Philharmonics

Few works can match it for orchestral color or sonic impact. And no piece displays your RPO’s virtuosity like Pictures at an Exhibition. Experience it live along with Dukas’ magical The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (remember Mickey Mouse and the brooms?). Maestro Delfs also conducts Sarah Kirkland Snider’s new multimedia work, in collaboration with visual designer Deborah…

“A virtuoso with chops that defy comparison,” raves The New York Times. “Brings to mind stories of the young Rubinstein,” says The Washington Post. The legendary Yefim Bronfman joins Music Director Andreas Delfs and your Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra for Beethoven’s fourth piano concerto. And Dvořák’s and Brahms’ Slavonic and Hungarian Dances are some of the…

A spectacular conclusion to an amazing Centennial Season celebration! Hear, live in concert, the epic power and timeless message of humanity and brotherhood when Music Director Andreas Delfs leads your RPO, Rochester Oratorio Society, and soloists in Beethoven’s inspiring and monumental “Ode to Joy,” The Ninth Symphony. “All men become brothers.” And, for composer Derrick…

The timeless and beautiful melodies of Tchaikovsky have captivated for over a century. Now, Music Director Andreas Delfs and your Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra begin the 24/25 season with Tchaikovsky's passionate Fifth Symphony. Plus, Grammy- and Emmy-award winning ensemble Time for Three sing and play in Kevin Puts' specially composed triple concerto, Contact.

This is Beethoven at peace, amid his cherished nature. Every measure of the poetic "Pastoral" symphony animates his impressions of country life. Also, Natasha Paremski performs Shostakovich's tender Second Piano Concerto. "She came, played and conquered," declared Chicago Classical Review, "Paremski attacked the fusillade of octaves with virtuosic èlan." The concert fittingly begins with a…

Guest conductor JoAnn Falletta returns with orchestral blockbusters! Respighi's Fountains of Rome thrills. The waves of La Mer suggest more than the tumult of the sea. George Butterworth's Green Willow poignantly reminds us of great promise unfulfilled, after the composer perished in battle at just 31-years-0ld. And Behzad Ranjbaran's hypnotic Concerto for Violin and Orchestra…

The iconic opening of Richard Strauss' Also sprach Zarathustra featured in director Stanley Kubrick's sci-fi film classic 2001: A Space Odyssey will thunder throughout Eastman Theatre. The Naughtons captivate as they play Poulenc's beguiling Concerto for Two Pianos. And expect plenty from the latest by James Lee III. The Washington Post calls the composer's work,…

It's always an extra-special evening when the RPO's beloved concertmaster, Juliana Athayde, performs as soloist. Hear her virtuosity in Prokofiev's tender Second Violin Concerto. Also, diabolic dances from Lowell Liebermann's ballet Frankenstein. Plus, two works for children of all ages: Benjamin Britten introduced generations of listeners to classical music with his Young Person's Guide to…

Young violin sensation Timothy Chooi plays Bruch's romantic First Violin Concerto. "A miracle," raved La Presse of Montreal. Guest conductor Maximiano Valdes begins the evening with Alberto Ginastera's hypnotic Pampeana, a montage of dazzling Argentinian folk rhythms. To close, Shostakovich's stirring Sixth Symphony from 1939, which prophesizes a world on the brink.

Proclaimed "a phenomenon" by the Los Angeles Times and "one of the best pianists of his generation" by The Philadelphia Inquirer, Stewart Goodyear performs Liszt's blistering First Piano Concerto. Guest Conductor Vinay Parameswaran leads your RPO in Elgar's great and noble Enigma Variations, a Victorian Facebook of family and friends. And Anna Clyne was moved…

Guest Conductor Lidiya Yankovskaya leads the luxuriant Symphonic Dances of Rachmaninov. (The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra made the first recording of this 1940 masterpiece under Erich Leinsdorf.) Pianist Joyce Yang plays de Falla's fragrant Nights in the Garden of Spain. "Vivid and beautiful playing," proclaims The New York Times. The concert begins with Brazilian-American composer Clarice…

The Washington Post describes the artistry of Emanuel Ax as "thoughtful, lyrical, lustrous." Emanuel Ax performs Beethoven's magnificent Third Piano Concerto. "He has long been, and continues to be, one of the finest American pianists." says The New York Times.

Music Director Andreas Delfs leads the buoyant, joyous "Haffner", the first of Mozart's miraculous final set of symphonies. The great strength and nobility of Brahms' Fourth and final Symphony places it among his most profound achievements. And soloists from your Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra take center stage for the newly composed Sinfonia Concertante by esteemed composer…

Rising cello superstar Zlatomir Fung returns to perform Dvořák's elegy for a long-lost love, the impassioned Cello Concerto. "Jaw-dropping brilliance," reports the Dallas Morning News of Zlatomir Fung. Rautavaara's Cantus Arcticus layers the recorded cries for wild birds over mesmerizing waves of orchestral sound. As Janáček's spirited Lachian Dance opens the program, Sibelius' iridescent final…

Gershwin's jazzy musical postcard highlights this program of American masters. Bernstein's Serenade for violin sings of love, with each of the five movements of his violin concerto based on soliloquies by Greek philosophers. Tessa Lark's "sound is bright, with clarity of note. A wonderful warmth," says Gramophone. This all-American program also features Copland's tender Appalachian…

The genius of Mozart revealed itself early, developed swiftly, and vanished all too soon. Mozart's deeply affecting Requiem is, fittingly, his final musical testament - music he would never live to complete.

An enchanted tale that has delighted generations. The first masterpiece of a musical genius. Music Director Andreas Delfs brings the season to a roaring close with Stravinsky's showpiece, The Firebird. Simon Trpčeski performs Rachmaninov's rapturous First Piano Concerto. The Times of London was astonished: "Trpčeski looks set to dominate the piano world for a long…