Composer

Conductor

Music Director Earl Lee spearheads a landmark celebration of one of classical music’s most influential and celebrated composers. Two concerts in two months showcase two of the most pivotal works ever composed for orchestra, with the brutality and extroversion of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 pairing with the transcendental expansionism of Symphony No. 9, the Ode to Joy.

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Beethoven Fest 2024

Michigan Theater

University of Michigan

Eminent American composer John Adams returns to the Met after a decade-long hiatus for the company premiere of his acclaimed opera-oratorio, which incorporates sacred and secular texts in English, Spanish, and Latin, from biblical times to the present day, in an extraordinarily dramatic retelling of the Nativity. El Niño brings together three of contemporary opera’s fiercest champions, all of whom make highly anticipated company debuts: Marin Alsop, one of the great conductors of our time, who has led more than 200 new-music premieres; soprano Julia Bullock, a leading voice on and off stage; and pathbreaking bass-baritone Davóne Tines. Radiant mezzo-sopranos J’Nai Bridges and Daniela Mack take turns completing the principal trio. The moving, fully-staged new production also marks the Met debut of Lileana Blain-Cruz, resident director at Lincoln Center Theater, who received universal acclaim for her Tony-nominated 2022 production of The Skin of Our Teeth.

El Niño

Lincoln Center

Two master composers provide inspiration for this concert. Schafer’s work is concerned with the last days of Robert Schumann, from the time of his first hallucinations until his death in the Endenich asylum in 1856. Adapted selections from Clara Schumann’s diaries form the monodrama in Schafer’s work. The piece incorporates fragments of Schumann’s own vocal and piano compositions including the melody he wrote down the night of his first hallucination which he claimed was dictated to him by the angels. Harmonielehre is a musical tour-de-force. In Adams’ words, his piece, “postmodern in spirit”, is “a large, three-movement work for orchestra that marries the developmental techniques of Minimalism with the harmonic and expressive world of fin de siècle late Romanticism”.

Esprit Orchestra presents Sonic Universe

The Royal Conservatory of Music

Two mighty orchestras present a rousing, jazz-meets-classical event. Discover selections from Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet, alternating between the original orchestral version performed by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and imaginative new jazz arrangements presented by the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra. Both ensembles join forces for a selection from Wynton Marsalis’ Swing Symphony, which The Telegraph calls “a journey through jazz history and the sounds of America itself.”

CSO x Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis

Symphony Center

Maestro Tausk and violin virtuoso Paul Huang rise to the challenge of Shostakovich’s emotionally charged and frenzied First Violin Concerto. John Adams’ groundbreaking Harmonielehre receives its much-anticipated BC premiere, propelling the orchestra to new heights with its vision of an oil tanker rocketing skyward. Plus a world premiere from BC composer Nicholas Ryan Kelly featuring the radiant Elektra Women’s Choir.

Tausk Conducts Shostakovich & Adams - Vancouver Symphony Orchestra

Orpheum Theatre

Maestro Wardell leads your Ocala Symphony Orchestra in a season finale of awe-inspiring works. Experience the pulsing rhythms of John Adams’ Short Ride in a Fast Machine and the world premiere of Jenni Brandon’s Fin de la Tierra featuring guest soloist Jackie Glazier. The season concludes with three scenes from Tchaikovsky’s Manfred Symphony – a piece he noted was “absorbing all my time, sometimes to utter exhaustion, but an inner voice tells me that my labor is not in vain” – you will be left breathless!

To the End of the Earth

Reilly Arts Center

Juilliard Orchestra Conducted by John Adams

“A virtuoso with chops that defy comparison,” raves The New York Times. “Brings to mind stories of the young Rubinstein,” says The Washington Post. The legendary Yefim Bronfman joins Music Director Andreas Delfs and your Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra for Beethoven’s fiery third piano concerto. And Dvořák’s and Brahms’ Slavonic and Hungarian Dances are some of the most enduring popular music ever conceived.

