Xian Zhang Conducts Holst's THE PLANETS With New Jersey Symphony

New Jersey Symphony will present Holst’s The Planets—An HD Odyssey with Music Director Xian Zhang conducting.

The four performances will take place Thursday, January 30, 2025, at 7:30 pm, at State Theatre New Jersey in New Brunswick; Friday, January 31, 2025, at 8 pm, at New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) in Newark; Saturday, February 1, 2025, at 8 pm, at NJPAC in Newark; and Sunday, February 2, 2025, at 3 pm, at Mayo Performing Arts Center in Morristown.

Opening the program is Caroline Shaw’s The Observatory originally premiered by Xian Zhang with the Los Angeles Philharmonic. In 2013, Shaw became the youngest composer to receive the Pulitzer Prize in music. Also in the first half is Ralph Vaughan Williams’ The Lark Ascending, which draws inspiration from George Meredith’s 1881 poem of the same name. The piece was originally composed for violin and piano in 1914 and was later reworked for violin and orchestra.

The second half of the program is devoted to Gustav Holst’s The Planets—An HD Odyssey, a spectacular presentation of Holst’s cosmic masterpiece accompanied by breathtaking images of modern space exploration that showcase our solar system in a film by Duncan Copp, in cooperation with NASA and Jet Propulsion Laboratories. 

Nancy Zhou is set to appear in Vaughan Williams’ The Lark Ascending. Holst’s Planets will also feature Montclair State University Prima Voce, under the leadership of director Heather J. Buchanan.

On Friday, January 31, at 6:30 pm, the Symphony will host a Next Gen cocktail hour at Newark Local Beer prior to the performance. The Next Gen program is a free membership program for young music enthusiasts between the ages of 21 and 40. More information on the Next Gen program: njsymphony.org/nextgen.

A Classical Conversation will take place on Saturday, February 1, at 7 pm at NJPAC and Sunday, February 2, at 2 pm at Mayo Performing Arts Center in Morristown, prior to each performance. Concertgoers will be able to learn more about the music performed from Symphony musicians, guest artists and other engaging insiders.

Holst’s The Planets—An HD Odyssey

New Jersey Symphony Classical

Xian Zhang conductor
Nancy Zhou violin

Montclair State University Prima Voce | Heather J. Buchanan, director
New Jersey Symphony

New Brunswick → Thursday, January 30, 7:30 pm, State Theatre New Jersey

Newark → Friday, January 31, 8 pm, NJPAC

Newark → Saturday, February 1, 8 pm, NJPAC

Morristown → Sunday, February 2, 3 pm, Mayo Performing Arts Center

Caroline Shaw The Observatory

Ralph Vaughan Williams The Lark Ascending

Gustav Holst The Planets—An HD Odyssey