Princeton Symphony Orchestra Announces 2025-26 Season
Orchestral series pairs brilliant soloists with beloved repertoire alongside fresh contemporary works.
By: A.A. Cristi Mar. 07, 2025
The Princeton Symphony Orchestra (PSO) has announced its 2025-26 Season with a line-up of superb guest artists assembled by Edward T. Cone Music Director Rossen Milanov. Audience favorite Aubree Oliverson returns to the PSO stage along with violinist Bella Hristova who last performed with the orchestra in 2014.
Pianists Maxim Lando and 2025 GRAMMY winner Michelle Cann, noted harpsichordist Mahan Esfanhani, and Serbian-French cellist Maja Bogdanović will each be appearing with the PSO for the first time at Richardson Auditorium.
The season promises exciting performances of concertos composed by Antonín Dvořák, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Sergei Prokofiev, Edvard Grieg, and Camille Saint-Saëns as well as the world premiere of a new work for harpsichord and small orchestra by Princeton-based composer Julian Grant. Additional contemporary compositions include Dobrinka Tabakova's Orpheus' Comet, Andreia Pinto Correia's Ciprés, Jessie Montgomery's Records from a Vanishing City, and Viet Cuong's Extra(ordinarily) Fancy.
Maestro Milanov says, “I am always amazed by the Princeton audiences and their curiosity for fresh viewpoints and artistic expression. The juxtaposition of new works with beloved classics invites comparison and stimulates dialogue.”
Among the masterworks to be presented are Johannes Brahms' Piano Quartet No. 1 as orchestrated by Arnold Schoenberg, Felix Mendelssohn's Italian Symphony, Dmitri Shostakovich's First Symphony, Ludwig van Beethoven's Second Symphony, and Sergei Prokofiev's Fifth Symphony. Princeton Festival veterans Aubry Ballarò, soprano, Nicholas Nestorak, tenor, and Joseph Barron, bass, will perform the full version of Igor Stravinsky's Pulcinella.
All performances take place on select Saturdays at 7:30pm (a new start time) and Sundays at 4pm, at Richardson Auditorium on Princeton University's campus. Rossen Milanov conducts all but the February concert.
The season opens October 25-26, and features the return of violinist Aubree Oliverson who wowed audiences in 2024 with dynamic performances of Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto. This season, she'll be playing Antonín Dvořák's Violin Concerto in A Minor, Op. 53. The program includes Bulgarian composer Dobrinka Tabakova's energizing Orpheus' Comet, drawing sound inspiration from bees, and renowned twentieth-century composer Arnold Schoenberg's orchestration of Johannes Brahms' stately Piano Quartet in G Minor.
On November 8-9, the brilliant 22-year-old American pianist Maxim Lando performs Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's rarely-heard Piano Concerto No. 2 in G Major, Op. 44. Felix Mendelssohn's Symphony No. 4 in A Major, Op. 90 “Italian” and Gioachino Rossini's sparkling overture to L'italiana in Algeri complete the program.
Bulgarian-American violinist Bella Hristova returns to perform Sergei Prokofiev's Violin Concerto No. 1 in D Major, Op. 19 at performances January 10-11. Andreia Pinto Correia's 2018 work Ciprés explores themes of trees and water, and the program concludes with Dmitri Shostakovich's Symphony No. 1 in F Minor, Op. 10, an early work revealing the composer's profound talent.
2025 GRAMMY Award-winning pianist Michelle Cann graces the PSO stage February February 7-8 with performances of Edvard Grieg's majestic Piano Concerto in A Minor, Op. 16. Jessie Montgomery's
Records from a Vanishing City is based on her recollections of growing up on Manhattan's Lower East Side, and Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 36, one of his lesser-known works, brims with positivity. Georg and Joyce Albers-Schonberg Assistant Conductor Kenneth Bean conducts.
March 7-8, leading harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani performs a world premiere work by Julian Grant for solo harpsichord and orchestra. Viet Cuong's Extra(ordinarily) Fancy cleverly reinterprets the baroque double oboe concerto, and Stravinsky's neo-classical ballet Pulcinella features Aubry Ballarò, soprano, Nicholas Nestorak, tenor, and Joseph Barron, bass.
Serbian-born cellist Maja Bogdanović makes her long-awaited Richardson Auditorium debut May 9-10 with Camille Saint-Saëns' melodic Cello Concerto No. 1 in A Minor, Op. 33, one of the most popular in the repertoire. Aaron Copland's Letter from Home, an emotional wartime offering and Sergei Prokofiev's Symphony No. 5 in B-flat Major, Op. 100, one of his most beloved works, complete the program.
Initially, these concerts are available only by subscription, with single tickets going on sale over the summer. Concerts will take place earlier on Saturdays with a new time of 7:30pm, with Sunday performances remaining at 4pm. Full Season subscriptions start at $192. Youths 5-17 receive a 50% discount with an adult purchase. To subscribe, visit the Princeton Symphony Orchestra website at princetonsymphony.org or call 609-497-0020.
New Jersey Awards - Live Stats
Best Musical - Top 3
1.
THE LITTLE MERMAID (HOWELL PAL THEATRE COMPANY)
3.1% of votes
2.
HAIR (Vanguard Theater Company)
3% of votes
3.
GREASE (Plays-in-the-Park)
2.9% of votes
Videos