Be there as your Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra opens its second century in Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre! Andreas Delfs conducts one of Beethoven’s towering achievements—the mighty Symphony Number Three, the “Eroica.” The dazzling Alisa Weilerstein plays Elgar’s achingly poignant Cello Concerto. The concert begins with the world premiere of a new work by Aaron Jay Kernis written to celebrate your RPO’s Centennial Season.

Violin superstar Sarah Chang is “a musician of virtuosity and artistic insight,” says the San Francisco Chronicle. See her perform Vivaldi’s timeless and visceral “The Four Seasons,” music that blooms in perennial splendor. Plus, a newly commissioned piece by American-Iranian composer Gity Razaz. Her new work is conducted by Andreas Delfs along with Mendelssohn’s sunny “Italian” Symphony. *Commissioned by the League of American Orchestras with the generous support of the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation

Music Director of the RPO from 1974 to 1985, David Zinman returns to Rochester to conduct the music of Samuel Barber and Brahms’ poetic Second Symphony. And, Sibelius’ bracing Violin Concerto is performed by soloist Karen Gomyo, of whom the Sydney Morning News raves “play[s] with golden radiance.”

Music Director Andreas Delfs conducts Gustav Mahler’s savage and sublime Fifth Symphony, famed for its heart-wrenching Adagietto. And The New York Times reports that Eric Owens, “speaks to you even in his silences… and shakes you when he sings.” Hear him perform Mahler’s folk-poetry influenced “Songs of a Wayfarer.”

Experience music of power. And of passion. Music Director Andreas Delfs leads this all-Tchaikovsky celebration. The “1812 Overture” roars through Kodak Hall. Music from Swan Lake enchants. And Olga Kern brings the romantic First Piano Concerto home to Rochester, where she made her acclaimed recording of the piece in 2003. “Blazing and breathtaking,” declared SF Gate.

More than a century has passed since its violent, scandalous premiere. And still, Stravinsky’s “The Rite of Spring” continues to surprise and provoke, excite and enthrall. Andreas Delfs leads Stravinsky’s savage masterpiece. Rochester’s own Garth Fagan Dance will realize the rituals in Stravinsky’s score. And, Maestro Delfs conducts another symphonic blockbuster, Prokofiev’s pagan “Scythian Suite.” Plus, Andy Akiho’s theatrical work “Ricochet,” featuring two ping pong players on stage with the orchestra.

Majestic in its scope. Dazzling in its sound. There is nothing to match the breathtaking audiovisual experience of hearing and seeing The Planets live in concert. Experience the ultimate trip through the galaxy as your RPO performs Gustav Holst’s sonic celestial showpiece to stunning NASA images with former RPO Associate Conductor Peter Bay. The performance also features Debussy’s impressionistic “Nocturnes.”

Andreas Delfs conducts Berlioz’s only symphony, the Fantastique, which was described by Leonard Bernstein as “the first musical expedition into psychedelia because of its hallucinatory and dream-like nature.” And, Benjamin Beilman, whom The New York Times described as “muscular with a glint of violence,” gives a passionate performance of Britten’s Violin Concerto, one of his most beautiful and emotionally complex works. Bright Sheng’s Tibetan Love Song and Swing, a work that evokes both the beauty and savageness of a Tibetan mountain…

The fascinating rhythms of George Gershwin will fill Kodak Hall as Jon Nakamatsu joins Principal Pops Conductor Jeff Tyzik to celebrate the centennial of “Rhapsody in Blue,” which they recorded together with the RPO to great acclaim in 2006. They also perform Rachmaninoff’s ravishing Second Piano Concerto. And, Jeff Tyzik conducts two electrifying showpieces: the Danzón No. 2 of Márquez, and Respighi’s thundering “The Pines of Rome.”

Wagner’s thrilling music resounds in Kodak Hall! Andreas Delfs leads favorite selections from “The Ring of the Nibelung,” as arranged into a symphonic suite by Lorin Maazel. Plus, an RPO Centennial commission by composer David Hertzberg opens the concert—a symphonic monodrama inspired by the life and death of America’s premier picture-man, George Eastman.

Christopher Seaman, Music Director from 1998 to 2011, returns to Rochester to lead Dvořák’s lyrical, loving hymn to nature, the verdant Eighth Symphony. And, a solo performance by your RPO’s beloved concertmaster Juliana Athayde, who radiates the great joy of making music, a spirit that will be heard in every note of Bach’s glorious Violin Concerto.

Few works can match it for orchestral color, sonic impact, or sheer excitement. And, no piece displays the virtuosity of your RPO like Pictures at an Exhibition. Experience it—live—along with Dukas’ magical The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (remember Mickey Mouse and the brooms?). Andreas Delfs also conducts a new multimedia work, in collaboration with visual designer Deborah Johnson, that muses on the life of George Eastman and Kodak.

“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 fiery third piano concerto. And Dvořák’s and Brahms’ Slavonic and Hungarian Dances are some of the most enduring popular music ever conceived.

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 Skye, all music becomes one as he fuses diverse cultures into a colorful, new companion work.