The Houston Symphony Announces 2021–22 Season Single Tickets On Sale And New Program Details
The 2021–22 Season begins in September with Once Upon a Time: Alan Menken's Broadway.
Individual tickets to all the announced Houston Symphony 2021-22 Classical and POPS concerts are now available via houstonsymhony.org and 713.224.7575. Single tickets to the Symphony's BBVA Family Series are currently only on sale to subscribers.
The 2021-22 Season begins in September with the Bank of America POPS program, Once Upon a Time: Alan Menken's Broadway, Sept. 3-5, followed by the one-night only Opening Night Gala and Concert with Renée Fleming, sponsored by ConocoPhillips, on Sept. 11. Then, the 2021-22 Classical Series opens with Music Director Andrés Orozco-Estrada's much-anticipated return and final season celebration in Andrés Conducts Beethoven's Fifth, Sept. 17-19.
"The talent, collaborative spirit, and personality of every musician on stage, combined with the energy we receive from the audience, are the aspects of Houston I have missed the most, and I can't wait to return," said Music Director Andrés Orozco-Estrada. "The level of musicianship in our orchestra is second to none, and I'm looking forward to showing this artistry through these works of art. Audiences will also get the chance to see members of the orchestra performing alongside renowned guest artists, which is a testament to our musicians' world-class virtuosity."
To conclude his tenure, Orozco-Estrada welcomes back pianists Yefim Bronfman and Emanuel Ax, and violinist Gil Shaham and Augustin Hadelich in concertos and collaborations with Concertmaster Yoonshin Song, Principal Cello Brinton Averil Smith, Principal Oboe Jonathan Fischer, Principal Double Bass Robin Kesselman, and Principal Keyboard Scott Holshouser; as well as a lineup of audience-favorites including Beethoven's iconic Symphony No. 5 and Mahler's dramatic Symphony No. 2, Resurrection, with soprano Ana María Martínez and mezzo-soprano Kelley O'Connor; and spotlights Houston Symphony musicians in solo performances. Among the new highlights announced for the 2021-22 Season are Music Director Andrés Orozco-Estrada conducting the world premiere Houston Symphony commission of a new orchestral arrangement of 19th-Century Afro-European composer George Bridgetower's Henry, a Ballad, for Fortepiano and Voice in a new arrangement by Kyle Rivera, a Houston-area composer who most recently collaborated with the Symphony as part of the Resilient Sounds initiative in 2019. Later in the season, another commission by the Houston Symphony gets its COVID-delayed world premiere performance, as Robert Spano conducts Associate Principal Timpani and Percussionist Matthew Strauss, guest percussionist Svet Stoyanov, and the orchestra in Jennifer Higdon's Double Percussion Concerto.
Guest artists for the 2021-22 Classical Season include Yefim Bronfman in Beethoven's Triple Concerto with Concertmaster Yoonshin Song and Principal Cello Brinton Averil Smith, Sept. 17-19. Augustin Hadelich as violin and leader on Sept. 24-26 in Bach's Double Concerto in C minor for Violin and Oboe with Principal Oboe Jonathan Fischer; Shostakovich's Sonata for Violin; Bach's Prelude from Partita No. 2 for Solo Violin, Percussion, and Strings; Saint-Georges's Violin Concerto No. 2. Other luminaries include pianist Hélène Grimaud in Ravel's Piano Concerto in G, Nov. 19-21; superstar violinist Simone Lamsma in Bruch's Violin Concerto No.1, Nov. 26-28; pianist Alexandra Dariescu making her Symphony debut in Nadia Boulanger's Fantasie for Piano and Orchestra and Franck's Variations symphoniques, Feb. 11-13; Gil Shaham in Samuel Barber's ravishing Violin Concerto and Bottesini's dazzling Grand duo concertante with Principal Double Bass Robin Kesselman, Dec. 3-5; world-renowned pianist Emanuel Ax in Saint-Saëns's beloved and colorful Le carnaval des animaux (Carnival of the Animals) alongside Houston Symphony Principal Keyboard Scott Holshouser, Mar. 18-20; Principal Harp Megan Conley in Kaija Saariaho's Trans for Harp and Orchestra, Mar. 11-13; French pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet in Liszt's Piano Concerto No. 2, Apr. 15-16; and legendary violinist and Houston Symphony Artistic Partner Itzhak Perlman, May 12, 14 & 15.
Other highlights include the return of the Houston Symphony Chorus under the direction of Dr. Betsy Cook Weber in four concerts throughout the season: Handel's Messiah, Very Merry POPS, Andrés Orozco-Estrada's last performances as Music Director leading Mahler's Second Symphony with soprano Ana María Martínez and mezzo-soprano Kelley O'Connor, and Music Director Designate Juraj Valčuha leading Beethoven's Ninth Symphony to close the season.
Also, following his popular deep dive into the music and psyche of Robert Schumann during the Symphony's 2019-20 Schumann Festival, pianist and psychiatrist Dr. Richard Kogan returns by popular demand on Dec. 4, to perform the final movement of Beethoven's Piano Trio Number Four, Opus Eleven with Symphony musicians, and to talk in-depth about The Mind and Music of Beethoven. Celebrating Houston Methodist's Center for Performing Arts Medicine's (CPAM) 25th Anniversary, the performance is part of the Symphony's partnership with CPAM, and begins at 5 p.m., Dec. 4 at Jones Hall. General admission is free, but ticket reservations are required.
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