Music Director Jader Bignamini leads sensational schedule of concerts including Opening Night Gala with Branford Marsalis on September 28
Tabita Berglund appointed Principal Guest Conductor and leads programs with violinist Pekka Kuusisto and pianist Cédric Tiberghien
Enrico Lopez-Yañez begins tenure as DSO’s Principal Pops Conductor, leading five programs on PNC Pops Series
DSO commissions by Michael Abels, Anna Clyne, Kris Johnson, Jimmy López-Bellido, and Jessie Montgomery highlight 15 works by living composers including 10 by women and people of color
Subscriptions on sale now at dso.org/subscribe
Detroit, (February 27, 2024) – The Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO) today announced the 2024–2025 season of its PVS Classical Series, PNC Pops Series, and Young People’s Family Concert Series. The new season begins in September and will mark the DSO’s fifth year led by Music Director Jader Bignamini, and its first with new Principal Pops Conductor Enrico Lopez-Yañez.
The DSO is excited to appoint Norwegian conductor Tabita Berglund as the orchestra’s new Principal Guest Conductor, beginning in the 2024–2025 season with an initial 4-year contract. Berglund currently serves as Principal Guest Conductor of the Kristiansand Symphony Orchestra in Norway and is recognized as one of today’s most talented young conductors, fast gaining a reputation for her alert, charismatic, and inspiring style. Berglund developed an immediate connection with the DSO in January 2023 when she made her highly successful US debut at Orchestra Hall, conducting a program of Sibelius, Prokofiev, and Anna Thorvaldsdottir.
As the DSO’s new Principal Guest Conductor, Berglund will have an extended artistic collaboration with the orchestra over multiple weeks each season. In 2024–2025, she conducts two programs on the PVS Classical Series. The first, in October, features the US premiere of Anna Clyne’s Time and Tides (a DSO co-commission) with violinist Pekka Kuusisto, Britten’s Peter Grimes: Four Sea Interludes, and Sibelius’s Lemminkäinen Suite; in March, Berglund returns to conduct Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5 with Cédric Tiberghien and Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition.
“We are honored to welcome Tabita to the DSO family,” said DSO President and CEO Erik Rönmark. “From the moment she came to Orchestra Hall, we knew there was a special connection with our musicians that created outstanding music-making. The addition of Tabita’s talent and magnetic energy to our orchestra increases our ability to explore different musical worlds. She joins an incredible artistic leadership team of Music Director Jader Bignamini, Principal Pops Conductor Enrico Lopez-Yañez, and Fred A. Erb Jazz Creative Director Terence Blanchard, which will bring the DSO to even greater heights for many years to come.”
“What struck me the first time I worked with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra is that this is an orchestra which knows that music matters,” said Berglund. “Their ambition to shape the future of their community through artistic excellence very much coincides with my belief that music has the power to change lives. I am proud to join the artistic team of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and look forward to our adventures ahead.”
“Our 2024–2025 season is filled with music that stirs the senses,” said Rönmark. “From symphonic favorites to lesser-known masterpieces and contemporary works that push the boundaries, our orchestra presents each program with remarkable artistry, creating unforgettable musical experiences for audiences in Detroit and beyond.”
The season launches on Saturday, September 28, when Grammy Award-winning saxophonist Branford Marsalis brings his impeccable artistry to Orchestra Hall for the DSO’s Opening Night Gala conducted by Music Director Jader Bignamini. In the season to follow, Bignamini will conduct 11 of the season’s 21 classical weeks. Major highlights of his season include Mahler’s Symphony No. 5, Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 10, a world premiere by composer Michael Abels, Ravel’s piano concertos with soloist Bertrand Chamayou to celebrate the composer’s 150th birthday, and Bizet’s Carmen in concert celebrating the opera’s 150th anniversary.
“Experiencing live music together creates powerful emotions and connections,” said Music Director Jader Bignamini. “This season, we will collectively savor the incredible range of feeling that music brings to our lives and that speaks to our human experiences. I look forward to sharing these moments at Orchestra Hall with our incredible musicians and passionate DSO audiences.”
