2026/27 SEASON PREVIEW

SEPTEMBER 2026

DAVÓNE TINES // SEPTEMBER 2-6 // NEW YORK, NY

DAVÓNE TINES IS A FEATURED SOLOIST IN 100 YEARS OF ALLEN GINSBURG CELEBRATIONS AT LITTLE ISLAND

Following his critically acclaimed appearance in Little Island’s production of The Gospel at Colonus, where critics hailed his “vocal range wider than the expanse from the underworld to heaven” and called his performance “nothing short of transcendent” (BroadwayWorld), Grammy-nominated bass-baritone Davóne Tines returns to The Amph as a featured performer in Allen Ginsberg at 100, a centennial celebration of the legendary poet curated by acclaimed pianist and producer Thomas Bartlett. Across five evenings, the series celebrates the enduring influence of one of New York’s defining literary voices, bringing together an extraordinary roster of artists, including Laurie Anderson, Anne Waldman, Jennifer Charles, Rufus Wainwright, and Bill Frisell, to reimagine Ginsberg’s poetry through music, spoken word, and performance.

CEDILLE RECORDS // SEPTEMBER 4 // RECORDING

CEDILLE RECORDS RELEASES BRIEFLY GORGEOUS, THE DEBUT RECORDING OF ITS 2025 EMERGING ARTIST COMPETITION WINNER, MULTI-INSTRUMENTALIST OLIVER TALUKDER

Cedille Records will release Briefly Gorgeous, the debut solo album of Mexican-Bengali multi-instrumentalist Oliver Talukder, featuring pianist Moriah Trenk. Born and raised in the suburbs of Chicago, Talukder was the winner of Cedille Records' 2025 Emerging Artist Competition, which awarded him a recording contract with the label. Taking its title from Ocean Vuong's acclaimed novel On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous, the album explores themes of identity, memory, family, and belonging through emotionally resonant works by living and historically underrecognized composers. The program brings together music from a range of cultural traditions and perspectives, including American composer Jeffrey Agrell’s virtuosic Blues for D.D., a fusion of blues, swing, Latin rhythms, and bebop; Russian composer Marina Dranishnikova’s haunting Poème, a dramatic meditation of lyrical intensity and loss; Alyssa Morris’s Four Personalities, inspired by the four archetypes of the Hartman Personality Test; Florence Price’s Five Songs, arranged by Talukder; Reena Esmail’s Jhula Jhule, a personal reflection on heritage and memory; and Arturo Márquez’s iconic Danzón No. 2, also arranged by Talukder. Demonstrating his versatility, Talukder performs multiple woodwind instruments throughout the album, including oboe, English horn, flute, and piccolo. Talukder is a graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music and is currently pursuing a graduate degree at The Juilliard School. As part of Cedille’s dedication to supporting Chicago-based artists, the label covers 100% of the recording, production, and marketing expenses for Emerging Artist Competition winners.

WOLF TRAP // SEPTEMBER 12 // VIENNA, VA

WYNTON MARSALIS' SYMPHONY NO. 5, LIBERTY, RECEIVES ITS WORLD PREMIERE WITH THE NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA AND JAZZ AT LINCOLN CENTER ORCHESTRA AT WOLF TRAP 

Wolf Trap presents the world premiere of Wynton Marsalis' Symphony No. 5, Liberty, a major new work co-commissioned by the National Symphony Orchestra and Wolf Trap Foundation in honor of America250. Bringing together the National Symphony Orchestra under conductor James Gaffigan with Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, Liberty blends jazz, blues, and symphonic traditions in a sweeping reflection on the American experience. The performance also marks one of the signature events of Marsalis' final season as Artistic Director of Jazz at Lincoln Center, adding further significance to the debut of his newest large-scale work. Set in the country's only national park dedicated to the performing arts, the premiere underscores Wolf Trap's distinctive role as a gathering place for major American artistic events. 

JENNIFER KOH // SEPTEMBER 17 // NEW YORK

JENNIFER KOH CELEBRATES THE RELEASE OF THE AMERICAN CONCERTO, VOLUME ONE AT KI SMITH GALLERY 

Following the August 14 release of The American Concerto, Volume One on Cedille Records, Jennifer Koh celebrates the launch of the first album in her landmark recording series with a special listening party at New York's Ki Smith Gallery. The evening features selections from the recording, live performance, and a conversation between Koh and composer-pianist Vijay Iyer exploring the ideas behind The American Concerto, Koh's long-term commissioning initiative that invites composers to reimagine the violin concerto through contemporary American experiences, identities, and stories. The album features Iyer's Trouble and the world premiere recording of Courtney Bryan's Syzygy, performed with the Oberlin Contemporary Music Ensemble conducted by Timothy Weiss. 

JENNIFER KOH // SEPTEMBER 24 // NEW YORK

JENNIFER KOH PERFORMS BACH'S COMPLETE SONATAS AND PARTITAS FOR SOLO VIOLIN AT MILLER THEATER

Grammy Award-winning violinist Jennifer Koh performs Bach's complete Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin at Miller Theatre, an extraordinary undertaking rarely presented in a single concert. A cornerstone of her repertoire for decades, the more than two-hour cycle remains a continual source of artistic discovery. Koh approaches these landmark works not as fixed masterpieces, but as living music that continues to reveal new meaning with each performance, bringing to Bach the same spirit of inquiry that has defined her work with today's leading composers. Earlier in the month (September 6) she performs the complete cycle at the Southern Vermont Arts Center as part of the Manchester Music Festival, making Bach's Sonatas and Partitas a central focus of her fall season. 

DAVÓNE TINES // SEPTEMBER 25, MARCH 12 & 13, JUNE 6 // NORFOLK, LOS ANGELES, BALTIMORE

DAVÓNE TINES PERFORMS IN PHILIP GLASS’ SYMPHONY NO. 15, “LINCOLN,” WITH THE VIRGINIA SYMPHONY, LOS ANGELES PHILHARMONIC, AND THE BALTIMORE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA AS PART OF THE COMPOSER’S 90TH BIRTHDAY CELEBRATIONS

As one of today's foremost interpreters of Philip Glass's music, the "serene yet simmering" (The New York Times) Davóne Tines takes on the baritone role in Glass's fifteenth and final symphony, “Lincoln,” in a series of performances across the U.S. and the U.K. Comprising eight movements, the work explores themes of democracy, civility, and national identity through texts drawn from Abraham Lincoln's 1838 Lyceum Address and his 1864 autobiographical sketch. A Virginia-native, Tines's longstanding artistic relationship with the Virginia Symphony Orchestra spans more than a decade, beginning with workshops for the second act of Matthew Aucoin's opera Crossing in 2015 and evolving into a series of major performances and recordings. A leading interpreter of Glass's work, Tines has brought the composer's music to major international stages, including the critically acclaimed 2025–26 production of Satyagraha at Paris's Palais Garnier, where Parterre Box praised him for "exhibiting a powerful, dramatic, and vocal personality." This season, he performs “Lincoln” with the Virginia Symphony Orchestra (September 25), the Los Angeles Philharmonic (March 12 & 13), and the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (June 4-6). The September 25 performance of Philip Glass's “Lincoln” will be recorded for commercial release in January 2027.

