Tag: Anniversaries

Pacific Symphony’s 2026-27 Season, Its First with Alexander Shelley

Posted on February 12, 2026 by - News Briefs

In last Wednesday’s (2/4) Orange County Register (California), Jeffrey Miller writes, “The Pacific Symphony’s 2026-27 season, its first under new Artistic and Music Director Alexander Shelley, will mark major milestones with concerts devoted to America’s 250th birthday and the 200th anniversary of Beethoven’s death…. The orchestra will also mark the 40th anniversary of the Segerstrom Center for the Arts and the 20th anniversary of the center’s Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall…. In the opening night celebration, violinist Joshua Bell will be on hand …  Pacific Chorale will join the orchestra in Mahler’s Symphony No. 2, ‘Resurrection.’… Nobuyuki Tsujii will tackle Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3, while the symphony will also perform Bartók’s Concerto for Orchestra…. Guest conductor Ruth Reinhardt [will lead] Dvořák’s Symphony No. 6 and Grieg’s Piano Concerto, with Joyce Yang as soloist…. The two-week Beethoven Revolution Festival will feature … all nine of the composer’s symphonies … Long Yu will guest conduct Rachmaninoff’s Symphonic Dances while Serena Wang will be the soloist for Qigang Chen’s ‘Er Huang’ for Piano and Orchestra…. ‘From Appalachia to Russia’ will combine Aaron Copland’s Suite from ‘Appalachian Spring’ and Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 with Aristo Sham. Joana Carneiro conducts…. ‘Celestial Cinema’ will feature music by movie composer John Williams … and Holst’s ‘The Planets.’… Returning special events will include … a Lunar New Year concert … and a celebration of Nowruz, the Persian New Year.”

Nashville Symphony Names Leonard Slatkin as Music Director

Posted on February 12, 2026 by - Who's In

In Wednesday’s (2/11) Nashville Scene, Stephen Trageser writes, “The Nashville Symphony … has announced its next music director. Revered conductor Leonard Slatkin—who served the ensemble in a related role as music advisor from 2006 to 2009 and again in 2025 following Giancarlo Guerrero’s departure—will take the podium for the 2026 season through 2029. Slatkin’s run as music advisor in the Aughts coincided with the opening of the Schermerhorn [Symphony Center] … His upcoming tenure will coincide with 80th anniversary celebrations for the orchestra and 20th anniversary celebrations for the symphony center. He’s set to conduct six of the 14 concerts in the ensemble’s Classical Series during the 2026-2027 season that begins in the late summer…. Slatkin says in a release, ‘This three-year term will be the start of a new chapter for the Nashville Symphony. I will work closely with everyone to help develop a framework for the future….’ ‘This appointment gives our orchestra exactly what we need right now: experienced leadership, artistic momentum and someone who understands our organization and community,’ says concertmaster Peter Otto in the same release.” Slatkin has served as music director for several major American orchestras.

Tuba Player Michael Knox to Retire After 55 Years with Rogue Valley Symphony

Posted on December 23, 2025 by - News Briefs

In Sunday’s (12/21) Ashland News (Oregon), Jim Flint writes, “For nearly six decades, if you followed the low, steady heartbeat of the Rogue Valley Symphony, you’d eventually arrive at the back of the orchestra, where Michael Knox held court—quietly, reliably and with a tuba that anchored everything above it. Knox is retiring this season after 55 years with the symphony, a tenure that stretches back to the orchestra’s earliest days and spans every conductor, countless performances and more stories than most symphony veterans could fit into a single lifetime. He joined as a teenager and leaves as a revered elder statesman, still sharp, still curious and still very much himself….  RVS Music Director Martin Majkut described Knox as ‘a living memory’ of the organization. ‘He is friendly, constructive, thoughtful. You would not know that he has been coming to these rehearsals for five decades…. He remains curious and possesses the same sense of wonder.’… Beyond the stage, Knox served on the Artistic Advisory Committee, sometimes encouraging programming strategies designed to balance innovation with familiarity….  Retirement from the symphony does not mean retirement from music. Knox remains active with the Rogue Valley Symphonic Band … and the Ashland City Band, where he has completed 56 seasons.”