The DSO’s 2024–2025 PNC Pops Series will bring favorites from Broadway, film and TV, rock, pop, and more to the Orchestra Hall stage. As previously announced, Enrico Lopez-Yañez will begin his tenure as Principal Pops Conductor in the new season, overseeing the artistic vision of the PNC Pops Series and conducting five of the season’s 11 PNC Pops weeks, beginning in October with The Music of Star Wars. Additional highlights of the PNC Pops Series conducted by Lopez-Yañez include the beloved Home for the Holidays concerts in December, La Vida Loca in March, and a program with acclaimed singer-songwriter Ben Folds in May.
“I’m thrilled to grow my relationship with the DSO as the new Principal Pops Conductor and showcase the many facets of pops music,” said Enrico Lopez-Yañez. “In The Music of Star Wars, together with the orchestra, I will be guiding audiences on an intergalactic journey that both highlights the orchestra and is highly interactive for the audience. For the high-energy La Vida Loca, which I designed and wrote charts for, we highlight some of the greatest hits of the 90's and early 2000's Latin explosion, guaranteed to get people up on their feet and dancing. I also look forward to working with the supremely talented Ben Folds, bringing his top hits to Detroit audiences, leading the magic of Home for the Holidays, and engaging with our youngest fans on the family series.”
See below for more details on the PVS Classical Series, PNC Pops Series, Young People’s Family Concerts Series, plus a notable repertoire list, guest artist list, and complete program listings.
The DSO’s 2024-2025 Paradise Jazz Series and William Davidson Neighborhood Concerts Series will be announced in the coming months.
The DSO, an industry leader in digital programming, will continue its Live from Orchestra Hall webcast series with live streams of the PVS Classical Series and select Educational Concert Series in the 2024–2025 season, available on dso.org, Facebook, and YouTube.
Subscriptions are on sale now for the 2024–2025 PVS Classical Series, PNC Pops Series, and Young People’s Family Concert Series. Patrons can purchase subscriptions at dso.org or by calling the Box Office at 313.576.5111. Single tickets will be available for purchase later this year.
The title sponsor of the DSO’s PVS Classical Series is PVS Chemicals, Inc. The title sponsor of the DSO’s PNC Pops Series is PNC Bank. DSO Live is presented by Ford Motor Company Fund. Technology support comes from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Digital programming is produced from the Al Glancy Control Room.
For more information, visit dso.org/subscribe.
PVS CLASSICAL SERIES
On the PVS Classical Series, Jader Bignamini will conduct programs with acclaimed guest artists including pianists Bertrand Chamayou, Behzod Abduraimov, Alexandra Dovgan, and Wayne Marshall; violinists Alina Ibragimova and Ray Chen; and cellist Steven Isserlis. Bignamini will also lead a program of Brahms’s Concerto for Violin and Cello in A minor with Robyn Bollinger (DSO Concertmaster, Katherine Tuck Chair) and Wei Yu (DSO Principal Cello), plus a new work by DSO cellist and composer Jeremy Crosmer. The concert performance in February of Bizet’s Carmen will feature mezzo-soprano J’Nai Bridges and tenor Russell Thomas, with soprano Ailyn Pérez, baritone Paulo Szot, Opera MODO & Audivi, and the Ann Arbor Youth Chorale.
Bignamini will conduct a variety of repertoire including major orchestral works by Gershwin (American in Paris and Rhapsody in Blue), Tchaikovsky (Romeo and Juliet, Overture-Fantasy and Piano Concerto No. 1), Mahler (Symphony No. 5), Haydn (Symphony No. 100 in G major), Barber (Violin Concerto), Brahms (Symphony No. 3), Beethoven (Symphony No. 6), Strauss (Don Juan and Till Eulenspigel’s Merry Pranks), Prokofiev (Violin Concerto No. 1), Shostakovich (Symphony No. 10), and Ravel (Piano Concerto for the Left Hand, Piano Concerto in G, and Le Tombeau de Couperin); and lesser heard symphonic gems by Kashperova (Symphony in B minor), Coleridge-Taylor (Othello), and Schulhoff (Hot Sonate). Bignamini will also conduct the world premiere of a new work by Michael Abels, one of the DSO’s five commissioned new works during the 2024–2025 season, which also includes new music by Anna Clyne, Kris Johnson, Jimmy López Bellido, and Jessie Montgomery
The DSO will present works by 15 living composers and 15 works by women or people of color, including a DSO co-commissioned work titled Snapshots by Montgomery as part of the Amplifying Voices program, a New Music USA initiative powered by the Sphinx Venture Fund, with additional support from ASCAP, the Sorel Organization, the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation, and the Wise Music Charitable Foundation. Amplifying Voices fosters collaboration and collective action between US orchestras and composers toward racial and gender equity in classical music.