Bronfman Plays Beethoven

Eastman Theatre

Keynote speaker Kai Bird is a Pulitzer Prize—winning biographer, journalist, and co-author of American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer, on which the blockbuster movie Oppenheimer was based. He is the executive director and distinguished lecturer of the Leon Levy Center for Biography at the CUNY Graduate Center in New York City.

An Evening with Kai Bird

Severance Music Center

Dive into the depths of minimalism at the Howard Assembly Room in Leeds for an unforgettable night with "HAR Late: Midnight Minimalism" on Friday, 24 May 2024. This event promises a mesmerizing journey through minimalist masterpieces, starting with a cult film screening and followed by an after-dark concert. The night will culminate in a late-night set that blends voice and electronics, creating an intoxicating and hypnotic experience.

The evening kicks off with the epic cinematography of Ron Fricke's "Koyaanisqatsi," paired with Philip Glass's celebrated score, offering an apocalyptic vision of the clash between urban life, technology, and the environment. This powerful film, devoid of text, narration, or dialogue, relies on Glass's memorable score to captivate the audience.

Following the film, seize the unique opportunity to hear the Orchestra of Opera North perform a selection of minimalist works, including Terry Riley’s "In C." The event will close with Australian vocalist Lotte Betts-Dean performing Jacob Cooper’s "Silver Threads," a piece that sets a haiku attributed to Matsuo Bashō to music, expanded into a full cycle by various poets.

Tickets are priced at £13, including the booking fee. The schedule for the evening is as follows:
- Doors open at 7pm
- Film screening at 7.45pm
- Orchestra of Opera North at 9.30pm
- Lotte Betts-Dean at 11pm

This event is part of the "HAR Late" series, offering after-dark adventures in music ranging from minimalism to jazz and electronica, all taking place in the hidden splendour of the Howard Assembly Room. Don't miss this unique blend of film, live performance, and electronic music in the heart of Leeds.

HAR Late: Midnight Minimalism

The Grand Theatre & Opera House Leeds

The vibrant and eclectic style of Pulitzer Prize-winning composer John Adams is paired with biblical verse, modern Spanish-language poetry, and more in this contemporary take on the Christmas story, uniquely told from a mother’s point of view. Experience the power of this spellbinding masterpiece, which in Adams’s words explores “what is meant by a miracle.”

Adams’s El Niño

Jones Hall

Principal Percussionist of the San Francisco Symphony, Jacob Nissly joins Maestro Ankush Kumar Bahl and the Omaha Symphony in a performance of the Losing Earth Percussion Concerto by Adam Schoenberg.

Tchaikovsky 6

Omaha Performing Arts

In a unique presentation, the superb Australian String Quartet will join the Sydney Symphony to perform the mesmerising Absolute Jest by American composer John Adams, a work that takes small fragments of Beethoven’s music and develops them into something new, and newly inspiring.

The Sydney Symphony Orchestra With The Australian String Quartet

Sydney Opera House

“He can roar, but he also can whisper,” said the Chicago Sun-Times about Yefim Bronfman’s performance of Beethoven’s Fourth Piano Concerto. On either side of Bronfman’s astonishing performance, David Robertson leads symphonic works by Adolphus Hailstork and John Adams, two contemporary American composers who are currently shaping the orchestral world as we watch (and listen!).

Bronfman Plays Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 4

Minnesota Orchestra

Morning Concert

Libbey Park

Time Present and Time Past

University of California San Diego

Eclectic Series: John Adams, Fazil Say, Berio, Scriabin, Janacek, Chopin / Meral Guneyman

Bargemusic

Celebrate the opening of the Conrad Prebys 2024 Summer Season at The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park with the San Diego Symphony Orchestra, conductor Gemma New and pianist Olga Kern. The concert features Kern performing the Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 3, as well as Copland’s Four Dance Episodes from Rodeo (including the well-known “Hoe-down” movement) and Rimsky-Korsakov's fiery Capriccio espagnol, which is based on Spanish folk melodies.

