Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre

The season reaches a thrilling climax as Andreas Delfs leads the RPO, the Rochester Oratorio Society, Bach Children's Chorus of Rochester, and powerhouse soloists in Carl Orff’s electrifying Carmina Burana—a choral spectacle of fate, fortune, and unrelenting rhythm. The program opens with Pacho Flores performing Roberto Sierra’s stunning trumpet concerto Salseando. Don’t miss this astonishing…

CONCERT SPONSORED BY Experience a mesmerizing fusion of musical worlds as the legendary Wu Man brings the haunting beauty of the pipa to life in Zhao Jiping’s Pipa Concerto. The pipa is a 2,000-year- old, lute-like instrument and Man, the world’s leading pipa player. Lan Shui leads the RPO in an exhilarating program featuring John…

Concert sponsored by   Concert supported by Deborah Ronnen, Karen Duguid & Wally Johnson, and Sam & Mimi Tilton Immerse yourself in a night of soaring melodies and profound beauty as Julian Schwarz makes his RPO debut performing Jennifer Higdon’s new Cello Concerto. “He brings musicality and insight to every page”, hails South Florida Classical…

Concert supported by Dr. Victor Poleshuck, Richard Sterns & Suzanna Rubright, and Dr. and Mrs. Sidney H. Sobel Post-concert champagne toast sponsor  Prepare to be dazzled as “one of the most brilliant couples in classical music” (Guardian), Gil Shaham and Adele Anthony, perform Sarasate’s fiery Navarra. Andreas Delfs leads the night starting with Bach’s lively Brandenburg…

POST CONCERT EXPERIENCE Meet & greet with Paul Huang in the Oval Lobby at intermission (~8:20 PM) Join the RPO for a night of intensity! Marcelo Lehninger leads a provocative program, opening with Carlos Simon’s vibrant Festive Fanfare and Overture. The Chicago Tribune hails Lehninger for keeping “sophistication to the fore”! Acclaimed violinist Paul Huang…

Celebrate love and passion this Valentine’s Day with the remarkable artistry of Martina Filjak as she shines on Saint-Saëns’ Piano Concerto No. 2. Lina González-Granados leads the RPO with Mendelssohn’s “Scottish” Symphony, sweeping you away to misty landscapes and heartfelt melodies. Plus, Lili Boulanger’s D’un matin de printemps opens the concert with youthful energy and…

Concert supported by Deborah Ronnen, The Rosenberg Opera Fund, and Bruce Jacobs Welcome back GRAMMY winner Yefim Bronfman to the RPO as we usher in the new year! Experience an evening of stirring beauty and heartfelt expression as Andreas Delfs leads the RPO in Romance & Revelation. Yefim Bronfman's commanding artistry and deep musical insight bring Schumann’s…

Journey through a night of vivid storytelling. Gabriela Ortiz’s Kauyumari opens with mystical energy, inspired by the sacred blue deer of the Huichol people. The Chicago Tribune deems Karen Gomyo “a first-rate artist of vitality, brilliance, and intensity”, tackling Mendelssohn’s soaring Violin Concerto. De Falla’s The Three-Cornered Hat Suite No. 2 brims with fiery Spanish…

The All-Beethoven Festival continues with two extraordinary programs conducted by Maestro Delfs. On November 1, pianist Jon Nakamatsu sparkles in the composer’s bold Piano Concerto No. 1, paired with the gripping Coriolan Overture and the rhythmic energy of the Seventh Symphony. Check out the other 3 concerts in the All Beethoven Festival: Thursday, October 23…

Concert supported by Karen Duguid and Wally Johnson The All-Beethoven Festival continues with extraordinary programs conducted by Maestro Delfs. On October 30, violinist Benjamin Beilman brings lyricism and virtuosity to Beethoven’s Violin Concerto, alongside the dramatic Fidelio Overture and the serene beauty of the “Pastoral” Symphony. Check out the other 3 concerts in the All…

Concert supported by Jon and Kathy Schumacher Experience the genius of Beethoven in the first weekend of the RPO’s All-Beethoven Festival, led by Andreas Delfs. On October 25, RPO soloists…

Experience the genius of Beethoven in the first weekend of the RPO’s All-Beethoven Festival, led by Andreas Delfs. On October 23, pianist Jonathan Biss brings grandeur to Piano Concerto No. 2, alongside the heroic Egmont Overture and groundbreaking “Eroica” Symphony. Check out the other 3 concerts in the All Beethoven Festival: Saturday, October 25 -…

Prepare for a night of fire and fantasy as Paolo Bortolameolli leads the RPO. Wagner’s Overture to The Flying Dutchman evokes the raging sea, ghostly fate, and redemptive love that define the haunting legend. “A special talent that comes along once in a lifetime” (Toronto Star), violinist Blake Pouliot dazzles in Saint-Saëns’ Violin Concerto No.…

Sponsored by The Fred M. and Lurita D. Wechsler Endowment Fund Philharmonics Media Sponsor: The lights dim. Music Director Andreas Delfs takes the podium. A low pulse rises—Mason Bates’ Mothership ignites, pulling you into orbit where the orchestra becomes a cosmic vessel, and every note is a signal from the stars. Then Anne Akiko Meyers'…

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…

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.

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…

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…

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…

The Washington Post describes the artistry of Emanuel Ax as "thoughtful, lyrical, lustrous." Emanuel Ax performs Beethoven's magnificent Fourth Piano Concerto. "He has long been, and continues to be, one of the finest American pianists." says The New York Times. Upcoming Concerts You May Also Enjoy: Ravishing Rachmaninov (February 6 & 8) Season Finale: The…

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…

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…

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. Upcoming Concerts You…

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…

As the leaves change around us, take a drive through the countryside with your Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. The concert starts with Missy Mazzoli's widely acclaimed Sinfonia, a sunrise for the senses. Natasha Paremski performs Shostakovich's energetic Second Piano Concerto. The program finishes with Beethoven's epic masterpiece - the Pastoral Symphony.

Celebrate the beginning of your Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra’s 101st season with Music Director Andreas Delfs and Tchaikovsky’s passionate Fifth Symphony. Plus, classically trained string trio Time for Three has played on ABC’s Dancing with the Stars, took home an Emmy for a PBS concert special and a 2023 Grammy for Best Classical Instrumental Solo. Time…

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…

“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…

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…

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…

Wagner’s thrilling music resounds in Kodak Hall! Music Director Andreas Delfs leads favorite selections from “The Ring of the Nibelung,” as arranged into a symphonic suite by Lorin Maazel. Metropolitan Opera star Christine Goerke sings concert arias by Puccini, Barber, and Wagner.  

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…

Music Director 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…

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…

The glorious works that bookend this program originated from the same sources: the ground-breaking Russian dance impresario, Sergei Diaghilev, and his company, Les Ballets russes (Russian ballet). 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…

Experience music of power and 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.…

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 triumphant third symphony, 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…