Individual Tickets Go On Sale September 1
Nézet-Séguin and The Philadelphia Orchestra to Perform Carnegie Hall’s Gala Opening Night Concert with Yuja Wang October 6
Symphonies of Beethoven take Center Stage in Philadelphia
New Year’s Celebration with Nézet-Séguin to Include Beethoven’s Ninth and World Premiere of Gabriela Lena Frank Companion Piece December 31 & January 2
(Philadelphia, August 5, 2021)—As Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin and The Philadelphia Orchestra prepare to resume live concerts with in-person audiences in Verizon Hall at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, changes and additions have been made to select programs of the Fall 2021 Season: Forward. Additions include a pre-season Beethoven concert led by Nézet-Séguin (Oct. 3); a Halloween screening of the silent film The Phantom of the Opera with live organ accompaniment performed by Peter Richard Conte (Oct. 30); an all-Mozart program led by former Assistant Conductor Kensho Watanabe (Nov. 27–28); and a Holiday Organ Concert with members of The Philadelphia Orchestra (Dec. 5) led by Conducting Fellow Lina Gonzalez-Granados. Among the program changes are the addition of Beethoven’s Symphonies Nos. 4 and 6 (“Pastoral”), which will share a program with soprano Pretty Yende’s performance of select songs by Strauss, and the inclusion of Beethoven symphonies and Carlos Simon’s Fate Now Conquers in a program that also features contemporary works by John Adams and Anthony Davis, as well as “Vigil,” co-written by Igée Dieudonné and DavóneTines and dedicated to the memory of Breonna Taylor (Nov. 5–7). Violinist Joshua Bell will now perform Bruch’s Violin Concerto No. 1 on a program that also includes Florence Price’s Adoration and Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 4 (“Italian”) (Nov. 18–20). The New Year’s Celebration with Nézet-Séguin will feature Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 (“Choral”) and the world premiere of Composer-in-Residence Gabriela Lena Frank’s Pachamama Meets an Ode, a Philadelphia Orchestra commission (Dec. 31 & Jan. 2).
Please note that these updates supersede previous press materials related to these concerts.
An updated chronological calendar can be found at www.philorch.org/presskit/fall2021.
Tickets to new and updated programs go on sale August 5 to current and new subscribers. Individual tickets go on sale September 1 at www.philorch.org or by calling 215.893.1999.
Nézet-Séguin and the Orchestra will also participate in Carnegie Hall’s prestigious Opening Night on October 6, in a celebratory program featuring Valerie Coleman’s Seven O’Clock Shout, a Philadelphia Orchestra commission written to honor frontline workers in the COVID-19 pandemic, and Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 with Yuja Wang. The concert will also include Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 and Iman Habibi’s contemporary reflection Jeder Baum spricht, two works performed in the Orchestra’s now-iconic March 12, 2020, concert performed at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic to an empty Verizon Hall and livestreamed around the world.
The Philadelphia Orchestra’s Fall 2021 Season: Forward is informed by the impact of the pandemic, the social justice movement in America, and the drive toward creative equity and inclusion in the world of orchestral music. Details regarding the January–June season will be announced in early September.
October 3, 2021—Beethoven’s Symphonies 1 and 5
Event addition: Concert added to calendar
Location: Verizon Hall at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts
Time: 2:00 PM
Artist addition: Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor
The Philadelphia Orchestra presents a pre-season celebration of Beethoven with Iman Habibi’s Beethoven-inspired Jeder Baum spricht and Beethoven’s iconic Fifth Symphony—heard on the Orchestra’s historic March 12, 2020, live-streamed performance at the onset of the pandemic. Yannick and the Orchestra invite audiences to experience this performance in Verizon Hall, which also includes Beethoven’s delightful and high-spirited First Symphony.
October 5, 2021—Opening Night
Concert time update: Concert now at 6:00 PM
Repertoire additions: Villa-Lobos’s Bachianas brasilieras No. 5; Saint-Saëns’s Cello Concerto No. 1; Coleman’s Seven O’Clock Shout; Ravel’s Bolero
October 6, 2021—Carnegie Hall Opening Night
Event addition: Concert added to calendar
Location: Carnegie Hall
Time: 7:00 PM
Artist additions: Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor; Yuja Wang, piano
October 15–17, 2021—Yannick and Beethoven
Concert title change: Now Yannick and Beethoven
Repertoire update: Strauss’s Select Songs and Beethoven’s Symphonies Nos. 6 (“Pastoral”) and 4 replace Mahler’s Symphony No. 4
The Orchestra’s celebration of Beethoven’s masterworks continues with his “Pastoral” Symphony, brimming with buoyant melodies and a bucolic spirit. Perhaps the least known, the Fourth Symphony was widely admired. Berlioz insisted it was the work of an angel. This performance also features the world premiere of Robin Holcomb’s Paradise, an experiential response to California’s deadly wildfires.