MINNESOTA ORCHESTRA // SEPTEMBER 25 & 26, OCTOBER 1-3 // MINNEAPOLIS

THOMAS SØNDERGÅRD LAUNCHES THE MINNESOTA ORCHESTRA'S 2026–27 SEASON WITH TWO WEEKENDS OF OPENING CONCERTS, INAUGURATING THE SOUND UNBOUND SERIES AND TAL ROSNER'S IMMERSIVE VISUAL REALIZATION OF STRAVINSKY'S THE FIREBIRD 

In his fourth season as Music Director of the Minnesota Orchestra, Thomas Søndergård launches the 2026-27 season with two weekends of concerts that introduce Sound Unbound, a multi-year initiative expanding the traditional concert experience through immersive visual storytelling and interdisciplinary collaboration. The opening weekend, September 25 & 26, culminates in Stravinsky's complete ballet The Firebird, transformed through original video, graphics, and lighting by BAFTA Award-winning visual artist Tal Rosner, whose collaborations with leading orchestras and opera companies have helped redefine the relationship between music and moving image. Conceived as a fully integrated visual experience rather than a concert accompanied by projections, the production reflects Søndergård's vision for creating transformative, theatrical orchestral performances that invite audiences to experience familiar masterpieces in new ways. The program also features Van Cliburn Competition Gold Medalist Vadym Kholodenko performing Prokofiev's Piano Concerto No. 2 and George Walker's Icarus in Orbit. The season-opening celebration continues October 1–3 with violinist Stefan Jackiw performing Mozart's Violin Concerto No. 5, "Turkish," framed by Gabriela Smith's Tumblebird Contrails, which she describes as “imagining the ecstasy of wind in the wings,” and Prokofiev’s penultimate Sixth Symphony.

JAMES CONLON // SEPTEMBER 25-OCTOBER 17 // PARMA, ITALY

JAMES CONLON CONDUCTS VERDI'S ALZIRA AT TEATRO REGIO DI PARMA

Following the close of his landmark 20-year tenure as Music Director of LA Opera in the 2025-26 season, celebrated conductor James Conlon returns to the Teatro Regio di Parma podium for a major new production of Verdi’s early opera Alzira at Italy’s acclaimed Festival Verdi. Bringing his globally recognized expertise in Verdi’s repertoire to one of the composer’s least performed works, Conlon conducts the Filarmonica Arturo Toscanini and Chorus of the Teatro Regio di Parma in a new staging by director Manuel Renga. The production reexamines the 1845 opera, based on Voltaire’s Alzire, as part of Festival Verdi’s ongoing commitment to illuminating both celebrated masterpieces and rarely heard works from the composer’s canon. The production stars Marta Torbidoni in the title role alongside Antonio Poli, Daniel Luis de Vicente, and Alessio Cacciamani.

OCTOBER 2026

CEDILLE RECORDS // OCTOBER 9 // RECORDING

CEDILLE RECORDS RELEASES AMERICAN PORTRAITS, THE FINAL AMERICAN COLLECTIONS ALBUM, FEATURING NEW WORKS BY JENNIFER HIGDON AND GABRIELA LENA FRANK WITH NARRATION BY NINA TOTENBERG

American Portraits, the multiple Grammy Award-winning Pacifica Quartet's third installment in its acclaimed American Collections series, features a program exploring moments of grief, resilience, and national reflection through music. Praised by Gramophone for its "warmth of phrasing, dynamic control and superbly coordinated ensemble balance," the Pacific Quartet’s series continues with newly commissioned works including Jennifer Higdon’s Steps for Justice honoring Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Gabriela Lena Frank’s The Edge of Everything, a portrait of environmental activist Rachel Carson. Both works, written for string quartet and narrator, are performed with NPR legal affairs correspondent and Ginsburg's close friend Nina Totenberg. The album also includes Samuel Barber's String Quartet in B minor, whose famous Adagio became a symbol of national mourning following President John F. Kennedy's assassination, and George Crumb's Black Angels ("Thirteen Images from the Dark Land"), a searing response to the Vietnam War. Cedille will release the complete American Collections series as a box set on November 13. 

JAMES CONLON // OCTOBER 10 // PARMA, ITALY

JAMES CONLON CONDUCTS THE ANNUAL GALA VERDIANO CELEBRATING THE COMPOSER'S 213TH BIRTHDAY AS PART OF THE FESTIVAL VERDI AT THE TEATRO REGIO DI PARMA

In the midst of conducting Festival Verdi's new production of Alzira, James Conlon leads the Festival's annual Gala Verdiano, the centerpiece of Parma's celebration of Giuseppe Verdi's 213th birthday. Conducting the Filarmonica Toscanini and Chorus of the Teatro Regio di Parma, Conlon presents a program inspired by the Festival's 2026 theme, Mondi lontani ("Faraway Worlds"), featuring excerpts from Verdi's Il Corsaro and Jérusalem alongside the overture to Antônio Carlos Gomes' Il Guarany. Long recognized as one of today's foremost Verdian conductors, Conlon brings his deep understanding of the composer's music to this annual tribute in Verdi's hometown. 

GREEK NATIONAL OPERA // OCTOBER 15 // NEW YORK

GREEK NATIONAL OPERA MAKES THEIR CARNEGIE HALL DEBUT PERFORMING WORKS INSPIRED BY NIKOS KAZANTZAKIS

This fall, the Greek National Opera makes its Carnegie Hall debut with Nikos Kazantzakis: An Odyssey in Music, a celebration of the legendary Cretan writer whose novel Zorba the Greek introduced generations of readers around the world to the spirit of Greece. Rooted in the traditions and culture of his native Crete, the program explores Kazantzakis's enduring influence through music spanning more than a century of Greek composition. Highlights include Georgian soprano Anita Rachvelishvili performing selections from Mikis Theodorakis's Zorbas; Manos Hadjidakis's Captain Michalis, based on Kazantzakis's novel of the same name, with Greek soprano Maria Kostraki; Nikos Skalkottas's Three Cretan Dances; Dimitri Mitropoulos's Cretan Feast in Skalkottas's orchestration; and the U.S. premiere of Amor Fati, an orchestral work by GNO Artistic Director Giorgos Koumendakis inspired by Kazantzakis's philosophy. Together, the works reflect the artistic traditions of Crete while showcasing the breadth and vitality of Greece's musical heritage on one of the world's great stages. 

JENNIFER KOH // OCTOBER 16, 18, JANUARY 16 // PHILADELPHIA, SCHENECTADY, LOS ANGELES

JENNIFER KOH AND VIJAY IYER PREMIERE SCENES OF LIVING AND DYING: PART II 

Violinist Jennifer Koh and composer-pianist Vijay Iyer continue their longtime artistic collaboration this fall with the world premiere of Scenes of Living and Dying: Part II, opening the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society's 41st season on October 16, and continuing on to Capital Region Classical in Troy, New York (October 18) and UCLA's Center for the Art of Performance (January 16). The latest work in their evolving partnership explores humanity's shared experiences at the boundaries between life and death through a series of musical scenes that blend composed and improvised music. The program also includes Scenes of Living and Dying: Part I, which premiered at Jennifer Koh's Sounds of US new music marathon in 2024, The Diamond, Iyer's duo for violin and piano written for Koh, and Iyer's solo violin works alongside selections from Bach's Sonatas and Partitas. 

