’ and ‘Ponyo’ are all expertly covered, the biggest cheer of the night [was] for the music of ‘Spirited Away’ – the most iconic theme in Japanese cinema this millennium – whose vocal solos are performed in English and later Japanese.”
Pop Entertainment Blog was ecstatic about the June 2025 Philadelphia show they attended, writing “I can confidently say that I have never been so moved by a performance.”
Joe Hisaishi tickets officially go on sale to the general public on Friday, Dec. 19 at 10 am local time through Ticketmaster but are available now on trusted secondary market sites.
We only recommend sites with a 100% buyer guarantee, so you know your transaction is safe and your tickets will arrive on time.
Joe Hisaishi tickets
Inventory to see Joe Hisaishi live is available on all verified ticketing sites.
We recommend checking out StubHub, Ticketmaster, Vivid Seats and GameTime to find the seats that makes the most sense for you.
Joe Hisaishi tour schedule
A complete calendar including all tour dates, venues and links to buy tickets can be found below.
Joe Hisaishi set list
Most recently, Hisaishi headlined at Philadelphia’s Marian Anderson Hall on Nov. 14. Based on our findings at Set List FM, these are the songs he performed that evening.
Set I
01.) Symphonic Variation “Merry-Go-Round” from Howl’s Moving Castle
02.) “Variations and Fugue on a Theme of Purcell, Op. 34” (Benjamin Britten cover)
Set II
03.) “DA-MA-SHI-E”
04.) “Symphonic Suite Castle in the Sky”
Encore
05.) “One Summer’s Day”
Encore II
06.) “My Neighbor Totoro Series”
Joe Hisaishi new music
2025 has been a busy year for Hisaishi.
Over the past 12 months, the prolific musician re-released the gritty score for the classic ’90s Japanese Yakuza film “Sonatine,” delivered the heart-pounding album “Joe Hisaishi Conducts” (composed of 12 variations of two songs!) and dropped the gorgeous, fantastical “A Big Bold Beautiful Journey” score.
Not a bad run.
To dig even deeper, you can find Hisaishi’s vast discography dating back to 1984 here.
Huge artists on tour in 2025-26
A number of musical whizzes will be bringing their virtuosic talents on the road this year and next.
Here are just five of our absolute favorites you won’t want to miss live these next few months.
• Yo-Yo Ma
• “Lord of the Rings” in concert
Who else is out and about? Take a look at this list of all the biggest classical artists on tour to find the show of your dreams.
Why you should trust ‘Post Wanted’ by the New York Post
This article was written by Matt Levy, New York Post live events reporter. Levy stays up-to-date on all the latest tour announcements from your favorite musical artists and comedians, as well as Broadway openings, sporting events and more live shows – and finds great ticket prices online. Since he started his tenure at the Post in 2022, Levy has reviewed a Bruce Springsteen concert and interviewed Melissa Villaseñor of SNL fame, to name a few. Please note that deals can expire, and all prices are subject to change.