Montgomery’s Snapshots will be presented on the DSO’s annual Classical Roots program, along with her piano concerto, Rounds, with pianist Awadagin Pratt and the world premiere of a DSO-commissioned new work by Johnson. Johnson’s work honors the 5-year anniversary of the passing of community leader Marlowe Stoudamire and features Johnson on trumpet. DSO Assistant Conductor (Phillip and Lauren Fisher Community Ambassador) Na’Zir McFadden conducts the concerts.
New DSO Principal Guest Conductor Tabita Berglund conducts a fall program featuring the US premiere of Clyne’s Time and Tides with violinist Pekka Kuusisto, Britten’s Peter Grimes: Four Sea Interludes, and Sibelius’s Lemminkäinen Suite. In the spring, Berglund returns to conduct Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5 with Cédric Tiberghien and Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition.
Additional highlights of the 2024–2025 PVS Classical Series: Leonard Slatkin conducts Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 4 with Olga Kern, Prokofiev’s Symphony No. 5, and Voyager 130 by his son Daniel Slatkin in celebration of the conductor’s 80th birthday; Alpesh Chauhan conducts Saint-Saëns's Concerto for Violincello No. 1 with Johannes Moser, Holst’s The Planets, and works by living composers Thomas Adés and Colin Matthews; Daniele Rustioni conducts Shostakovich’s Violin Concerto No. 1 with Francesca Dego, Camille Pepin’s Les Eaux célestes, and Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring; Christian Reif conducts Florence Price’s Violin Concerto No. 2 with Randall Goosby and Prokofiev’s Symphony No. 7; Markus Stenz conducts Bruch’s Concerto for Clarinet and Viola with DSO Principal Clarinet (Robert B. Semple Chair) Ralph Skiano and DSO Principal Viola (Julie and Ed Levy, Jr. Chair) Eric Nowlin, Beethoven’s Leonore Overture No. 3 in C major, and Schumann’s Symphony No. 2 in C major; Donald Runnicles conducts Bruckner’s Symphony No. 8; and Marie Jacquot conducts Jolivet’s Concertino with DSO Principal Trumpet (Lee and Floy Barthel Chair) Hunter Eberly, plus works by Ravel and Poulenc.
PNC POPS SERIES
On the PNC Pops Series, Principal Pops Conductor Enrico Lopez-Yañez will lead The Music of Star Wars, a concert featuring the best of John Williams’s film music from every episode in the series; Under the Streetlamp, highlighting old school hits by The Drifters. Ray Orbison, Nat King Cole, and the Beach Boys with former cast members from the hit musical Jersey Boys; La Vida Loca, a program featuring the greatest hits of the ‘90s and ‘00s Latin pop explosion; Ben Folds featuring the artist in a program of genre-crossing favorites; and the beloved Home for the Holidays concerts; plus, Gold Rush: An American Musical Adventure on the Young People’s Family Concert Series.
Other PNC Pops Series highlights include the return of Jeff Tyzik to conduct Women Rock featuring hit songs by female rock legends including Tina Turner, Pat Benatar, Janis Joplin, and Aretha Franklin; The Music of Queen featuring the beloved band’s greatest hits conducted by Brent Havens; Music of The Knights featuring the crown jewels of Broadway and pop with music by Sir Elton John, Sir Paul McCartney, and Sir Andrew Lloyd Weber conducted by DSO Assistant Conductor Na’Zir McFadden; Broadway Love Songs featuring timeless romantic classics by Rogers and Hammerstein; Celtic Journey featuring authentic Irish music conducted by Ernest Richardson and featuring Susanna Perry Gilmore (fiddle), William Coulter (guitar), and Tomáseen Foley (Irish storyteller); Let’s Misbehave: The Songs of Cole Porter featuring pianist Tony DeSare, trombonist Aubrey Logan, and tap dancer John Manzari.