WU MAN // OCTOBER 16 & 23 // HANOVER, NH

WU MAN, 2026-2027 HOP ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE AT DARTMOUTH, PERFORMS TWO SOLO RECITALS AND JOINS THE KRONOS QUARTET FOR THREE BONES

Pipa virtuoso Wu Man, widely recognized as one of the foremost pipa players in the world and a pioneering advocate for the instrument’s place in contemporary music, has been named the 26/27 Hop Artist-in-Residence at Dartmouth. As part of her residency, Wu Man presents two back-to-back solo recitals at Morris Recital Hall (October 16), featuring a wide-ranging program spanning traditional Chinese repertoire, cross-cultural collaborations, and contemporary works by leading composers. She also reunites with the Kronos Quartet for “Three Bones” (October 23), a semi-staged, multisensory triptych created in honor of America’s 250th anniversary that explores the histories and cultural legacies of Indigenous, Gullah-Geechee, and Chinese American communities. A pioneering collaborator with Kronos since 1992, Wu Man joins forces with the quartet for the work’s final panel, performing new music by Dai Wei while tracing the personal stories of Chinese Americans who advanced civil and immigrant rights in San Francisco. The residency continues Wu Man’s decades-long commitment to bridging cultures through music, from preserving the pipa’s rich heritage to expanding its expressive possibilities through collaborations with artists across disciplines.

DAVÓNE TINES // OCTOBER 23-28 // COLUMBUS, OH & NEW YORK

DAVÓNE TINES PRESENTS CONCERTO NO. 2: ANTHEM WITH THE COLUMBUS SYMPHONY AT OHIO HALL AND CARNEGIE HALL

Davóne Tines joins the Columbus Symphony for its 75th Anniversary season with performances of his groundbreaking Concerto No. 2: ANTHEM, a work for voice and orchestra that examines nationhood, identity, and our collective visions of America. Following the traditional concerto form, ANTHEM opens with “The Star-Spangled Banner,” including its lesser-known verses in an arrangement by Michael Schachter, before expanding into text by poet Mahogany L. Browne and the movement “Americana? v. Oh Freedom,” co-composed by Tines’ frequent collaborators, Pulitzer Prize winners Caroline Shaw and Tyshawn Sorey, culminating in an arrangement of Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing by Tines and Schachter. Through the work, Tines asks what ideals a nation should aspire toward and explores the songs, histories, and voices that shape the American experience. Conducted by Rossen Milanov, the program also features the world premiere of The Mysteries, a newly commissioned work by acclaimed American composer Gregory Spears, and Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5. The performances take place as part of the Columbus Symphony’s 75th Anniversary celebrations at the Ohio Theatre in Columbus (October 23–24), followed by an anniversary concert at Carnegie Hall in New York (October 28). Tines also performs Concerto No. 2: ANTHEM this season for his Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin debut (December 13).

JENNIFER KOH // OCTOBER 24 & 25 // MIAMI

JENNIFER KOH PERFORMS PHILIP GLASS’ VIOLIN CONCERTO NO. 1 WITH THE NEW WORLD SYMPHONY


Jennifer Koh returns to the New World Center’s Michael Tilson Thomas Performance Hall to perform Philip Glass’s Violin Concerto No. 1 with the New World Symphony under the direction of Stéphane Denève, celebrating Glass’s 90th birthday and one of the defining American concertos of the late 20th century. The performance reflects the evolving scope of The American Concerto project, Koh’s long-term artistic initiative exploring the rich history and future of American music for violin and orchestra. Originally conceived as a commissioning project for new works, the initiative has expanded to encompass landmark concertos by both living and historical American composers, creating a broader portrait of the American violin concerto tradition. Koh’s artistic relationship with Glass spans more than a decade, beginning with Robert Wilson’s 2012 revival of Einstein on the Beach and continuing through numerous performances of his music, deepening a shared commitment to expanding the boundaries of contemporary American music.

NOVEMBER 2026

WOLF TRAP // NOVEMBER 1 // VIENNA, VA

WOLF TRAP PRESENTS THE GILDED AGE: PART 1 CURATED BY ARTISTIC ADVISOR VIOLINIST DANIEL HOPE WITH PIANIST MAXIM LANDO

Violinist Daniel Hope launches his second year as Wolf Trap's Artistic Advisor of Chamber Music at The Barns with the first recital in a two-part series focused on the Gilded Age. Joined by American pianist Maxim Lando, known for his “brilliance and infectious exuberance” (The New York Times), Hope, recognized as one of the “few figures in today’s classical music who so perfectly embody the role of ambassador for music” (Gramophone), explores the musical ties between Europe and America during the Gilded Age. The program features works by Enescu, Ravel, Elgar, and Franck, reflecting the crosscurrents of European and American musical life at the turn of the 20th century. The second recital in the Gilded Age series will be performed January 24. 

MINNESOTA ORCHESTRA // NOVEMBER 5-14 // MINNEAPOLIS

THOMAS SØNDERGÅRD AND OSMO VÄNSKÄ UNITE FOR THE MINNESOTA ORCHESTRA'S THIRD ANNUAL NORDIC SOUNDSCAPES FESTIVAL 

Music Director Thomas Søndergård and Conductor Laureate Osmo Vänskä share the podium for the Minnesota Orchestra’s third annual Nordic Soundscapes Festival, a two-weekend celebration of the music, culture, and traditions of northern Europe. Their joint participation offers a rare opportunity to experience performances led by both the Orchestra’s current artistic leader and the conductor whose celebrated 19-year tenure helped define its modern artistic identity. Held for the first time in November rather than January, the festival aligns with the season most closely associated with the Nordic tradition of “hygge,” placing an emphasis on warmth, togetherness, and shared cultural experiences. Søndergård opens the festival in Minneapolis (November 5–7) with Grieg’s Norwegian Dances, Sibelius’ Symphony No. 2, and Anders Hillborg’s Piano Concerto No. 2, MAX, featuring pianist Jon Kimura Parker. He also leads the festival’s first-ever Family Concert, The Musical Tales of Hans Christian Andersen (November 8), bringing Nordic storytelling and music to audiences of all ages. Vänskä returns the following weekend (November 13–14) to conduct the Violin Concerto by his late friend Jaakko Kuusisto with violinist Stella Chen, alongside Outi Tarkiainen’s Songs of the Ice and Nielsen’s Symphony No. 6.

WU MAN // NOVEMBER 7-12 // U.S. TOUR: PART 1

WU MAN LAUNCHES 12-CITY U.S. TOUR WITH AGA KHAN MASTER MUSICIANS, VINCENT PEIRANI & VINCENT SÉGAL, WITH FALL PERFORMANCES IN HOUSTON, RICHARDSON, TX, AND URBANA, IL 

Pipa virtuoso Wu Man launches a 12-city U.S. tour with the Aga Khan Master Musicians, joined by French accordionist, vocalist, and composer Vincent Peirani and celebrated cellist and bassist Vincent Ségal. Together they present a collaborative program inspired by the musical traditions of the Silk Road, reimagining music from the Middle East, the Mediterranean, Central Asia, and China through improvisation, newly created works, and traditional melodies. The fall itinerary includes performances at the Ismaili Center in Houston (November 7), the Eisemann Center in Richardson, TX (November 8), and Krannert Center for the Performing Arts in Urbana, IL (November 12). A founding member of the Aga Khan Music initiative, Wu Man has collaborated with the Aga Khan organization for more than two decades, including the acclaimed Borderlands: Wu Man and Master Musicians from the Silk Route (Smithsonian Folkways), which traces the pipa's historical journey from Persia and Central Asia into China. The tour continues in spring 2027 with an additional nine performances from April 2-23. 

