San Francisco Symphony Unveils January Programming
Winter programs feature guest conductors, chamber music across the city, and youth orchestra collaborations.
By: A.A. Cristi Dec. 09, 2025
The San Francisco Symphony has released its January programming schedule, which includes Orchestral Series performances with Edward Gardner, John Storgårds, and Jaap van Zweden; a Shenson Spotlight Series debut by pianist Jaeden Izik-Dzurko; live-to-picture presentations of Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl; community chamber concerts; and the Bay Area Youth Orchestra Festival.
ORCHESTRAL SERIES
Gardner Conducts The Planets
Edward Gardner leads the Symphony in Ralph Vaughan Williams’s Overture from The Wasps, Max Bruch’s Violin Concerto No. 1 with soloist Randall Goosby, and Gustav Holst’s The Planets, joined in the final movement by the SF Symphony Chorus.
Beethoven 5 & Seong-Jin Cho
John Storgårds makes his Orchestral Series debut with the United States premiere of Outi Tarkiainen’s The Rapids of Life. Pianist Seong-Jin Cho and Principal Trumpet Mark Inouye appear as soloists in Shostakovich’s Piano Concerto No. 1, and the program concludes with Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5.
Jaap van Zweden & Emanuel Ax
Jaap van Zweden returns to conduct Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 25 with Emanuel Ax and Bruckner’s Symphony No. 7.
SHENSON SPOTLIGHT SERIES
Pianist Jaeden Izik-Dzurko performs a solo program including Scriabin’s Fantasy in B minor, Franck’s Prelude, Chorale, and Fugue, and Rachmaninoff’s Ten Preludes, Op. 23 as part of the Shenson Spotlight Series, which highlights rising artists in their Davies Symphony Hall debuts.
FILM SERIES
Julian Pellicano conducts live-to-picture performances of Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, featuring the full score performed by the Orchestra.
CHAMBER MUSIC CONCERTS
Community Chamber Concerts
Free performances at the San Francisco Public Library’s Bernal Heights and Western Addition branches feature Symphony musicians in small-ensemble programs with audience Q&A sessions.
Legion of Honor
Concertmaster Alexander Barantschik, cellist Peter Wyrick, and pianist Anton Nel perform Schubert’s Notturno, Mozart’s Violin Sonata in B-flat major, K. 378, and Brahms’s Piano Trio No. 1.
BAY AREA YOUTH ORCHESTRA FESTIVAL
The San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra hosts the 10th Bay Area Youth Orchestra Festival at Davies Symphony Hall. Ensembles from across the region perform individually and as a combined Festival Orchestra, with repertoire including works by Verdi, Dukas, Brahms, Dvořák, Gabriela Lena Frank, Prokofiev, and Shostakovich. Proceeds benefit organizations serving homeless and underserved youth in each orchestra’s community.
San Francisco / Bay Area Awards - Live Stats
Best Musical - Top 3
1.
URINETOWN (Ghostlight Theatre Ensemble)
16.8% of votes
2.
THE DAY THE SKY TURNED ORANGE (San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Company / Z Space)
8.9% of votes
3.
SWEENEY TODD (Cabrillo Stage)
8.6% of votes
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