Conductor

Music Director Perry So Opens his first season at Woolsey Hall with Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, known best for its triumphant Ode to Joy.

Maestro So says, “We’re kicking off with Beethoven’s Ode to Joy, his great 9th symphony in its 200th anniversary year: a deep dive into the unifying joy that all of us find in music. This piece has taken generations through its harrowing journey in oppressive darkness, holding out false promises of an Eden that never materializes, until a voice pulls us back from the brink and shows us the way out of despair through community and through art. I love that this piece brings solace in bereavement at the same moment that it calls for a radical egalitarianism in art. It says to us: “since we are equally human in joy and sadness, together let’s choose the joy that reminds us how much we all share.”

EPSG:4326

Beethoven’s Ninth | Ode to Joy!

Yale University

Clara Schumann and Johannes Brahms shared a deep and enduring friendship that greatly influenced their music. Clara, a brilliant pianist and composer, was a close confidante and mentor for Brahms. Their relationship, rooted in mutual respect and admiration, inspired some of the most beautiful and heartfelt compositions in classical music. This concert celebrates their unique bond and the timeless music born from it.

The program will also feature Connecticut’s official composer, Charles Ives, in honor of his 125th Birthday Anniversary! Born in Danbury in 1874, Ives attended Yale University and worked in the insurance industry, while also becoming one of the most influential composers in American history. Three Places in New England aims to paint a picture of American ideals, lifestyle and patriotism at the turn of the 20th century by musically visiting Boston Commons; Redding, Connecticut; and Stockbridge, Mass.

Clara & Johannes

This world premiere setting of Beethoven’s only ballet score, The Creatures of Prometheus, – featuring the Tia Russell Dance Studio and New Haven Poet Laureate Sharmont Little – will shine new light on humanity’s timeless questions of power and morality. 

Prometheus

Southern Connecticut State University

Start off your family’s holiday celebration with an afternoon of beautiful Christmas Carols at Woolsey Hall. The first half of the program features the angelic voices of the Elm City Girls Choir singing classical carols by Bach, Handel, and Vivaldi and after intermission the concert hall transforms into a Holly Jolly musical “Sleigh Ride” including “We Wish You a Merry Christmas,” “Jingle Bell Rock,” “Feliz Navidad,” and more! Sing-along with your favorite orchestra and remember why music helps to make the season bright. #falalalala

Caroling, Caroling

In 1937, NBC began a live radio broadcast of Black American composer Robert Nathaniel Dett’s The Ordering of Moses. However… mid-performance NBC cut the broadcast feed giving in to complaints from outraged listeners. On Feburary 9, Experience Dett’s full-length oratorio – performed without interruption – and find out why we think this might be the greatest American choral work of all time. 

The Ordering of Moses

This adventurous program will feature Rimsky-Korsakov’s enchanting Scheherazade, which uses music to tell the story of 1001 Arabian Nights. NHSO proudly welcomes triple-Grammy nominee Wu Man – the world’s foremost pipa soloist – to serve as a “wordless narrator” on Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Du Yun’s extraordinary and unusual Ears of the Book.

Scheherazade

Meet the orchestra! This FREE, interactive program designed for kids will show off all the cool sounds that an orchestra can make. After the 50-minute concert, kids can meet NHSO musicians in the lobby and try real orchestra instruments at the instrument “petting zoo.”

Young People’s Concert

2023 Latin GRAMMY triple-nominee Pacho Flores makes his NHSO debut with Daniel Freiberg’s new Trumpet Concerto, and Perry So leads the NHSO in music by Arturo Márquez, Gabriela Lena Frank, and Silvestre Revueltas. 

Perry So

Conductor

Events

Upcoming events

Sep 22, 2024

Beethoven’s Ninth | Ode to Joy! · New Haven Symphony Orchestra

Oct 17, 2024

Clara & Johannes · New Haven Symphony Orchestra

Nov 24, 2024

Prometheus · New Haven Symphony Orchestra

Dec 22, 2024

Caroling, Caroling · New Haven Symphony Orchestra

Feb 9, 2025

The Ordering of Moses · New Haven Symphony Orchestra

Future and recently performed repertoire

Conductor in Danzón No. 2 by Márquez

New Haven Symphony Orchestra

Conductor in Sensemayá by Revueltas

New Haven Symphony Orchestra

Conductor in Escaramuza by Frank

New Haven Symphony Orchestra

Conductor in The Ordering of Moses by Dett

New Haven Symphony Orchestra

Conductor in Symphony No. 9 by Beethoven

New Haven Symphony Orchestra

Conductor in Concierto de Otoño by Márquez

New Haven Symphony Orchestra

Conductor in Historias de Flores y Tangos by Freiberg

New Haven Symphony Orchestra

Conductor in Four Dances from Estancia by Ginastera

New Haven Symphony Orchestra

Conductor in Gathering Song by Bryan

New Haven Symphony Orchestra

Conductor in Go Down Moses by Sowande

New Haven Symphony Orchestra

Conductor in Finale from Sonata No. 1 by Price

New Haven Symphony Orchestra

Conductor in We Shall Overcome by Haywood

New Haven Symphony Orchestra

About

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