WU MAN // NOVEMBER 14 // NEW YORK

WU MAN CELEBRATES THE 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE SILK ROAD ENSEMBLE AT CARNEGIE HALL

A founding member of the Grammy Award-winning Silkroad Ensemble, Wu Man returns to Carnegie Hall with the ensemble's founder, Yo-Yo Ma, and current artistic director, Pulitzer Prize-winning folk musician and multi-instrumentalist Rhiannon Giddens, to celebrate Silkroad's 25th anniversary of connecting the world through music. Guided by the question, "What happens when strangers meet?," Silkroad brings together world-class musicians from across the globe to foster cultural exchange through collaborative music-making. Beyond the concert stage, the social impact organization works with culturally rich urban, rural, Indigenous, and refugee communities, using the arts to build connection, learning, and healing across borders. The Carnegie Hall performance will also feature clarinetist Kinan Azmeh, bassist Shawn Conley, tabla player Sandeep Das, percussionists Haruka Fujii and Shane Shanahan, Celtic harpist Maeve Gilchrist, violinist Colin Jacobsen, cellist Karen Ouzounian, violinist and vocalist Mazz Swift, accordionist and percussionist Francesco Turrisi, shakuhachi player Kojiro Umezaki, and Japanese flutist and percussionist Kaoru Watanabe.

CEDILLE RECORDS // NOVEMBER 6 // RECORDING

CEDILLE RECORDS RELEASES IN SYMPATHY, A NEW ALBUM OF SAXOPHONE MUSIC BY MISCHA ZUPKO FEATURING THE WORLD-PREMIERE RECORDING OF THE TITLE WORK FOR SAXOPHONIST TIMOTHY MCALLISTER AND CIVITAS ENSEMBLE, ALONGSIDE PERFORMANCES BY THE ~NOIS SAXOPHONE QUARTET

Cedille Records will release In Sympathy, an album centered on works for saxophone by Chicago-based pianist and composer Mischa Zupko, whose music has been praised for its "force and eloquence" (Positive Feedback). The recording features the "warm and glittering" (Gramophone) saxophonist Timothy McAllister, Zupko, the award-winning ~Nois Saxophone Quartet, and Civitas Ensemble. Inspired by conversations with theoretical physicists Chris Quigg and Luis Mendoza, the title work explores sympathetic resonance, a phenomenon in which one object vibrates in response to another at the same frequency. Written during Zupko's 2024 residency as Guest Composer at Fermilab National Accelerator Laboratory, In Sympathy uses acoustic instruments to activate a chorus of tuned wine glasses without electronic amplification, drawing parallels between resonance in science and music. McAllister and the Civitas Ensemble participated in the early development of the work, helping realize the musical potential of its innovative resonant system. The album also includes the premiere recording of Zupko's new arrangement of Anechoic Rhapsody for saxophone and ensemble, reimagined from its original version for clarinet; Tailgate, for soprano saxophone and piano, channeling danger, speed, and road rage; and From the Skyline, a three-movement work for tenor saxophone and piano inspired by the sweeping views from a fifteenth-floor Chicago apartment. 

DAVÓNE TINES // NOVEMBER 12-14 // BOSTON

DAVÓNE TINES PERFORMS IN THE WORLD PREMIERE OF OSVALDO GOLIJOV AND DAVID HENRY HWANG’S CREATION WITH THE BOSTON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

Davóne Tines joins the Boston Symphony Orchestra for the world premiere of Argentine-born American composer Osvaldo Golijov’s Creation set to a text by Tony Award-winning playwright David Henry Hwang. Conducted by Eric Jacobsen, the performance also features French-American jazz vocalist Cécile McLorin Salvant, percussionist Cyro Baptista, and Iranian instrumentalist and composer Kayhan Kalhor. Following his 2024 BSO appearance in Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 at Tanglewood, Tines reunites with the orchestra for this ambitious new commission, which responds to Haydn’s great oratorio The Creation in a musically eclectic and dynamic exploration of the shared themes. Golijov’s approach recalls his Bach-inspired La Pasión según San Marcos, which received its American premiere at Symphony Hall in 2001.

CEDILLE RECORDS // NOVEMBER 13 // RECORDING

CEDILLE RECORDS RELEASES PACIFICA QUARTET'S AMERICAN COLLECTION BOX SET

Cedille Records will release the Pacifica Quartet's complete American Collection series as a box set, bringing together the quartet's Grammy Award-nominated American Stories (2022), American Voices (2024), and American Portraits (2026). Spanning more than a century of American music, the collection pairs landmark works by Antonín Dvořák, Florence Price, Samuel Barber, George Crumb, Louis Gruenberg, and others with newly commissioned works by James Lee III, Richard Danielpour, Ben Shirley, Jennifer Higdon, Gabriela Lena Frank, and Valerie Coleman. A landmark document of the two-time Grammy Award-winning ensemble's commitment to championing American music and expanding the string quartet repertoire, the set features collaborations with an extraordinary roster of artists and cultural voices, including clarinetist Anthony McGill, cellist Eric Kim, violinist Milena Pajaro-van de Stadt, pianist Orion Weiss, Uniting Voices Chicago, and NPR legal affairs correspondent Nina Totenberg. Together, the three albums explore themes of identity, justice, community, resilience, and remembrance, celebrating the richness and diversity of the American experience through enduring masterworks alongside newly commissioned compositions.

JAMES CONLON // NOVEMBER 15-24 // FLORENCE, ITALY

JAMES CONLON CONDUCTS VERDI'S SIMON BOCCANEGRA AT THE MAGGIO MUSICALE FIORENTINO

Continuing his Italian tour and focus on Verdi, James Conlon returns to the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino to lead a new production of Simon Boccanegra, one of the composer’s signature mature masterpieces and an opera Conlon has championed throughout his career. A longtime advocate for Verdi's later works, Conlon brings decades of experience with Boccanegra to a score renowned for its psychological complexity, sustained orchestral tension, and seamless integration of music and drama. Directed by Àlex Ollé of La Fura dels Baus, the staging explores the opera’s dark political and familial landscape in 14th-century Genoa, highlighting Verdi’s profound writing for baritone and bass voices and his fusion of intimate human drama with questions of power, governance, and historical upheaval. The cast features George Petean in the title role, with Jongmin Park as Jacopo Fiesco and Carolina López Moreno as Amelia Grimaldi, among others. 

WU MAN // NOVEMBER 19 & 20 // LOS ANGELES

WU MAN GIVES THE WORLD PREMIERE OF MASON BATES'S PIPA CONCERTO WITH THE LOS ANGELES CHAMBER ORCHESTRA

Wu Man joins the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra and conductor Ludovic Morlot for the world premiere of Mason Bates's Pipa Concerto, a work co-commissioned by the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra and The Philadelphia Orchestra and written especially for her. Marking their first collaboration, the concerto brings together two artists celebrated for expanding the possibilities of their respective musical traditions—Bates through his distinctive orchestral voice and Wu Man through her decades-long advocacy for the pipa. Since coming to the United States in 1990, Wu Man has inspired an extraordinary body of concerto repertoire for the instrument, with major works by composers including Du Yun, Tan Dun, Lou Harrison, Terry Riley, Ye Xiaogang, and Jiping Zhao. Bates's concerto adds a significant new work to the pipa repertoire Wu Man has helped build. 