Summer 2024 Opening Night with the San Diego Symphony Orchestra

The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park

Conrad Tao delves into Rachmaninoff’s Californian years, highlighting his relationship with the American songbook, before an exploration of composers past and present who have shaped California’s unique cultural tapestry. This journey through California’s rich artistic legacy showcases the diverse influences and inspirations found within its vibrant landscape, from its pioneering composers to the myriad of stories that have been woven under its expansive skies.

California Dreamin'

Conrad Prebys Performing Arts Center

One of the most prolific and influential composers of today, John Adams returns to the TSO podium, leading sensational Spotlight Artist Anna Prohaska in “This is prophetic!” from his era-defining opera Nixon in China, depicting the historic 1972 US Presidential visit, along with the Canadian Première of his eclectic new work, Frenzy.

John Adams Returns

David Pecaut Square

Swan Lake is the quintessential ballet score — a resplendent fable of dreamlike transformation. Tchaikovsky’s ballet suite caps a program of musical storytelling that includes Gubaidulina’s whimsical Fairytale Poem and Adams’ brightly colored Slonimsky’s Earbox. Vilde Frang makes her instrument sing and soar in Stravinsky’s neoclassical Violin Concerto.

Tchaikovsky Swan Lake

Chicago Symphony Orchestra

Wheaton College

Severance Music Center is Cleveland’s home for symphonic music and other presentations, including Jack, Joseph, and Morton Mandel Concert Hall and Reinberger Chamber Hall. We are strongly committed to making everyone feel welcome. The doors to Severance open three hours prior to most performances.

Ólafsson and Wang in Recital

Prepare to be amazed by the brilliance of Philharmonic Principal Trombone Jeff Thomas and Second Trombone Alex Regazzi as they perform a program featuring the best of the trombone! With its rich and commanding presence, the trombone will take center stage and showcase the powerhouse instrument and heroic melodies as Jeff and Alex sing through this musical journey. Whether you are a seasoned classical enthusiast or new to the world of brass – join us for an unforgettable evening of the best in trombone repertoire!

Both Slides of the Trombone

Colonial Plaza

The most recent opera by preeminent American composer John Adams—a glorious adaptation of Shakespeare’s immortal drama—has its Met premiere. Following her debut in the company premiere of Adams’s El Niño in 2024, soprano Julia Bullock stars as the irresistible Cleopatra, one of theater’s most complex and captivating characters, opposite bass-baritone Gerald Finley as the conflicted Antony. Adams himself takes the podium to conduct his lyrical and richly orchestrated score, leading a new staging by groundbreaking director Elkhanah Pulitzer that transports the story of troubled romance and political strife from ancient Rome to the Golden Age of Hollywood in the 1930s. Tenor Paul Appleby is Caesar, who goes to war with Antony, and mezzo-soprano Elizabeth DeShong is Caesar’s sister and Antony’s forsaken wife Octavia.

Antony and Cleopatra

Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts

In the Holland Festival 2025, The National Ballet pays tribute to pure, abstract dance. New for the company is Other Dances by the American grandmaster Jerome Robbins. This choreographic jewel is combined with two recent highlights: Ted Brandsen's The Chairman Dances and David Dawson's The Four Seasons .

John Adams

Composer, Conductor

Events

Apr 6 - May 18, 2024

Beethoven Fest 2024 · Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra

Apr 23 - May 17, 2024

El Niño · The Metropolitan Opera

Apr 25, 2024

Esprit Orchestra presents Sonic Universe · Royal Conservatory

25 - 27 Apr, 2024

CSO x Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis · Chicago Symphony Orchestra

26 - 27 Apr, 2024

Tausk Conducts Shostakovich & Adams - Vancouver Symphony Orchestra · Vancouver Symphony Orchestra

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