YOUNG PEOPLE’S FAMILY CONCERT SERIES
In addition to the PVS Classical Series and the PNC Pops Series, the DSO announced its 2024–2025 Young People’s Family Concert Series, which will bring fun and interactive concert opportunities for the whole family to the Max M. and Marjorie S. Fisher Music Center. Highlights will include Symphony Spooktacular and Carnival of the Animals conducted by DSO Assistant Conductor Na’Zir McFadden and Gold Rush: An American Musical Adventure conducted by DSO Principal Pops Conductor Enrico Lopez-Yañez. Tiny Tots concerts, with programming for children aged 2-6, will also resume in the Peter D. and Julie F. Cummings Cube (The Cube) prior to each Young People’s Family Concert.
Commissions, Premieres, and Contemporary Music
The DSO will perform 15 works by living composers during the 2024-2025 season, which include 2 world premieres and 5 DSO commissioned or co-commissioned works (noted with *).
MICHAEL ABELS New work (World Premiere)*
THOMAS ADÈS Three-piece Suite from Powder Her Face
ANNA CLYNE Time and Tides*
JEREMY CROSMER Solo
RHIANNON GIDDENS AND MICHAEL ABELS Overture from Omar
KRIS JOHNSON New work (World Premiere)*
JIMMY LÓPEZ BELLIDO New Work*
COLIN MATTHEWS Pluto, The Renewer
JESSIE MONTGOMERY Rounds
JESSIE MONTGOMERY Snapshots*
CAMILLE PÉPIN Les Eaux célestes
CARLOS SIMON Four Black American Dances
DANIEL SLATKIN Voyager 130
JOAN TOWER Fanfare for the Uncommon Woman No. 6
JOHN WILLIAMS Escapades from Catch Me If You Can
Major Orchestral Works
SAMUEL BARBER Violin Concerto
LEONARD BERNSTEIN Symphonic Dances from West Side Story
GEORGES BIZET Carmen
JOHANNES BRAHMS Concerto for Violin and Cello in A minor
JOHANNES BRAHMS Symphony No. 3 in F major
MAX BRUCH Concerto for Clarinet and Viola
LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN Leonore Overture No. 3 in C major
LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 5, “Emperor”
LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 6, “Pastoral”
ANTON BRUCKNER Symphony No. 8
BENJAMIN BRITTEN Four Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes
GEORGE GERSHWIN An American in Paris
GEORGE GERSHWIN Rhapsody in Blue
JOSEPH FRANZ HAYDN Symphony No. 100 in G major, “Military”
GUSTAV HOLST The Planets
LEOKADIYA KASHPEROVA Symphony in B minor
GUSTAV MAHLER Symphony No. 5
MODEST MUSSORGSKY ARR. RAVEL Pictures at an Exhibition
FLORENCE PRICE Violin Concerto No. 2
SERGEI PROKOFIEV Symphony No. 5
SERGEI PROKOFIEV Symphony No. 7
SERGEI PROKOFIEV Violin Concerto No. 1
SERGEI RACHMANINOFF Piano Concerto No. 4
MAURICE RAVEL Le Tombeau de Couperin
MAURICE RAVEL Ma Mère l’Oye (Mother Goose)
MAURICE RAVEL Piano Concerto in G major
MAURICE RAVEL Piano Concerto for the Left Hand
NIKOLAI RIMSKY-KORSAKOV Capriccio espagnol
CAMILLE SAINT-SAËNS Concerto for Violoncello No. 1
CAMILLE SAINT-SAËNS Piano Concerto No. 2
ROBERT SCHUMANN Cello Concerto in A minor
ROBERT SCHUMANN Symphony No. 2 in C Major
DMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH Symphony No. 10
DMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH Violin Concerto No. 1
JEAN SIBELIUS Lemminkäinen Suite
RICHARD STRAUSS Don Juan, Op. 20
RICHARD STRAUSS Till Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks
IGOR STRAVINSKY The Rite of Spring
PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY Piano Concerto No. 1
PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY Romeo and Juliet, Overture-Fantasy
PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY Selections from The Nutcracker Suite
TCHAIKOVSKY/ELLINGTON/STRAYHORN ARR. TYZIK The Nutcracker Suite
Classical Series Guest Conductors and Soloists
Artists marked with an asterisk (*) will be making their DSO PVS Classical Series conducting or solo debut.