JENNIFER KOH // NOVEMBER 20-22 // PHOENIX

JENNIFER KOH PERFORMS BARBER’S VIOLIN CONCERTO WITH THE PHOENIX SYMPHONY AS PART OF THE EVOLUTION OF THE AMERICAN CONCERTO

Jennifer Koh returns to the Phoenix Symphony this fall to perform Samuel Barber's Violin Concerto under the direction of Tito Muñoz. Originally conceived as a commissioning project for new works, The American Concerto has evolved into a broader exploration of the American violin concerto, spanning landmark works of the 20th and 21st centuries alongside the concertos commissioned through the initiative. By placing canonical works such as Barber's Violin Concerto and Philip Glass's Violin Concerto No. 1 in conversation with newly commissioned concertos, Koh offers a wider perspective on the richness and evolution of American music for violin and orchestra. She continues this exploration throughout the season with performances of Barber's concerto at the Greater Bridgeport Symphony (October 3) and Glass's Violin Concerto No. 1 with New World Symphony (October 24 & 25). 

DECEMBER 2026

WOLF TRAP // DECEMBER 6 // VIENNA, VA

WOLF TRAP OPERA ALUM STEPHANIE BLYTHE RETURNS TO CHAMBER MUSIC AT THE BARNS 

A distinguished alumna of Wolf Trap Opera (1995, 1996), acclaimed mezzo-soprano Stephanie Blythe returns to Wolf Trap, renewing an artistic relationship that stretches back more than three decades to the earliest stages of her career. In an intimate recital at The Barns at Wolf Trap, Blythe celebrates the Great American Songbook in a cabaret-style afternoon that draws on her remarkable versatility beyond the opera stage. Joined by pianist Ryan McCullough, she brings her trademark warmth, wit, and extraordinary vocal artistry to a program shaped by spontaneity, with the repertoire unfolding organically in the moment.

DAVÓNE TINES // DECEMBER 13 // BERLIN

DAVÓNE TINES BRINGS CONCERTO NO. 2: ANTHEM TO BERLIN FOR HIS DEUTSCHES SYMPHONIE-ORCHESTER BERLIN DEBUT 

Davóne Tines makes his debut with the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, performing his Concerto No. 2: ANTHEM under the direction of Daniele Rustioni at the Philharmonie Berlin. Conceived by Tines, the work, which premiered with the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl in 2022, has since become one of his signature creations, returning to major orchestras and festivals as a vehicle for his ongoing exploration of American identity, civic ideals, and the meaning of nationhood. Featuring music and arrangements by Tines, Michael Schachter, Caroline Shaw, and Tyshawn Sorey with poetic texts by Mahogany L. Browne, ANTHEM reimagines the journey from "The Star-Spangled Banner" to "Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing," inviting audiences to consider what ideals should define the American experiment. 

JANUARY 2027

JENNIFER KOH // JANUARY 10 // HONOLULU

JENNIFER KOH PERFORMS DAI KEONG-LEE’S VIOLIN CONCERTO WITH THE HAWAII SYMPHONY

Jennifer Koh returns to the Hawaii Symphony Orchestra to perform Dai-Keong Lee's Violin Concerto, reconstructed from the composer's surviving sketches dating from 1947 and revised in 1955. Once an active American composer whose music has largely disappeared from the concert repertoire, Lee is now the focus of the Hawaii Symphony Orchestra's efforts to reintroduce his work to audiences. Jennifer Koh's performance of his violin concerto continues her remarkable commitment to expanding the violin repertoire. Having given more than 100 world premieres, she has built one of the most distinguished careers of any violinist devoted to commissioning, premiering, and championing both new and rediscovered works. 

JENNIFER KOH // JANUARY 16 // LOS ANGELES

JENNIFER KOH AND VIJAY IYER BRING SCENES OF LIVING AND DYING TO UCLA

Jennifer Koh and composer-pianist Vijay Iyer bring their acclaimed collaborative program to UCLA's Center for the Art of Performance, featuring Scenes of Living and Dying: Parts I and II, including the recently premiered second installment. The latest chapter in their longstanding artistic partnership explores humanity's shared experiences at the boundaries between life and death through a series of musical scenes blending composed and improvised music. The program also includes The Diamond, Iyer's duo for violin and piano written for Koh, Iyer's solo violin works, and selections from Bach's Sonatas and Partitas, reflecting a creative dialogue between the two artists that has spanned more than a decade.

JAMES CONLON // JANUARY 22-30 // PARMA, ITALY

JAMES CONLON CONDUCTS MUSSORGSKY'S BORIS GODUNOV AT TEATRO REGIO DI PARMA

Following performances of Verdi's Alzira, the annual Gala Verdiano, and a new production of Simon Boccanegra, James Conlon continues his Italian residency opening the Teatro Regio di Parma's opera season with Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov. A renowned interpreter of both the Italian and Russian repertoires, Conlon brings decades of experience to one of opera's greatest historical dramas. Conducting a new production of Mussorgsky's monumental work, he leads the Filarmonica Arturo Toscanini and Chorus of the Teatro Regio di Parma in a new production by Leo Muscato, which explores the opera's sweeping political and psychological drama through Mussorgsky's original 1869 version together with later revisions. Giorgi Manoshvili sings the title role, with Dmitry Ulyanov as Pimen, Denys Pivnitskyi as Grigory Otrepyev, and Ilia Kazakov as Varlaam.

WOLF TRAP // JANUARY 24 // VIENNA, VA

WOLF TRAP PRESENTS THE GILDED AGE: PART 2 WITH DANIEL HOPE AND PIANIST SIMON CRAWFORD-PHILLIPS INCLUDING THE EAST COAST PREMIERE OF JAKE HEGGIE’S FANTASY SUITE 1803

Violinist Daniel Hope returns to The Barns for the second installment of his Gilded Age recital series, this time featuring pianist Simon Crawford-Phillips, praised by The Guardian for his "profound sensitivity and technical brilliance." Blending conversation with performance, Hope continues to explore the musical exchange between Europe and America through Dvořák's Sonatina, Kreisler's Slavonic Fantasie, and Copland's Nocturne. The program concludes with the East Coast premiere of Jake Heggie's Fantasy Suite 1803, a new work that brings past and present into conversation while reflecting the same spirit of cultural exchange that shaped the music heard throughout the evening. 

SIR STEPHEN HOUGH // JANUARY 24-MAY 1 // NORTH AMERICAN TOUR

SIR STEPHEN HOUGH EXPLORES THE EVOLUTION OF THE PIANO MINIATURE IN NORTH AMERICAN RECITAL TOUR 

Praised by The Arts Desk for combining "open-hearted virtuosity" with "a sense of an inner world beyond the notes," Sir Stephen Hough presents a solo recital built around the Klavierstück—the short piano work that composers have used for generations to distill their most concentrated musical ideas. Beginning with miniatures by Schubert, Brahms, Schoenberg, and Stockhausen, the program traces the evolution of the form from Romantic lyricism to the bold harmonic and structural innovations of the twentieth century. Beethoven's Bagatelle in A minor, Op. 119, No. 10 serves as a natural bridge to the expansive Waldstein Sonata before Hough concludes with Schumann's kaleidoscopic Carnaval and his own virtuosic arrangement of music from Mary Poppins. The "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" movement has become one of Hough's signature encores, including a celebrated performance at the 2024 Last Night of the Proms. The tour includes appearances at Toronto’s Koerner Hall (January 24), Cleveland’s Mandel Concert Hall (January 26), Princeton University’s Richardson Auditorium (January 28), Friends of Chamber Music in Kansas City (January 30), ATX Chamber Music & Jazz (February 19 to be announced), Friends of Chamber Music of Miami (April 19), Xavier University in Cincinnati (April 25), and at the Gilmore Piano Festival in Kalamazoo (May 1 to be announced).

