Classical Concerts

Carl kicks off his 30th with a program of explosive music! First, Beethoven’s dramatic “Egmont” Overture followed by the precursor to his Ninth Symphony, the “Choral” Fantasy featuring the accomplished Benjamin Pasternack. Then, fly through the flames of fortune with Orff’s breathtaking masterpiece, “Carmina Burana.”

Carl kicks off his 30th with a program of symphonic and choral fire: Carl Orff’s breathtaking and widely popular masterpiece, Carmina Burana.

Drama unfolds with Tchaikovsky’s deeply passionate Symphony No. 6 and Ravel’s virtuosic gypsy rhapsody, “Tzigane,” featuring concertmaster Dennis Kim. Earlier in the evening, you’ll embark on an exploration of the brilliant compositions from legendary film composer John Williams, who is responsible for linking Carl to Pacific Symphony.

Enjoy an afternoon of chamber music composed by one of the most recognized and influential musicians of the 19th century, Ludwig van Beethoven. Journey through a series of pieces for the violin, viola and clarinet featuring Principal Pacific Symphony musicians. Enjoy coffee, tea and pastries in the intimate Samueli Theater as host and Orli Shaham guides you through the program.

Journey through the minds of three prolific American composers: George Chadwick, the master from the New England Conservatory; his pupil Florence Price, the first African-American woman recognized as a symphonic composer; and George Gershwin, a composer whose music is synonymous with the sound of America.

More than two centuries after its wildly successful premiere, Beethoven’s Seventh remains a work you simply must experience live. Also featured is another premiere: a tribute to Maestro St.Clair from Academy Award-winning composer, Elliot Goldenthal. And Vadym Kholodenko, winner of the prestigious Van Cliburn competition, joins with an electrifying performance of Prokofiev’s demanding Piano Concerto No. 3.

Celebrate the season with the king of instruments! Enjoy a magnitude of musical splendors with world-class organist Todd Wilson and members of Pacific Symphony performing a delightful mix of sacred and holiday music. Favorite Christmas carols share the bill with traditional organ works that highlight the 4,322-pipe, $3.1 million William J. Gillespie Concert Organ.

This is Beethoven at his best – lyrical, spirited and epic. Dvořák, while greatly inspired by the great German, expresses his own Bohemian lyricism in his Symphony No. 8, filled with indelible melodies and themes that flow like no other symphony.

Obsession, unrequited love and…opium; when mixed properly, these ingredients leave you with Berlioz’s vivid and dream-like “Symphonie Fantastique.” Also featured is Ravel’s “​Le Tombeau de Couperin,” a series of portraits dedicated to friends lost in World War I along with his jazzy Piano Concerto in G Major with the spectacular Lefèvre.

Obsession, unrequited love and…opium; when mixed properly, these ingredients leave you with Berlioz’s vivid and dream-like “​Symphonie Fantastique.” Also featured is the spectacular Alain Lefèvre with Ravel’s jazzy Piano Concerto in G Major.

Composed in 1914 by one of the most important Czech composers, Janáček’s Violin Sonata is one of his rare works for violin. With his Piano Quintet, Schumann invented a new musical genre by adding the piano to the classic string quartet. Enjoy coffee, tea and pastries in the intimate Samueli Theater as host and Orli Shaham guides you through the program.

Where piano fans look to Rachmaninoff for keyboard virtuosity, violinists turn to Paganini. An outrageously gifted musician, he was also an accomplished composer writing hundreds of pieces including six violin concertos. Sparks will fly as violinist Augustin Hadelich takes the stage. Following is Rachmaninoff’s expressive and quintessentially Russian Symphony No. 3.

David Higgs, one of America's leading concert organists, showcases the beauty and power of the William J. Gillespie Concert Organ. The Chair of the Organ Department at the Eastman School of Music performs extensively throughout the United States and abroad, and has inaugurated many important new instruments including St. Stephan’s Cathedral, Vienna; the Meyerson Symphony Center, Dallas; and the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola in New York City. 

An all-Beethoven weekend – in celebration of the iconic composer’s 250th birthday – featuring all five piano concertos with the lavishly talented Alexander Romanovsky.

An all-Beethoven program – in celebration of the iconic composer’s 250th birthday – featuring his 4th and 5th piano concertos with the lavishly talented Alexander Romanovsky.

Love, betrayal and jealousy – all trademarks of great tragic opera – Otello embraces these themes to the fullest. Written decades after going into retirement, Verdi’s interpretation of Shakespeare’s tale takes you on a journey through a passionate romance destroyed by one of opera’s most loathsome villains.

Schumann’s Symphony No. 4 is a work that leads you from gorgeous melodies to unforgettable themes, all without pause. Earlier in the evening, piano phenom Joyce Yang dazzles with Rachmaninoff’s tour-de-force of the keyboard, Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini.

The first in a series of three string quartets commissioned by the Russian ambassador in Vienna, Count Razumovsky, Beethoven’s String Quartet No. 7 is notorious for its technical demands. The concert opens with Leshnoff’s “Radiance” for Piano Quintet and Beethoven’s Trio for Piano, Flute and Bassoon. Enjoy coffee, tea and pastries in the intimate Samueli Theater as host and Orli Shaham guides you through the program.

Organist Dennis James provides a chilling soundtrack for the silent-film classic, "The Hunchback of Notre Dame." The 1923 film, based on Victor Hugo's 1831 novel of the same name, is known for the grand sets that recall 15th century Paris as well as for Lon Chaney's performance and make-up as the tortured hunchback Quasimodo, the deaf, half-blind, hunchbacked bell-ringer of the famous Cathedral of Notre Dame.

Pianist Conrad Tao returns with Mozart’s impassioned Piano Concerto No. 20. Following is Brahms’ Fourth and final symphony. Filled with deep emotion, profound complexity and beautiful melancholy, it finishes with a finale that will leave you speechless. The concert opens with a new work by Frank Ticheli in honor of Carl's 30th anniversary.

Filled with deep emotion, profound complexity and beautiful melancholy, Brahms’ 4th symphony finishes with a finale that will leave you speechless. The concert opens with a new work by former composer-in-residence Frank Ticheli in honor of Carl's 30th anniversary.

A tidal wave of sound, Mahler’s “Symphony of a Thousand” is an immersive work that pushes the sonic boundaries of the orchestra and choir. Written as an expression of confidence in the eternal human spirit, Mahler’s Eighth is an exhilarating experience you cannot miss.