Tabita Berglund, conductor
Alpesh Chauhan, conductor*
Marie Jacquot, conductor*
Na’Zir McFadden, conductor
Christian Reif, conductor*
Donald Runnicles, conductor
Daniele Rustioni, conductor*
Leonard Slatkin, conductor
Markus Stenz, conductor
Steven Isserlis, cello
Johannes Moser, cello*
Wei Yu, cello
Ralph Skiano, clarinet
Behzod Abduraimov, piano
Bertrand Chamayou, piano
Alexandra Dovgan, piano*
Olga Kern, piano
Wayne Marshall, piano*
Awadagin Pratt, piano
Cédric Tiberghien, piano*
Branford Marsalis, saxophone
Ailyn Pérez, soprano
J’Nai Bridges, mezzo-soprano
Russell Thomas, tenor
Paulo Szot, baritone*
Hunter Eberly, trumpet
Kris Johnson, trumpet*
Robyn Bollinger, violin
Ray Chen, violin
Francesca Dego, violin*
Randall Goosby, violin
Alina Ibragimova, violin*
Pekka Kuusisto, violin
Eric Nowlin, viola
About Jader Bignamini
Jader Bignamini was introduced as the 18th music director of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in January 2020, commencing with the 2020–2021 season. He kicked off his tenure as DSO Music Director with the launch of DSO Digital Concerts in September 2020, conducting works by Copland, Puccini, Tchaikovsky, and Saint-Georges. His infectious passion and artistic excellence set the tone for the season ahead, creating extraordinary music and establishing a close relationship with the orchestra. A jazz aficionado, he has immersed himself in Detroit’s rich jazz culture and the influences of American music.
A native of Crema, Italy, Bignamini studied at the Piacenza Music Conservatory and began his career as a musician (clarinet) with Orchestra Sinfonica La Verdi in Milan, later serving as the group’s resident conductor. Captivated by the music of legends like Mahler and Tchaikovsky, Bignamini explored their complexity and power, puzzling out the role that each instrument played in creating a larger-than-life sound. When he conducted his first professional concert at the age of 28, it didn’t feel like a departure, but an arrival.
In the years since, Bignamini has conducted some of the world’s most acclaimed orchestras and opera companies in venues across the globe including working with Riccardo Chailly on concerts of Mahler’s Eighth Symphony in 2013 and his concert debut at La Scala in 2015 for the opening season of La Verdi Orchestra. Recent highlights include debuts with Opera de Paris conducting La Forza del Destino and with Deutsche Opera Berlin conducting Simon Boccanegra; appearances with the Pittsburgh and Toronto symphonies; debuts with the Houston, Dallas, and Minnesota symphonies; Osaka Philharmonic and Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra in Tokyo; with the Metropolitan Opera, Vienna State Opera, and Dutch National Opera (Madama Butterfly); Bayerische Staatsoper (La Traviata); I Puritani in Montpellier for the Festival of Radio France; Traviata in Tokyo directed by Sofia Coppola; return engagements with Oper Frankfurt (La forza del destino) and Santa Fe Opera (La bohème); Manon Lescaut at the Bolshoi; Traviata, Madama Butterfly, and Turandot at Arena of Verona; Il Trovatore and Aida at Rome’s Teatro dell’Opera; Madama Butterfly, I Puritani, and Manon Lescaut at Teatro Massimo in Palermo; Simon Boccanegra and La Forza del Destino at the Verdi Festival in Parma; Ciro in Babilonia at Rossini Opera Festival and La bohème, Madama Butterfly, and Elisir d’amore at La Fenice in Venice.
When Bignamini leads an orchestra in symphonic repertoire, he conducts without a score, preferring to make direct eye contact with the musicians. He conducts from the heart, forging a profound connection with his musicians that shines through both onstage and off. He both embodies and exudes the excellence and enthusiasm that has long distinguished the DSO’s artistry.
About Enrico Lopez-Yañez
Enrico Lopez-Yañez is the Principal Pops Conductor of the Nashville Symphony and Pacific Symphony, as well as the Principal Conductor of the Dallas Symphony Presents. This season, Lopez-Yañez has been named Principal Pops Conductor Designate of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, a position he will begin in the 2024–2025 season. Lopez-Yañez is quickly establishing himself as one of the nation’s leading conductors of popular music and becoming known for his unique style of audience engagement. Also an active composer and arranger, he has been commissioned to write for the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, Houston Symphony, San Diego Symphony and Omaha Symphony, and has had his works performed by orchestras including the Atlanta Symphony, Baltimore Symphony, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Indianapolis Symphony, National Symphony, Phoenix Symphony, Seattle Symphony, and Utah Symphony, among others.
