Brooklyn Chamber Orchestra Reveals Season Lineup

The Brooklyn Chamber Orchestra has announced its 2025-2026 season offering a journey that drifts through shadow and light, reverence and revelry, and tradition and innovation. From the haunting flicker of silent film to the soaring strains of Handel, from jazz-infused brilliance to Brooklyn-born icons, each concert invites audiences to experience music not just as performance, but as a living, breathing encounter with history, imagination, community…and Brooklyn.

The season begins on Saturday, October 25, 2025 at Plymouth Church in Brooklyn Heights, where F.W. Murnau’s legendary silent film Nosferatu (1922) will cast its chilling spell. With Rodney Sauer’s compiled and arranged score performed live, the film’s haunting imagery is amplified by the immediacy of orchestral sound, drawing the audience deeper into its gothic world. After two sold-out presentations of The Phantom of the Opera last fall, this cinematic concert expands into a 1,000-seat hall, a testament to Brooklyn’s appetite for spine-tingling Halloween tradition.

The orchestra ushers in the holiday season with Handel’s Messiah, presented with the Grace Chorale of Brooklyn on Saturday, December 13, at Old First Reformed Church in Park Slope, and Sunday, December 14, at St. Ann & the Holy Trinity Church in Brooklyn Heights. The concerts feature soprano Melody Wilson of the Metropolitan Opera and bass-baritone Gerrit Paul Groen of Covent Garden, bringing Handel’s timeless masterpiece to life in an unforgettable celebration of prophecy, passion, and triumph. One week later, on Sunday, December 21, the spirit of the season continues with A Very Merry Brooklyn at St. Ann & the Holy Trinity. In partnership with the New York Choral Society, the program spans from Baroque splendor to contemporary carols, wrapping the year in joy, music, and community.

In February, the orchestra crosses into uncharted territory with its first-ever jazz program, A Tribute to Charlie Parker: a Valentine’s week reimagining of his legendary recordings with strings. On Thursday, February 13, 2026 at St. Ann & the Holy Trinity Church, acclaimed saxophonist Vince Herring joins the orchestra for a performance that promises an exciting blend of improvisational freedom and orchestral elegance in a love letter to Parker’s genius and a bold expansion of the orchestra’s artistic palette.

On Saturday, April 11, 2026, at St. Ann & the Holy Trinity Church, the orchestra celebrates Brooklyn’s own musical legacy with Born and Buried in Brooklyn. The program honors Aaron Copland, George Gershwin, and Leonard Bernstein—three titans who reshaped the American sound and whose Brooklyn roots remain a wellspring of pride. The season closes on Saturday, May 9, 2026, with Chaos & Creation: The New World. The program pairs Dvořák’s immortal Symphony No. 9 with premieres from emerging Brooklyn composers, a convergence of past and present that reflects the orchestra’s vision: reverence for tradition alongside a fearless embrace of new voices. 

“As we step into this new season, we are deepening our commitment to creating unforgettable musical experiences for the Brooklyn community,” says Philip Nuzzo, Artistic Director and Conductor of the Brooklyn Chamber Orchestra. “From cinematic classics like Nosferatu to our first-ever jazz program, and from cherished holiday traditions to groundbreaking new works, this season embodies the diversity, history, and creative spirit that define Brooklyn.”