The Cleveland Orchestra Announces Cancellation of Summer Concerts at Blossom Music Center and Severance Hall

The Cleveland Orchestra announced today the cancellation of its scheduled performances across the summer - in July, August, and early September - due to the continuing coronavirus/Covid-19 crisis. The cancellations include the Orchestra's 2020 Blossom Music Festival at its summer home, Blossom Music Center, as well as the Summers@Severance series of concerts at Severance Hall in Cleveland. In addition, the Orchestra's annual free "Star-Spangled Spectacular" concert in downtown Cleveland, usually presented around the Fourth-of-July holiday, is being rescheduled to a future date.

"Given the current state of the pandemic, and so as to ensure the health of everyone in The Cleveland Orchestra's community and beyond, it is with great sadness that we announce today the cancellation of our 2020 Blossom Music Festival and Summers@Severance series in July and August," said André Gremillet, President & CEO of The Cleveland Orchestra. "The decision to cancel our summer concerts was very painful to make, but it is being driven by an abundance of concern for the safety and health of our musicians, audiences, and staff. It is our hope that all performing arts organizations, in both the for-profit and nonprofit parts of the industry, will be able to resume operations sooner rather than later. In addition to the state and federal guidelines that must be respected, we believe that each institution must make the right decision for their constituents. In the case of The Cleveland Orchestra, we believe that our best hope is to be back on stage in the fall, and we are preparing ourselves accordingly both in ensuring the safety of our musicians, guests, and staff at Severance Hall, but also in exploring options to livestream performances for our dedicated audience. We look forward to having the Orchestra get back together, and to continuing to serve our Northeast Ohio community again with live music performances as soon as possible for our 2020-21 season at Severance Hall. "

The 2020 Blossom Music Festival will not take place, with most of the scheduled concerts canceled. Two weekends of programming will be postponed from the 2020 Blossom Music Festival (The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring in Concert [July 17-19] and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets™ in Concert [August 29 and 30]) and moved to summer of 2021, with tickets purchased for those movie presentations valid for the 2021 Blossom Music Festival dates. Complete programming and details for the 2021 Festival will be announced early next year. Lawn Ticket Books purchased for the 2020 Blossom Music Festival will be valid for the 2021 Blossom Music Festival.

For details of the canceled or postponed 2020 Blossom Music Festival and canceled Summers@Severance concert dates, please see the Program Information section below.

The William Bingham Foundation Invests in the Sustainability of Blossom Music Festival

Named after the Dudley S. Blossom Sr. family, Blossom Music Festival has become an integral part of summer life for Northeast Ohioans and beyond. Through The William Bingham Foundation, the Blossom family continues its dedication and commitment to life-changing music in our region. The Foundation made a significant investment this year in the sustainability of Blossom Music Festival, with a goal of ensuring that the magic of each Blossom summer remains strong for future generations.

The cancellation of the 2020 Blossom Music Festival has a serious financial impact on The Cleveland Orchestra. To help us weather this storm, The William Bingham Foundation has donated $100,000 for a special matching challenge. Gifts up to a total of $100,000 to the Blossom Preservation Challenge will be doubled with matching funds, allowing the Orchestra to return to the Blossom stage strong in 2021. The Foundation particularly asks the community surrounding Blossom Music Center to join them in ensuring a vibrant future for Blossom Music Festival, presented by The Cleveland Orchestra. Learn more at clevelandorchestra.com/donate.

@Home with The Cleveland Orchestra

@Home with The Cleveland Orchestra is a series of online offerings providing new or expanded ways for people to connect with The Cleveland Orchestra and each other through musical experiences that bring music and the Orchestra to you, no matter where you are, including special Learning@Home resources for families. These offerings include radio and online broadcasts of Cleveland Orchestra concerts seven days a week in collaboration with WCLV ideastream, Mindful Music Moments meditations with Cleveland Orchestra recordings, performance and education videos by Cleveland Orchestra musicians from their homes, and Learning@Home with The Cleveland Orchestra - a series of education resources for children, educators, parents and families offering a variety of ways to introduce young people to classical music, and the On a Personal Note podcast series (www.clevelandorchestra.com/podcast). For more information visit, https://www.clevelandorchestra.com/Education-and-Community/athome-with-the-cleveland-orchestra/.