FEBRUARY 2027

SIR STEPHEN HOUGH // FEBRUARY 5, 25 & APRIL 17 // TOLEDO, TUSCALOOSA, NEW BEDFORD

SIR STEPHEN HOUGH CONTINUES TO PERFORM HIS PIANO CONCERTO THE WORLD OF YESTERDAY

Since premiering his Piano Concerto The World of Yesterday with the Utah Symphony in January 2024, Sir Stephen Hough has established the work as a regular part of his international concert schedule, performing it with orchestras across Europe and North America while continuing the centuries-old tradition of the composer appearing as soloist in his own concerto. This season, Hough brings the work to the U.S. in performances with the Toledo Symphony, the University of Alabama Orchestra, and the New Bedford Symphony Orchestra. Named after Stefan Zweig's memoir of pre-First World War Vienna, The World of Yesterday reflects Hough's fascination with the rich history of the piano concerto. "What might it be to rediscover such a connection between creator and performer?" Hough writes. "This piece is my attempt to explore this." Praised by The Times as a "joyous crowd pleaser" and a "remarkable new work," the concerto is also available on Hyperion Records with Hough as soloist alongside Sir Mark Elder and the Hallé, documenting the work in the hands of its creator. Hough performs The World of Yesterday with the Toledo Symphony (February 5), the Huxford Symphony (February 25), and the New Bedford Symphony Orchestra (April 17). 

CEDILLE RECORDS // FEBRUARY 12 // RECORDING

CEDILLE RECORDS RELEASES SAINT-GEORGES' SONGS, FEATURING SOPRANO NICOLE CABELL AND CONDUCTOR-PIANIST TYSON DEATON IN PREMIERE RECORDINGS OF SONGS BY JOSEPH BOLOGNE, CHEVALIER DE SAINT-GEORGES

Following her acclaimed performance on Haymarket Opera Company's world-premiere recording of Bologne's L'Amant Anonyme, 2005 BBC Cardiff Singer of the World winner and Chicago native Nicole Cabell reunites with conductor-pianist Tyson Deaton for this landmark recording. Based on a new scholarly edition prepared by Deaton, the album presents the first recordings of Bologne's songs, offering a rare opportunity to hear an overlooked side of one of the eighteenth century's most remarkable musical figures. Praised by the Chicago Tribune as an "expertly, convincingly shaded... radiant soprano," Cabell makes her Cedille solo debut with the album. 

MINNESOTA ORCHESTRA // FEBRUARY 5-13 // PALM DESERT, SANTA BARBARA, MINNEAPOLIS

THOMAS SØNDERGÅRD LEADS THE MINNESOTA ORCHESTRA ON ITS FIRST WEST COAST TOUR OF HIS TENURE

Thomas Søndergård takes the Minnesota Orchestra to California for his first West Coast tour with the ensemble, marking the orchestra's first performances in the state in nearly 30 years. The tour includes performances at the McCallum Theatre in Palm Desert (February 5-6) and the Granada Theatre in Santa Barbara (February 7), complemented by educational engagements in California's Coachella Valley. The program highlights one of Søndergård's signature composers, Sergei Prokofiev, with Augustin Hadelich performing the composer's Violin Concerto No. 1. Opening with Thomas Adès' Inferno Suite from Dante and concluding with Benjamin Britten's Passacaglia from Peter Grimes and Debussy's La Mer, the program explores elemental themes of fire and water before returning to Minneapolis for performances February 11–13.

SIR STEPHEN HOUGH // FEBRUARY 12 & 13 // VANCOUVER, BC

SIR STEPHEN HOUGH PERFORMS RACHMANINOFF’S THIRD PIANO CONCERTO WITH THE VANCOUVER SYMPHONY

Sir Stephen Hough returns to the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra to perform one of his self-proclaimed favorite works, Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3, with conductor Junichi Hirokami. Widely regarded as the "Mount Everest" of the piano repertoire, the concerto has long been a hallmark of Hough's career. Following a performance with the Seattle Symphony, the Seattle Times hailed his interpretation as "a leap-out-of-your-seat experience," writing that Hough "surged into the score with dazzling fingerwork of almost impossible clarity and accuracy." 

MARCH 2027

CEDILLE RECORDS // MARCH 12 // RECORDING

CEDILLE RECORDS CELEBRATES ~NOIS' 10TH ANNIVERSARY WITH THE ENSEMBLE'S DEBUT ALBUM 

Marking the ensemble's 10th anniversary, Cedille Records will release the debut album by Chicago-based saxophone quartet ~Nois. The recording features world-premiere recordings of works commissioned by ~Nois, including new compositions by Hans Thomalla, Bobby Ge, and Shawn Okpebholo, alongside Nico Muhly's Ordinary Time, the album's centerpiece. Muhly's title refers to the periods of the church calendar outside major liturgical seasons, reflecting themes of steady spiritual growth, patience, and the rhythms of everyday life. Founded in Chicago in 2016, ~Nois has become one of the country's leading advocates of new music for saxophone quartet, giving more than 120 world premieres and working closely with composers including Viet Cuong, Alex Mincek, Jessie Montgomery, Nico Muhly, Shawn Okpebholo, Jeff Scott, Hans Thomalla, Augusta Read Thomas, Darian Donovan Thomas, and Kari Watson. Praised by Musical America as the "saxophone quartet du jour," the ensemble continues Cedille's commitment to championing Chicago artists and contemporary music. 

JAMES CONLON // MARCH 14-21 // FLORENCE, ITALY

JAMES CONLON CONCLUDES AN EXTRAORDINARY SEASON IN ITALY WITH A NEW PRODUCTION OF TCHAIKOVSKY'S SWAN LAKE AT THE MAGGIO MUSICALE FIORENTINO

Following major engagements in Italy conducting Verdi's Alzira, the annual Gala Verdiano, Simon Boccanegra, and Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov, Conlon returns once again to Florence to conduct a new production of Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake at the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, leading the Orchestra of the Maggio in a reimagining of the ballet choreographed by Xander Parish in co-production with The New Generation Foundation. The production revisits the ballet through a contemporary staging that foregrounds psychological and mythic dimensions. The staging is directed by Jean-Romain Vesperini, with video design by Étienne Guiol and scenography by Bruno de Lavenère, expanding the ballet’s theatrics through multimedia elements.

DAVÓNE TINES // MARCH 12 & 13 // LOS ANGELES, CA

DAVÓNE TINES RETURNS TO THE LOS ANGELES PHILHARMONIC FOR PHILIP GLASS'S SYMPHONY NO. 15, "LINCOLN" 

Davóne Tines returns to the Los Angeles Philharmonic, where he has forged one of his most significant artistic collaborations in recent years. His appearances have ranged from the 2022 world premiere of his Concerto No. 2: ANTHEM at the Hollywood Bowl to John Adams's Girls of the Golden West, both in concert and on the Grammy-nominated Nonesuch recording conducted by the composer. This season, Tines joins the orchestra once again as baritone soloist in Philip Glass's Symphony No. 15, "Lincoln," continuing a creative partnership built around ambitious contemporary works and some of today's most influential composers.

WOLF TRAP // MARCH 12 // VIENNA, VA

THE ZUKERMAN TRIO PERFORMS AN ALL-BEETHOVEN PROGRAM AT WOLF TRAP 

Violinist Pinchas Zukerman, cellist Amanda Forsyth, and pianist Shai Wosner return to The Barns at Wolf Trap as the Zukerman Trio for an evening devoted to Beethoven's chamber music. Praised by the San Diego Union-Tribune for its "combination of outsized string sound, exciting ensemble precision, and compelling interpretation," the ensemble performs Beethoven's Violin Sonata No. 4 in A minor, Op. 23, Cello Sonata No. 3 in A major, Op. 69, and the Piano Trio in D major, Op. 70, No. 1, the celebrated "Ghost" Trio.