October 30—The Phantom of the Opera
Event addition: Concert added to calendar
Location: Verizon Hall at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts
Time: 8:00 PM
Artist addition: Peter Richard Conte, organ
Step into history for an Old Hollywood classic and the thrills and chills of Halloween from nearly a century ago. Organist Peter Richard Conte commands the mighty Fred J. Cooper Memorial Organ to conjure the perfect soundtrack to the 1925 version of The Phantom of the Opera, a tale of doomed love in the eerie confines of the Paris Opera House.
Please note: The Philadelphia Orchestra does not perform on this concert.
November 5–7—Beethoven Symphonies and a Sermon
Concert title change: Now Beethoven Symphonies and a Sermon
Repertoire update: Beethoven’s Symphonies Nos. 2, 8, and 7, and Simon’s Fate Now Conquersreplace Mozart’s Symphony No. 40
In Sermon, bass-baritone and activist Davóne Tines performs contemporary works by John Adams and Anthony Davis, as well as “Vigil,” co-written by Igée Dieudonné and Tines and dedicated to the memory of Breonna Taylor. This modern masterpiece opens our continued celebration of Beethoven’s symphonies along with Carlos Simon’s Fate Now Conquers, which draws on the uncertainty that Beethoven felt and turns it into inspiration.
November 18–20—Joshua Bell Leads Bruch, Price, and Mendelssohn
Concert title change: Now Joshua Bell Leads Bruch, Price, and Mendelssohn
Repertoire update: Bruch’s Violin Concerto No. 1 replaces Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto, and Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 4 (“Italian”) replaces Beethoven’s Symphony No. 4
At age 14, violinist Joshua Bell made his professional debut as a soloist with Riccardo Muti and The Philadelphia Orchestra—the start of a distinguished career. Bruch’s crowd-pleasing melodies become incandescent as Bell leads and performs his Violin Concerto No. 1. Florence Price’s Adoration, originally written for organ, showcases the sweet serenity of strings. The journey continues with Mendelssohn’s “Italian” Symphony, widely considered one of the best examples of his genius.
November 18–20—Kensho Conducts Mozart
Event addition: Concerts added to calendar
Location: Verizon Hall at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts
Time: 8:00 PM and 2 PM
Artist addition: Kensho Watanabe, conductor
From the extraordinary simplicity of its first movement to the brilliant energy of its bursting finale, Mozart’s Symphony No. 40 is among his most passionate statements. Mozart’s “Linz” Symphony, written in just six days in advance of a surprise concert, showcases his remarkable talent for composition. Good friend of the Orchestra, and former assistant conductor, Kensho Watanabe joins us for this celebration of Mozart’s dazzling symphonic works.
December 5—Holiday Organ Concert
Event addition: Concert added to calendar
Location: Verizon Hall at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts
Time: 2:00 PM
Artist addition: Lina Gonzalez-Granados, conductor
Hark! the herald organ sings! The iconic Fred J. Cooper Memorial Organ fills Verizon Hall with the rich sound of the holiday season, joined by musicians of The Philadelphia Orchestra for an afternoon of Christmas favorites.
Please note: This concert features members of The Philadelphia Orchestra in ensembles joining the organ.
December 22–23—Messiah
Artist addition: Philadelphia Symphonic Choir, Joe Miller, director
In 24 days of feverish writing, Handel created his immortal Messiah. Conductor Julian Wachner leads the Orchestra in these holiday presentations of this masterwork, with the Philadelphia Symphonic Choir, in what is certain to be a revelatory performance.
December 31—New Year’s Celebration
Artist addition: Philadelphia Symphonic Choir, Joe Miller, director
Repertoire addition: Frank’s Pachamama Meets an Ode and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 (“Choral”)
Join us for a “joyful” welcome to 2022 as Yannick and the Orchestra ring in the New Year with Beethoven’s iconic Ninth Symphony. Composer-in-Residence Gabriela Lena Frank draws inspiration from Beethoven and her Peruvian culture in Pachamama Meets an Ode, challenging us to look at gifts from the past with new and searching eyes.
January 2—New Year’s Celebration
Event addition: Concert added to calendar
Location: Verizon Hall at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts
Time: 2:00 PM
Artist additions: Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor; Philadelphia Symphonic Choir, Joe Miller, director
Join us for a “joyful” welcome to 2022 as Yannick and the Orchestra ring in the New Year with Beethoven’s iconic Ninth Symphony. Composer-in-Residence Gabriela Lena Frank draws inspiration from Beethoven and her Peruvian culture in Pachamama Meets an Ode, challenging us to look at gifts from the past with new and searching eyes.
The Fred J. Cooper Memorial Organ Experience (Frederick R. Haas, Artistic Advisor) is supported through a generous grant from the Wyncote Foundation.
About The Philadelphia Orchestra
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215.893.1939
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