ideastream / WCLV Classical 104.9 broadcasts

As it has since 1965, WCLV classical 104. 9 continues to broadcast the weekly Cleveland Orchestra concerts on Saturdays at 8:00PM and Sundays at 4:00PM on the radio at 104.9 and online. Details of the existing broadcast schedule of previously recorded and on-demand concerts are at these links: ideastream.org/wclv/cleveland-orchestra and ideastream.org/wclv/cleveland-orchestra-broadcasts.

Free online educational resources

Through online resources and videos, educators and music-lovers in Cleveland and around the world can learn about The Cleveland Orchestra and its instruments. Among the online offerings:

The PNC Music Explorers web series gives students, teachers, and families a fun-filled opportunity to explore the instruments of the Orchestra one at a time. With lively and friendly hosts Major Scale and Ranger Rhythm, young people ages 3-6 (and their families) will discover how the instruments make their sound, what they're made of, and other unexpected fun facts! Watch the series on The Cleveland Orchestra's YouTube channel and at this link: clevelandorchestra.com/Education-and-Community/Music-Explorers/.

A Learning Through Music Library of lesson plans and activities for parents and educators that combine music and reading for students pre-K through fifth grade is here: clevelandorchestra.com/lessonlibrary.

A Video Collection of learning resources including lessons and performances by Cleveland Orchestra musicians, musical maps based on classical tunes, musical storybooks and more can be found here: clevelandorchestra.com/teachervideos.

Summer Ticket Exchange, Donation, or Refund Information

The Severance Hall Ticket office is currently closed due to statewide, national, and international efforts to contain and control the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19), as The Cleveland Orchestra's staff works with community leaders to ensure the health and well-being of everyone, including audience members, musicians, and staff.

To reach a member of our ticket office staff, ticketholders can send an email to boxoffice@clevelandorchestra.com or call and leave a message on the ticket office voicemail at 216-231-1111 and we will respond to each inquiry as quickly as possible.

For Summers@Severance and Blossom Ticket Holders, the following options are offered:

Donate your tickets. If you are able to, please consider donating your tickets to The Cleveland Orchestra and receive a tax deduction for the total ticket value. This option will help most in efforts to help fortify the Orchestra's finances in this period of uncertainty. Ticket donations can be made at: clevelandorchestra.com/donatetickets. Thank you in advance for your generosity.

Exchange your tickets for a gift certificate for 110% of the value of your purchase, which can be used at any time in the future, including as payment toward your 2020-21 Season subscription.

Receive a refunda??for the value of the ticket.

Subscribers can rollover their subscription to the 2021 season, plus receive an additional $25 gift certificate to use at any time.

For The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring and Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets™ Ticket Holders, these performances will be rescheduled into the Blossom 2021 Season. New tickets and parking passes will be re-issued at a later date, plus you will receive a voucher for a ticket to a selected Cleveland Orchestra concert at Blossom in 2021.

For Blossom Lawn Ticket Book Holders, lawn ticket books will be valid for summer of 2021. Lawn Ticket Book holders should hold onto their 2020 books will receive two extra lawn passes as a thank you for your understanding.

All ticketholders should contact The Cleveland Orchestra before September 7, 2020, to request one of the above options for ticket exchange, gift certificates, or credits. After that time, any outstanding tickets from canceled 2020 Blossom Music Festival and Summers@Severance performances will be automatically converted into a monetary donation to The Cleveland Orchestra and the ticket office will issue a letter detailing the gift for tax purposes.

To ensure the health and safety of everyone involved, Severance Hall ticket office staff members are currently working remotely, and Severance Hall is closed to the public until further notice.

To reach a member of our ticket office staff, ticketholders can send an email to boxoffice@clevelandorchestra.com or call the ticket office at 216-231-1111 and leave a message. Messages will receive a reply as quickly as possible, usually within 24 hours or by the end of the next business day. Everyone involved appreciates the understanding of all ticketholders as all of these requests and questions are worked through and resolved.