The Chattanooga Symphony & Opera Announce Their 2014-2015 Season, Featuring a Yo-Yo Ma Gala Event and More

The Chattanooga Symphony & Opera today announced their 2014/15 season, led by Music Director Kayoko Dan in her fourth season. The regular concert season will begin in September 2014 and go through April 2015. "The 2014-15 season should be one of the most memorable in the CSO's history," stated CSO Executive Director Molly Sasse. "The opportunity to perform with world-renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma is just the beginning. Our Masterworks concerts offer a great mix of beloved works and lesser-known masterpieces, with more great soloists. Our Pops concerts will have something for everyone, from the film classic, Casablanca to Broadway hits. We're so pleased to continue our concerts at the Volkswagen Conference Center and our chamber orchestra programs at the Silver Ballroom of the Sheraton Read House. There's great variety in the music and the settings across all of our series, and I hope audiences will try something that might be new to them this year."

The Yo-Yo Ma gala event will be held Thursday, October 2, 2014 at the Tivoli Theatre. 2014/15 subscribers have pre-sale access to tickets with any remaining tickets going on sale to the general public in late July. The CSO is also presenting a special Opera night with Pirates of Penzance with the New York Gilbert & Sullivan Players on Saturday, November 15, 2014 at the Tivoli Theatre. Those tickets will also be available in late July.

Music Director Kayoko Dan has programmed several beloved works in the 2014/15 Barnett & Company Masterworks Series. Highlights include:

? A blockbuster Opening Night with Beethoven's 9th Symphony.

Contact: Samantha Teter, Director of Marketing Phone: 423.267.8583 ext. 2104
Email: steter@chattanoogasymphony.org

? A Shakespeare-themed concert, commemorating his 450th birthday in 2014.

? CSO concertmaster Holly Mulcahy performing Jennifer Higdon's Violin Concerto.

? The return of pianist Qing Jiang on Mozart's popular 20th Piano Concerto.

? Schubert's 4th, Mendelssohn's 4th, Tchaikovsky's 6th and Schumann's 2nd Symphonies.

? A season closer with Rachmaninoff's gloriously romantic 2nd Symphony.

Music Director Kayoko Dan and Music Director Emeritus and Principal Pops Conductor Bob Bernhardt are planning several exciting concerts and collaborations in our 2013/14 Luken Holdings Pops Series, including:

A Boston Pops Tribute, saluting its famed conductors Arthur Fiedler and John Williams.

Our annual Home for the Holidays program.

Big Band Fever! with two performances over Valentine's weekend.

The movie Casablanca shown in its entirety with music performed by your CSO.

A look at Broadway's Golden Age with veteran Broadway singers Lisa Vroman and Doug LaBrecque.

The Chamber Series will feature chamber works from around the world, favorites from the baroque period, and the annual selection of works by the CSO Principals. This popular Sunday series will continue to be performed at the Sheraton Read House Silver Ballroom.

The Volkswagen Series returns for its third year with a variety of programming, including Classical's Greatest Hits back by popular demand, a kid-friendly family concert, and an all-opera program with soloists and chorus.

Current year subscribers can renew their subscriptions with a guarantee for keeping their seats for next season through April 25. They will also have first access to tickets for the Yo-Yo Ma gala event. New subscribers can begin purchasing subscriptions and pre-sale Yo-Yo Ma tickets on March 3. Subscriptions start at $75. More information and complete concert details can be found at www.chattanoogasymphony.org. Single tickets for the 2014/15 season will go on sale in late July.

Photos and interviews are available upon request. Contact Samantha Teter at 423.267.8583 ext. 2104 or email steter@chattanoogasymphony.org.

About the CSO

The mission of the Chattanooga Symphony and Opera is to inspire, engage, and enrich the greater Chattanooga community through music and music education.
The 2013-14 season marks 81 seasons for the CSO, which played its first concert on November 5, 1933. The Symphony consists of top players from the Chattanooga area as well as from across the southern region. The CSO performs a full season of Masterworks, Pops and Chamber concerts from September through May, as well as an annual Pops in the Park performance for the July 4th holiday. More information about the CSO can be found at www.chattanoogasymphony.org. The CSO is funded in part by ArtsBuild and the Tennessee Arts Commission.