RAGTIME: The Symphonic Concert & More Set for 2023 Tanglewood Summer Season

One of the country’s premier summer music festivals, Tanglewood has been the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra since 1937; events for the 85th season begin on Thursday, June 22.

This first of several programming re-announcements of the 2023 Tanglewood season covers events taking place June 22–July 9, including any recent program updates; complete season details are available at tanglewood.org.

On Friday, July 7, Music Director Andris Nelsons leads the BSO in the opening concert of its season with music by Wynton Marsalis and Tchaikovsky. In addition, the internationally acclaimed pianist Daniil Trifonov is guest soloist for Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 3. 

On Saturday evening, July 8, Keith Lockhart leads the Boston Pops Orchestra in Ragtime: The Symphonic Concert. A cast of Broadway talents performs in the semi-staged production, which was adapted by the musical’s three original creators for the Pops. 
  
On Sunday afternoon, July 9, Nelsons and the BSO present the world premiere of Zhiân, a BSO commission by Iranian-Canadian composer Iman Habibi, and Freedom Sings, a BSO co-commission by Jessie Montgomery, with classical singer Julia Bullock in her Tanglewood debut. Hilary Hahn joins as guest soloist for Brahms’ Violin Concerto. 

OTHER HIGHLIGHTS OF THE SEASON’S INITIAL WEEKS 

Events leading up to the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s Opening Night spotlight well-known popular artists and visiting ensembles, as well as the first summer events of the Tanglewood Music Center and Tanglewood Learning Institute. 

An exciting holiday weekend lineup of Elvis Costello and The Imposters (7/1), Robert Plant and Alison Krauss (7/2), and James Taylor (7/3 & 7/4, sold out) 
The Tanglewood debuts of popular artists Bruce Hornsby (with the Steve Miller Band on 6/23), Robert Plant, and JD McPherson (with Plant and Alison Krauss on 7/2), as well as composer and multimedia artist Pamela Z (7/9) 
The last chance to see the Emerson String Quartet perform at Tanglewood with pianist Emanuel Ax and a BSO co-commission by Sarah Kirkland Snider, Drink the Wild Ayre (6/28) 
The world premieres of compositions by TMC alumni David Evans ’22 (7/2), David Roche ’22 (7/8), and Peter Shin ’22 (7/9) 
A TLI In Conversation with Boston Pops Conductor Keith Lockhart (7/6) 
Emmy winner Dr. Angela M. Farr Schiller on the social themes in Ragtime at TLI (7/7), followed by a performance by tenor Nicholas Phan and TMC Fellows (7/8)

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PROGRAM UPDATES 

We welcome actress Karen Allen as the celebrity guest for the June 22 live recording of Wait, Wait...Don’t Tell Me! A longtime Berkshires resident, Allen is well known for her role as Indiana Jones’ love interest in three of Steven Spielberg’s blockbuster films and for her breakout role in National Lampoon’s Animal House as well as numerous television and theater credits.  

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HOW TO PURCHASE TICKETS

TICKETS FOR THE 2023 TANGLEWOOD SEASON ON SALE THROUGH TANGLEWOOD.ORG AND 888-266-1200 

Special ticket opportunities include free lawn tickets for visitors under 18, $25 under 40 tickets, lawn passes for Berkshire residents, and discounts for students, military personnel, and members of the Massachusetts Teachers Association. For more information, click here. 

The Main Gate Box Office is now open. 
Monday–Friday: 12 p.m.–6 p.m. or intermission on concert night 
Saturdays, June 10–July 1 and August 26–September 2: 12 p.m.–6 p.m. or intermission on concert day 
Saturdays, July 8–August 19: 9 a.m.–intermission 
Sundays: 11 a.m.–6 p.m. or intermission 

Ozawa Hall Box Office 
Beginning Wednesday, June 28
5:30 p.m.–8:30 p.m. on concert nights 

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Shed Concerts: Opening Weekend with the BSO and Boston Pops 

Friday, July 7, 8 p.m.: Opening Night at Tanglewood with BSO Music Director Andris Nelsons leading the first Boston Symphony concert of the Tanglewood 2023 season, featuring Wynton Marsalis’ Herald, Holler, and Hallelujah, Prokofiev’s Third Piano Concerto with the electrifying Daniil Trifonov as soloist, and Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4 
Saturday, July 8, 8 p.m.: Keith Lockhart and the Boston Pops Orchestra reprising their highly acclaimed presentation of Ragtime: The Symphonic Concert, prepared by original creators Terrence McNally, Lynn Ahrens, and Stephen Flaherty especially for the Pops, and featuring a cast of Broadway talents  
Sunday, July 9, 2:30 p.m.: Andris Nelsons and the BSO, joined by classical singer Julia Bullock and violinist Hilary Hahn, in a program including the world premiere of Iman Habibi’s Zhiân (program notes by the composer here), Jessie Montgomery’s Freedom Songs (a BSO co-commission), and Brahms’ Violin Concerto 
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Ozawa Hall Performances 

Wednesday, June 28, 8 p.m.: Emerson String Quartet and pianist Emanuel Ax in music by Purcell, Sarah Kirkland Snider (a BSO co-commission), Shostakovich, and Dvořák. The Emerson String Quartet is on its “farewell tour,” and this marks the final Tanglewood appearance by this beloved group.

