Experiential Orchestra Announces 2025–2026 Season ORIGINS

The GRAMMY-winning Experiential Orchestra (EXO), under the direction of founding Music Director James Blachly, has announced its 2025–2026 season, Origins. Running from November 2025 through spring 2026, the season features four immersive programs reflecting the orchestra’s mission to reimagine the concert experience by uniting audiences, architecture, and sound.

The season begins November 2, 2025, with Toward the Sea: A Concert for Climate Change Awareness at All Souls Unitarian Church, co-curated by Blachly and EXO Creative Partner Catherine Gregory. Featuring works by Blachly, Ravel, Takemitsu, Grace Williams, George Crumb, and Michelle Ross, the concert highlights music inspired by the ocean with proceeds benefiting Oceana.

From February 19–21, 2026, EXO presents Silence and Sound: Arvo Pärt’s Music for Strings at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine’s St. James Chapel, marking the U.S. premieres of Pärt’s Sequentia and Orient & Occident alongside beloved works such as Cantus in Memoriam Benjamin Britten and Da pacem Domine. The program honors Pärt’s 90th birthday season and EXO’s ongoing exploration of his music.

On April 10–11, 2026, EXO returns to the Cathedral for Music in the Crypt: Out of the Shadows. Performed in the rarely opened Crypt, the program will include Schreker’s Intermezzo, Caroline Shaw’s Punctum, Jessie Montgomery’s Source Code, Blachly’s Work for Strings, and Beethoven’s Heiliger Dankgesang from his Op. 132 Quartet, arranged for string orchestra.

The season closes in spring 2026 with the return of Brad Balliett’s A Field Guide to Imaginary Birds in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park (date TBA). This whimsical outdoor experience invites families and nature lovers to encounter the songs of seven “imaginary birds.”

“This season is a celebration of all that led us to the creation of this ensemble, from our earliest concerts to our continuing exploration of Arvo Pärt,” said James Blachly. “Each program highlights the power of collaboration, place, and sound.”