APRIL 2027

WU MAN // APRIL 2-23 // U.S. TOUR: PART 2

WU MAN CONTINUES A 12-CITY U.S. TOUR WITH AGA KHAN MASTER MUSICIANS, VINCENT PEIRANI & VINCENT SÉGAL, WITH SPRING PERFORMANCES ACROSS THE U.S. 

After launching the tour in fall 2026, Wu Man continues her collaboration with the Aga Khan Master Musicians, French accordionist, vocalist, and composer Vincent Peirani, and celebrated cellist and bassist Vincent Ségal for nine spring performances. Together they continue their exploration of the musical traditions of the Silk Road through a contemporary program that blends improvisation, newly created works, and traditional melodies from the Middle East, the Mediterranean, Central Asia, and China. The spring itinerary includes performances at the Hugh Hodgson Concert Hall in Athens, GA (April 2); the Lensic Performing Arts Center in Santa Fe, NM (April 4); Chicago's Harris Theater (April 7); The Broad Stage in Santa Monica, CA (April 9); Irvine Barclay Theatre in Irvine, CA (April 10); Cal Performances in Berkeley, CA (April 16); Bing Concert Hall at Stanford University (April 17); Weill Hall at Sonoma State University in Rohnert Park, CA (April 18); and Meany Hall in Seattle, WA (April 23).

JENNIFER KOH // APRIL 3 // HOUSTON, TX

JENNIFER KOH PERFORMS MISSY MAZZOLI’S DISSOLVE, O MY HEART AT DACAMERA

Jennifer Koh reunites with composer Missy Mazzoli for DACAMERA's From Mozart to Mazzoli program in Houston, continuing one of today's most enduring composer-performer collaborations. Koh performs Mazzoli's Dissolve, O My Heart, a work the composer wrote especially for her in 2011 after discussing Koh's Bach & Beyond project. Inspired by Bach's Partita in D Minor and taking its title from an aria in the St. John Passion, the work premiered with Koh and the Los Angeles Philharmonic in 2011 and has become a bedrock of their artistic partnership. Koh also joins fellow musicians for the world premiere of Mazzoli's new piano quartet, commissioned by DACAMERA in honor of pianist Sarah Rothenberg and a performance of Mozart's Piano Quartet in G Minor, K. 478.

CEDILLE RECORDS // APRIL 9 // RECORDING

CEDILLE RECORDS EXPLORES THE ORCHESTRAL MUSIC OF CHICAGO-BORN COMPOSER ROBERT MUCZYNSKI 

Cedille Records will release a new recording devoted to the orchestral music of Chicago-born composer Robert Muczynski, bringing together five works that span nearly three decades of his career. Although Muczynski is best known for his chamber music, much of his orchestral output remains largely unheard, with several of the featured works never before commercially recorded and two surviving only in manuscript until recent years. Performed by the Tucson Symphony Orchestra under Music Director José Luis Gomez, the recording includes newly prepared performing editions created in collaboration with the composer's estate. Together, these works offer a long-overdue reassessment of an important American composer whose musical voice was shaped in Chicago before he spent nearly 45 years on the composition faculty at the University of Arizona.

MINNESOTA ORCHESTRA // APRIL 26-30 //MINNEAPOLIS

THE MINNESOTA ORCHESTRA AND THOMAS SØNDERGÅRD CELEBRATE THE 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE COMPOSER INSTITUTE WITH FUTURE CLASSICS AND A WORLD PREMIERE

The Minnesota Orchestra celebrates the 25th anniversary of its nationally recognized Composer Institute, the week-long residency that has helped launch the careers of many of today's leading composers, including Missy Mazzoli, Andrew Norman, Lisa Bielawa, Ted Hearne, Anthony Cheung, Hannah Lash, and Zhou Tian. Directed by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Kevin Puts, the Institute brings together emerging composers for intensive mentorship in orchestral composition, publishing, orchestration, and other aspects of the profession, working closely with Music Director Thomas Søndergård and Minnesota Orchestra musicians. The residency culminates in Future Classics (April 30), hosted by Puts and conducted by Søndergård, featuring the works by the 2027 Composer Institute fellows. The anniversary also marks a new chapter for the program with the world premiere of a newly commissioned work by Composer Institute alumnus Soomin Kim—the first commission awarded to an Institute graduate—underscoring the Orchestra's commitment to supporting composers beyond their residency. Kim's work returns on the Orchestra's June 3–4 subscription concerts, alongside Principal Bassoon Fei Xie performing Kevin Puts' Bassoon Concerto, a work co-commissioned by the Minnesota Orchestra. 

JAMES CONLON // APRIL 30 // TORONTO

JAMES CONLON CONDUCTS WORKS BY SCHUMANN, DVOŘÁK, AND ULLMAN WITH THE ROYAL CONSERVATORY ORCHESTRA

Long recognized for his dedication to mentoring young artists, James Conlon leads the Royal Conservatory Orchestra, comprising instrumental students from the undergraduate and graduate programs of The Glenn Gould School, The Royal Conservatory of Music's internationally recognized center for professional training. Throughout his career, Conlon has worked extensively with conservatories, youth orchestras, and apprentice programs around the world, helping shape the next generation of musicians. His program includes Schumann's Cello Concerto in A Minor with cellist Mira Kardan, winner of the 2026 Robert W. and G. Ann Corcoran Concerto Competition, Dvořák's Symphony No. 8, and Viktor Ullmann's Don Quixote tanzt Fandango. 

SIR STEPHEN HOUGH // APRIL 21 & 25 // PALM BEACH & DALLAS

SIR STEPHEN HOUGH PERFORMS HIS PIANO QUINTET LES NOCES ROUGES WITH THE VIANO QUARTET IN PALM BEACH AND DALLAS

Sir Stephen Hough reunites with the Viano Quartet for two U.S. chamber music performances centered on his Piano Quintet, Les noces rouges. Commissioned by the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, the work is a dramatic tone poem inspired by an episode from Willa Cather's My Ántonia, in which a wedding celebration gives way to a nighttime sleigh ride ending in a deadly encounter with wolves. Praising the premiere, Musical America called the quintet "a vivid, listenable, and ingeniously crafted score... with a suggestion of macabre, dark comedy." Since giving the work's world premiere together, Hough and the Viano Quartet have continued to perform the quintet internationally, with appearances at Geffen Hall presented by the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, London's Southbank Centre, Dublin's National Concert Hall, Music@Menlo, and Tippet Rise Art Center. This season, they bring the collaboration to the Royal Poinciana Chapel in Palm Beach (April 21 to be announced) and Highland Park United Methodist Church's Tower Arts Series in Dallas (April 25), where Hough and the Vianos perform Les noces rouges and Dvořák's Piano Quintet No. 2 in A major, Op. 81. 

MAY 2027

SIR STEPHEN HOUGH // MAY 6-7 // ROCHESTER

SIR STEPHEN HOUGH RETURNS TO THE ROCHESTER PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA TO PERFORM SAINT-SAËNS' PIANO CONCERTO NO. 5, "EGYPTIAN"

Few pianists are more closely associated with the music of Camille Saint-Saëns than Sir Stephen Hough, whose award-winning Hyperion recording of the composer's complete works for piano and orchestra helped renew interest in the repertoire and remains a benchmark interpretation. Hough returns to one of his signature concertos, the exotic and brilliantly virtuosic Piano Concerto No. 5, "Egyptian," in performances with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra under conductor Ruth Reinhardt. Hough's appearance continues a musical relationship with the RPO spanning more than three decades, during which he has appeared as soloist in concertos by Brahms, Rachmaninoff, Mendelssohn, Grieg, and Saint-Saëns. The program also includes Jennah Vainio's Sylvia's Lullaby, Hindemith's Symphonic Metamorphosis, and Ravel's Boléro.