Corpus Christi Symphony Marks 80th Anniversary with Seasonal Flair

Posted on December 16, 2025 by - News Briefs

In Saturday’s (12/13) KIII TV (Corpus Christi, Texas), a reporter states, “The Corpus Christi Symphony continues its tradition of bringing joy, music, and celebration to the Coastal Bend…. It was a magical night filled with holiday favorites, moving moments, and a very special visit from Santa. Robin Nutter, executive director of the Corpus Christi Symphony: ‘To be here for 80 years is truly just a tribute to this community and how much they support us. I hope they leave us with good, happy feelings and some great spirits to start the holiday season.’ ” Hector Guzman is the orchestra’s music director.

Exploring the History and Significance of Boston’s Symphony Hall at It Turns 125

Posted on December 11, 2025 by - News Briefs

In Monday’s (12/8) WCVB (Boston), Ramen Cromwell reports, “In 1993, Chad Smith, a New England Conservatory student, had a creative way to attend Boston Symphony Orchestra performances, a story he later shared before becoming the BSO’s president and CEO. ‘I had a tuxedo, because I was a music student, and I would sneak in the back door as a caterer,’ Smith said…. Though Smith would not recommend that anyone try such a stunt today, the story reminds us of the power of music and the initial goal of the Boston Symphony Orchestra to bring affordable world-class music to Boston. Smith’s current work [as the BSO’s president and CEO] has contributed to a new installation featuring artists, community leaders and partners who have made the BSO special. Symphony Hall, described in a 1900 news article as ‘Boston’s new temple of music,’ opened to much fanfare despite its less grand exterior…. Architectural details were omitted to prioritize the interior’s acoustics, which are revered as among the best in the world…. Cellist Owen Young, who joined the BSO in 1991, said, ‘This hall’s got the clarity so you can play fast, it’s got the warmth so you can play slow.’ ” The video traces Symphony Hall’s history and its evolving role in Boston’s cultural life.

Miami Symphony Celebrates Coral Gables’ Centenary with Concert in City’s Landmark Pool

Posted on December 9, 2025 by - News Briefs

In Tuesday’s (12/9) Miami Herald, Michelle Marchante writes, “A 1920s-themed concert under the stars was held Sunday at the historic Venetian Pool in Coral Gables to commemorate the city’s 100th anniversary. The performance, featuring Maestro Eduardo Marturet and the Miami Symphony Orchestra, served as the grand finale of a yearlong celebration for the City Beautiful. The musicians played songs from different eras, including a special performance of ‘When the Moon Shines in Coral Gables’ with singer Zesi. The song was written in the mid-1920s by Charles Anthony Bayha to be one of the city’s original promotional songs. ‘It is a great honor for me and the Miami Symphony Orchestra to have been invited to be part of the city’s 100th anniversary at the emblematic Venetian Pool,’ said Marturet, who led the orchestra as it played inside the drained pool, mirroring what once was a common sight at the historic venue decades ago…. ‘It’s enchanting,’ said former Gables Mayor Dorothy Thomson, who was elected in 1985 and is the first and only woman in the city’s 100 years to hold the mayoral position…. Sunday’s concert … served as a sneak peek to the newly renovated Venetian Pool, which is set to reopen Tuesday following a lengthy restoration.”

Classical Movements, Introducing Orchestras and Choruses to Audiences Worldwide

Posted on November 25, 2025 by - News Briefs

In Wednesday’s (11/19) Alexandria Times (Virginia), Ella Mitchell writes, “Opening tour routes in post-Soviet Russia, hauling an orchestra to Cuba, and creating live music experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic—Neeta Helms meets [nearly everything] with an almost mischievous smile, asking herself, ‘How hard can it be?… Everything is possible and I can do it.’ It’s the mantra that shifted the trajectory of Helms’ career in the hospitality business to founding her own company, Classical Movements, that plans concert tours for orchestras and choirs across the world. In the more than 30 years since her company’s inception, Helms, who now serves as president, shares music across cultures and borders. She’s traveled to about 120 countries personally, and the musical touring company has helped world-class orchestras, choruses, conductors, composers and soloists transcend cultural differences…. She co-created Blue Heart Travel, Inc. in 1992 to coordinate tours to both Russia and Ukraine … In 1995, Blue Heart Travel was incorporated into Classical Movements due to its expansion of instrumental and choral clientele. The National Symphony Orchestra hired Classical Movements to organize a two-week U.S. tour for its 1997 season, marking Helms’ company’s first professional orchestra client…. ‘The magic happens because of the musicians and artists themselves,’ Helms said.”