Lopez-Yañez has conducted concerts with a broad spectrum of artists including Nas, Patti LaBelle, Ledisi, Itzhak Perlman, Stewart Copeland, Kenny Loggins, Trisha Yearwood, Kelsea Ballerini, Leslie Odom Jr., Renee Elise Goldsberry, Portugal. The Man, Cody Fry, Hanson, The Beach Boys, Kenny G, and more. Lopez-Yañez also conducts the annual Let Freedom Sing! Music City July 4th fireworks show, which is televised annually on CMT, reaching millions of viewers across the nation.
This season Lopez-Yañez will collaborate with artists including Ben Rector, Cypress Hill, Tituss Burgess, Vanessa Williams, Lyle Lovett, Jefferson Starship, Guster, Ben Folds, and Arturo Sandoval. He will appear with the Minnesota Orchestra and Milwaukee Symphony, as well as make return appearances with the Indianapolis Symphony, National Symphony, The Philadelphia Orchestra, San Diego Symphony, San Francisco Symphony, and more. Previously, Lopez-Yañez has appeared with orchestras throughout North America including the Baltimore Symphony, Cincinnati Symphony, Houston Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony, and the Seattle Symphony, among others.
Lopez-Yañez is the recipient of the 2023 “Mexicanos Distiguidos” Award by the Mexican government, an award granted to Mexican citizens living abroad for outstanding career accomplishments in their field. As an advocate for Latin music, he has arranged and produced shows for Latin Fire, Mariachi Los Camperos, and The Three Mexican Tenors, and collaborated with artists including Aida Cuevas and Lila Downs.
As Artistic Director and Co-Founder of Symphonica Productions, LLC, Lopez-Yañez curates and leads programs designed to cultivate new audiences. Symphonica manages a wide breadth of pops, family, and educational productions that “breathe new, exuberant life into classical programming for kids and families” (Nashville Parent Magazine). Symphonica’s productions have been described as “incredibly special—and something that needs to become the new norm” (Lima Symphony). As a sheet music publishing house, Symphonica Productions represents a diverse offering of genres and composers, including Grammy Award nominee Clarice Assad, Sverre Indris Joner, Andres Soto, Charles Cozens, Vinicio Meza, and more.
As a producer, composer, and arranger, Lopez-Yañez’s work can be heard on numerous albums including the UNESCO benefit album Action Moves People United and children’s music albums including The Spaceship that Fell in My Backyard, winner of the John Lennon Songwriting Contest, Hollywood Music and Media Awards, and Family Choice Awards; and Kokowanda Bay, winner of a Global Media Award as well as a Parents’ Choice Award, where Lopez-Yañez was lauded for his “catchy arrangements” (Parents’ Choice Foundation).
Connect on social media @enricolopezyanez or visit enricolopezyanez.com for more information.
About Tabita Berglund
Hailed as “one of Europe’s greatest promises” (Helsingin Sanomat), Tabita Berglund is one of today’s most exciting, talented young conductors who is fast gaining a reputation for her alert, charismatic, and inspiring style, which elicits “exceptional music-making” (The Arts Desk). Berglund is currently Principal Guest Conductor of Kristiansand Symphony Orchestra, appointed to this post following her debut engagement with the orchestra in 2020.
Symphonic highlights of the 2023–24 season include Berglund’s debuts with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Berner Symphonieorchester, Orchestre National de Lyon, Philharmonia Orchestra, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, BBC Scottish Symphony, Dresdner Philharmonie, Düsseldorfer Symphoniker, Musikkollegium Winterthur, and Grafenegg Festival, where she joins forces with Tonkünstler-Orchester Niederösterreich for the second time and ahead of further performances later in the season. Working together again with Philharmonia Orchestra, Berglund makes her Garsington Opera debut, conducting a revival production of Mozart ’s Le nozze di Figaro. Other highlights include Berglund’s final concerts as Principal Guest of KSO, as well as return engagements with Orquesta Sinfónica de Tenerife, Trondheim Symfoniorkester, and Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra.
Throughout 2023–24, Berglund collaborates with internationally renowned soloists including Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Leila Josefowicz, Truls Mørk, Camilla Tilling, Benjamin Beilman, Paul Lewis, and Johan Dalene. She continues to champion the music of Nordic compatriots such as Sibelius, Stenhammar, Tveitt, Nordheim, and Thorvaldsdottir, as part of a wide-ranging repertoire from Mozart and Beethoven through to Prokofiev, Boulanger and Lutosławski, among others.