Thursday, June 29, 8 p.m.: The Knights (Eric Jacobsen, conductor) with guest vocalist and composer Chris Thile, in the world premiere of his ATTENTION!, a BSO co-commissioned composition and "narrative song cycle for extroverted mandolinist and orchestra," as well as music by Bartók (arr. Fortes), Jessie Montgomery, and Enesco (arr. Liova).
Saturday, July 1, 10 a.m., 2:30 p.m./Sunday, July 2, 2:30 p.m.: Tanglewood Music CenterString Quartet Marathon, featuring works by Bacewicz, Bartók, Boyle, Britten, Haydn, Maconchy, Gabriella Smith, Szymanowski, and Judith Weir (joint presentation by TLI and TMC). 

Sunday, July 2, 10 a.m: Tanglewood Music Center Music for Brass and Percussion in works by Chesnokov, Joan Tower, Keven McKee, David Sampson, Takemitsu, Gabrieli, Per Nørgård, and Richard Strauss. The program features the world premiere of Affirmation, a TMC-commissioned composition by David Evan TMC ’22. 

Saturday, July 8, 6 p.m.: Prelude Concert, Tanglewood Music Center Chamber Music in works by Schumann/arr. Debussy, David Roche, and Stravinsky. The program features the world premiere of Thousandth Hymnal, a TMC-commissioned composition by David Roche TMC ’22. 

Sunday, July 9, 10 a.m.: Tanglewood Music Center Chamber Music in works by Grieg, Ligeti, Osvaldo Golijov, and Mozart. The program features the world premiere of Breathing Chords, a TMC-commissioned composition by Peter Shin TMC ’22.
Sunday, July 9, 6 p.m.: Tanglewood Music Center Vocal Music in works by Boulanger, Osvaldo Golijov, Crawford-Seeger, Dutilleux, Knussen, Ives, and Charles Fussell.
 

Tanglewood Music Center (TMC) and Tanglewood Learning Institute (TLI) Activities in Studio E of the Linde Center 

Friday, June 30, 7:30 p.m.: TMC String Quartet Class with the Pacifica Quartet (joint presentation of TLI and TMC) 
Saturday, July 1, 8 p.m.:Tanglewood Music Center Vocal Music 
Sunday, July 2, 8 p.m.: TLI Presents and String Quartet Series: Pacifica Quartet and Karen Slack, soprano, in works by Shostakovich, James Lee III, and Dvořák 
Wednesday, July 5, 1:30 p.m.: Open Piano Workshop with Marc-André Hamelin and TMC Fellows (joint presentation by TLI and TMC) 
Thursday, July 6, 1 p.m.: TLI In Conversation with Boston Pops Conductor Keith Lockhart 
Friday, July 7, 5:30 p.m.:TLI Immersion: Themes from Ragtime with Angela M. Farr Schiller, Ph.D 
Saturday, July 8, 2:30 p.m.:TLI Immersion: Themes from Ragtime with Nicholas Phan, tenor, and TMC Fellows 
Sunday, July 9, 8 p.m.: TLI Presents: Pamela Z, composer/performer/media artist 
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Shed Concerts: Popular Artist Series Opens 2023 Tanglewood Season on Thursday, June 22 

Thursday, June 22, at 8 p.m.: NPR’s news quiz program Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me! with special guest Karen Allen (program update) 
Friday, June 23, at 7 p.m.:Steve Miller Band with very special guests Bruce Hornsby & The Noisemakers 
Saturday July 1, at 7 p.m.:Elvis Costello & The Imposters with very special guests Nick Lowe & Los Straitjackets 
Sunday, July 2, at 7:30 p.m.:Robert Plant & Alison Krauss with very special guest JD McPherson 
Monday, July 3, and Tuesday, July 4, at 8 p.m.: James Taylor (sold out; fireworks to follow the July 4 concert) 

FURTHER DETAILS ABOUT THE 2023 TANGLEWOOD SEASON

The 2023 Tanglewood season, June 22–September 2, showcases a wide range of programs that spotlight favorite returning artists and repertoire, while also introducing dynamic new artists and eclectic programming, with 48 artists in their Tanglewood or BSO debuts, and works by 28 living composers, including world premieres and five BSO commissions.  

Tanglewood, one of the country’s premier summer music festivals and summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra since 1937, is located in the Berkshire Hills of Lenox and Stockbridge, Massachusetts. Tanglewood is also the home of the Tanglewood Music Center, the acclaimed summer music academy founded by Serge Koussevitzky in 1940. The Tanglewood Learning Institute, housed in the new Linde Center for Music and Learning (2019), is the Festival’s newest programming, offering dynamic and leading-edge performances and events connecting patrons with musicians, artists, students, academics, and cultural leaders through wide-ranging activities. Tanglewood also presents an annual Popular Artist Series in the Koussevitzky Music Shed (1938) and recital and chamber music concerts in Ozawa Hall (1997). Tanglewood is a driver of more than $103 million in economic impact in the Berkshires each year, based on a 2018 third-party study by Stephen Sheppard, Professor of Economics at Williams College.  

Formal titles for BSO conductors and guest composers 

Andris Nelsons is the Ray and Maria Stata BSO Music Director; Keith Lockhart is the Julian and Eunice Cohen Boston Pops Conductor. 
 

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