What Quality Makes Today’s American Orchestral Music American?

Posted on November 14, 2025 by - News Briefs

In Wednesday’s (11/12) Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Jeremy Reynolds writes, “Quite a few composers are writing quite a lot of music about the America 250 anniversary…. ‘How do we want to mark that? …’ said Julia Wolfe, a Pulitzer Prize-winning American composer … While … orchestras regularly premiere a new piece of music or several in a season, some have received public grants from the National Endowment for the Arts or other funders specifically to write music commemorating the occasion this season. So, who are the composers being called upon to mark the occasion? Aside from Wolfe, whose piece ‘Liberty Bell’ will be played by the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra this weekend, there’s John Adams, Wynton Marsalis, Matthew Aucoin, Carlos Simon and Jessie Montgomery. There’s Kevin Puts, Mason Bates, Gabriela Lena Frank, Ellen Reid, Tania Leon, and Michael Abels…. Is there a unifying theme around the kinds of music being written in the classical world that could indicate an ‘American style?’… Critics and scholars toss words like ‘rock’ and ‘minimalism’ and ‘groove’ at [Wolfe’s] music, which, like all composers’, draws on a range of influences … There’s that word ‘minimalism’— it’s one of the dominant strains to emerge from American compositional schools in the past 50 years…. Ask a dozen composers and you’ll get a dozen different answers, but as we continue talking about American music this year, minimalism seems likely to be a recurrent thread.”

League of American Orchestras Celebrates Youth Orchestra Division’s 50th Anniversary with Commissioning Project and Community Impact Awards

Posted on November 6, 2025 by - News Briefs

The League of American Orchestras has announced multiple initiatives to celebrate the 50th anniversary of its Youth Orchestra Division (YOD). Founded in 1975, the YOD promotes youth orchestras as essential cultural assets, building and maintaining artistic and organizational excellence in these vital programs. A key focus of the anniversary is the development of new repertoire designed specifically for youth orchestras, with the launch of a nationwide commissioning initiative, Composing Our Tomorrow: A Celebration of the League’s Youth Orchestra Division at 50. Commemorating the YOD’s roots in volunteer leadership, the group also announces the inaugural Betty Utter Community Impact Award.

Composing Our Tomorrow empowers youth orchestras to commission and premiere short, celebratory works, expanding the repertoire for youth ensembles and highlighting the next generation of creators. Participating orchestras will submit scores, recordings, and program notes, which will be added to a national database of youth orchestra repertoire. The Betty Utter Community Impact Award honors the legacy of Betty Utter, co-founder of the Fort Worth Youth Orchestra and founder of the League’s Youth Orchestra Division. Each youth orchestra is invited to recognize its own local changemaker who has made an extraordinary impact. 50th Anniversary celebrations will continue at the League’s National Conference in June 2026, and the League will spotlight member youth orchestras during the anniversary year.

Learn more about the League’s Youth Orchestra Division at https://americanorchestras.org/learn/youth-orchestras/.

Coolidge Auditorium at Library of Congress Celebrates a Century of Music

Posted on October 30, 2025 by - News Briefs

In Saturday’s (10/25) NPR, Tom Huizenga writes, “For 100 years, performers of all stripes have graced the Library [of Congress’] Coolidge Auditorium stage, from classical music luminaries like Béla Bartók and Igor Stravinsky to Stevie Wonder, Audra McDonald and Max Roach. Today, it remains one of the capitol city’s most beautiful, best sounding and perhaps best-kept secrets. The idea for a concert hall at the Library of Congress did not stem from congress. It came from philanthropist Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge—and one bespoke piece of bipartisan legislation…. To mark the centennial, celebratory concerts and commissions have been heard in the hall all year…. [It’s] a living, breathing concert hall that serves as a cultural beacon—preserving history and cultivating new music through commissions. Perhaps the most famous commission became one of America’s most iconic pieces of music. Aaron Copland’s ballet Appalachian Spring, written for dancer and choreographer Martha Graham, received its world premiere at Coolidge Auditorium on Oct. 30, 1944…. The commissions keep coming, thanks in part to generous women who followed in Coolidge’s philanthropic footsteps. Composers commissioned for the 100th anniversary include MacArthur fellows Tyshawn Sorey and Vijay Iyer, plus Pulitzer winner Raven Chacon, George Benjamin and the electronic artist Jlin.”