MINNESOTA ORCHESTRA // MAY 6 & 8 // MINNEAPOLIS

THOMAS SØNDERGÅRD AND THE MINNESOTA ORCHESTRA CONTINUE THEIR OPERA-IN-CONCERT SERIES WITH PUCCINI'S TOSCA 

Building on acclaimed performances of Turandot and Bluebeard's Castle over the past two seasons, Thomas Søndergård continues to make opera a defining part of his artistic vision for the Minnesota Orchestra with Puccini's Tosca, presented as part of the Orchestra's Sound Unbound series. The semi-staged production stars soprano Ailyn Pérez in the title role alongside tenor Joshua Guerrero as Cavaradossi and baritone Gevorg Hakobyan as Scarpia, with the Minnesota Chorale, and combines live performance with creative direction, lighting design, and digital projections to create an immersive theatrical experience. Creative direction is by Adam Larsen, whose work spans Broadway, Santa Fe Opera, Opera Philadelphia, and other leading companies. Tosca marks the beginning of a long-term collaboration between Larsen and Søndergård that will continue in future Sound Unbound opera-in-concert productions.

CEDILLE RECORDS // MAY 14 // RECORDING

CEDILLE RELEASES MUSIC FROM MEXICO FOR VIOLIN AND PIANO FEATURING PIANIST JORGE FEDERICO OSORIO AND VIOLINIST DESIRÉE RUHSTRAT 

Music from Mexico for Violin and Piano celebrates the tradition of Mexican salon music through a collection of lyrical, romantic works that remain rarely heard outside the country. Performed by pianist Jorge Federico Osorio and violinist Desirée Ruhstrat, the recording holds particular personal significance for Osorio, especially the music of composer José Sabre Marroquín, a close friend of legendary violinist Henryk Szeryng and of Osorio's parents. As a child growing up in Mexico City, Osorio witnessed Marroquín bring newly composed works to his family home, where Szeryng would often give them their first reading. The recording offers a deeply personal tribute to a musical tradition and community that helped shape one of Mexico's most distinguished pianists. 

DAVÓNE TINES // MAY 18-25 // GENEVA, SWITZERLAND

DAVÓNE TINES PERFORMS IN KAIJA SAARIAHO’S ONLY THE SOUND REMAINS AT THE GRAND THÉÂTRE DE GENÈVE

Davóne Tines returns to Kaija Saariaho's Only the Sound Remains, reprising the dual roles of the Monk and the Fisherman that he created at the opera's world premiere with Dutch National Opera in 2016 opposite French countertenor Philippe Jaroussky. The revival is presented in the original production by stage director Peter Sellars, with visual designs by artist Julie Mehretu. Based on two classic Japanese Noh plays, the opera explores encounters between the living and the dead, the earthly and the spiritual, in one of Saariaho's most haunting and intimate stage works. Tines's performance was featured on the acclaimed 2018 Warner Classics DVD/Blu-Ray, and following the opera's U.S. premiere at Lincoln Center that same year, The New York Times praised his ability to draw "upon the most robust elements of his voice" while calling for the work's return. A longtime champion of Saariaho's music, Tines has also performed her orchestral song cycle True Fire with the Orchestre national de France, making him one of the composer's most distinguished interpreters. 

JAMES CONLON // MAY 29 - JUNE 20 // LOS ANGELES

JAMES CONLON RETURNS TO LA OPERA AS CONDUCTOR LAUREATE WITH MOZART'S THE MARRIAGE OF FIGARO 

James Conlon returns to LA Opera as Conductor Laureate following his landmark 20-year tenure as Music Director, conducting Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro. Having led more performances than any conductor in the company's history—523 by the conclusion of his tenure in 2026—Conlon reunites with the orchestra and chorus that defined one of the most significant artistic partnerships in American opera. A work he has returned to throughout his career, The Marriage of Figaro remains one of Conlon's signature Mozart interpretations. This revival of the acclaimed production, directed by filmmaker James Gray with costumes by Christian Lacroix, is a co-production of LA Opera, Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, Opéra National de Lorraine, Les Théâtres de la Ville de Luxembourg, and Opéra de Lausanne. 

JUNE 2027

DAVÓNE TINES // JUNE 4-6 // BALTIMORE

BASS-BARITONE DAVÓNE TINES IS A FEATURED SOLOIST IN GLASS 15 "LINCOLN" WITH BALTIMORE SYMPHONY CONDUCTED BY JONATHON HEYWARD

Davóne Tines joins the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra as baritone soloist in Philip Glass's Symphony No. 15, Lincoln, conducted by Music Director Jonathon Heyward. A leading interpreter of Glass's music, Tines continues his exploration of the composer's work following his acclaimed performances in Satyagraha at the Paris Opera during the 2025–26 season. Glass's fifteenth and final symphony draws on Abraham Lincoln's 1838 Lyceum Address and his 1864 autobiographical sketch to examine democracy, national identity, and the responsibilities of citizenship, with Tines bringing his distinctive voice to one of the composer's most recent large-scale works. 

MINNESOTA ORCHESTRA // JUNE 10-12 // MINNEAPOLIS

THOMAS SØNDERGÅRD CONCLUDES HIS FOURTH SEASON WITH THE MINNESOTA ORCHESTRA WITH MAHLER'S SYMPHONY NO. 5 

Bringing to a close a fourth season marked by the launch of the Sound Unbound series, the continued growth of the Nordic Soundscapes Festival, the Orchestra's first West Coast tour under his leadership, and other major artistic initiatives, Thomas Søndergård concludes the 26/27 season with one of the symphonic repertoire's most profound and triumphant works: Mahler's Symphony No. 5. The program also welcomes acclaimed pianist Yeol Eum Son, praised by The Guardian for her "lightness of touch and graceful counterpoint," for her Minnesota Orchestra debut performing Richard Strauss's virtuosic Burleske, alongside Lutosławski's Variations on a Theme by Paganini.

TOBIAS PICKER // JUNE 12-26 // SAINT LOUIS, MO

COMPOSER TOBIAS PICKER AND LIBRETTIST ARYEH LEV STOLLMAN’S SAFE HAVEN RECEIVES ITS WORLD PREMIERE AT OPERA THEATER OF ST. LOUIS

Tobias Picker's eighth opera, Safe Haven, receives its world premiere at Opera Theatre of Saint Louis. Lauded as "a genuine creator with a fertile unforced vein of invention" (The New Yorker), Picker tells the story of Helena Laquedem, a young Jewish opera singer forced to flee Europe as World War II closes in. Crossing the Atlantic in search of safety, she instead encounters suspicion and hostility upon arriving in America, until Eleanor Roosevelt's compassion helps awaken the conscience of a nation. A timely story of resilience, moral courage, and the human consequences of displacement, Safe Haven features a libretto by Picker's partner of 45 years, novelist and neuroradiologist Aryeh Lev Stollman. The production marks their third operatic collaboration, following Lili Elbe and Awakenings, based on Oliver Sacks's book, which Opera Theatre of Saint Louis commissioned and premiered in 2022.