Previous season highlights include Berglund’s US debut with Detroit Symphony Orchestra as well as engagements with Bergen Philharmonic, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, Finnish Radio Symphony, and Stavanger Symphony orchestras, Luzerner Symphonieorchester, Sinfonieorchester Wuppertal, Orquestra Simfònica de Barcelona i Nacional de Catalunya, Orquesta Ciudad de Granada, Hallé, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, and Tapiola Sinfonietta, among others.
Berglund graduated in 2019 from the Orchestral Conducting Masters course at the Norwegian Academy of Music, where she studied under Professor Ole Kristian Ruud. She originally trained as a cellist and studied to master’s degree level under Truls Mørk, performing regularly with the Oslo and Bergen philharmonic orchestras as well as the Trondheim Soloists before conducting became her main focus in 2015. She was the 2018–20 star of the Talent Norway program and is a past recipient of the Gstaad Conducting Academy’s Neeme Järvi Prize. Berglund’s debut CD, on which she conducts the Oslo Philharmonic with violinist Sonoko Miriam Welde, was released in 2021 (LAWO) and subsequently nominated for a Norwegian Grammy (Spellemann) in the 2022 Classical Music category.
HarrisonParrott represents Tabita Berglund for worldwide general management.
About the DSO
The acclaimed Detroit Symphony Orchestra is known for trailblazing performances, collaborations with the world’s foremost musical artists, and a deep connection to its city. Led by Music Director Jader Bignamini since 2020, the DSO makes its home at historic Orchestra Hall within the Max M. and Marjorie S. Fisher Music Center, offering a performance schedule that features the PVS Classical, PNC Pops, Paradise Jazz, and Young People’s Family Concert series. In addition, the DSO presents the William Davidson Neighborhood Concert Series in metro area venues, as well as eclectic multi-genre performances in its mid-size venue The Cube, constructed and curated with support from Peter D. & Julie F. Cummings. A dedication to broadcast innovation began in 1922, when the DSO became the first orchestra in the world to present a live radio broadcast of a concert and continues today with the groundbreaking Live from Orchestra Hall series of free webcasts.
Since its first school concerts a century ago, and particularly since the founding of the Civic Youth Ensembles in 1970, the DSO has been a national leader in bringing the benefits of music education to students, teachers, and families in Detroit and surrounding communities. The DSO remains committed to expanding its participation in the growth and well-being of Detroit through programs like its Detroit Neighborhood Initiative—cultural events co-created with community partners and residents—and Detroit Harmony, a promise to provide an instrument and instruction to any student in the city who wants to learn. With unwavering support from the people of Detroit, the DSO actively pursues a mission to impact lives through the power of unforgettable musical experiences.
CLASSICAL 1
BERNSTEIN & GERSHWIN
Thursday, September 26, 2024 at 7:30 p.m.
Friday, September 27, 2024 at 8 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Jader Bignamini, conductor
Branford Marsalis, saxophone
Saxophone virtuoso Branford Marsalis returns to Orchestra Hall for jazz-infused showpieces, and Music Director Jader Bignamini leads popular musical postcards by Bernstein and Gershwin capturing city vibes, Cuban beats, and the bustling cafés and streets of Paris. A celebratory fanfare by Joan Tower kicks off the DSO’s 2024–2025 Season.
JOAN TOWER Fanfare for the Uncommon Woman No. 6
SCHULHOFF Hot Sonate
GERSHWIN Cuban Overture
MILHAUD Scaramouche
BERNSTEIN Three Dance Episodes from On the Town
GERSHWIN An American in Paris
OPENING NIGHT GALA WITH BRANFORD MARSALIS
Saturday, September 28, 2024 at 7 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Jader Bignamini, conductor
Branford Marsalis, saxophone
Music Director Jader Bignamini leads an evening of musical escapades joined by saxophone star Branford Marsalis. Milhaud brought Brazilian vibes back to Paris with a jazz-infused vehicle for virtuosity. Bernstein’s dances give lively impressions of New York, and Marsalis breathes life into John Williams’s ultra-cool score. Gershwin’s masterpiece captures the busy cafés and bustling streets of Paris.
Program to include:
RHIANNON GIDDENS AND MICHAEL ABELS Overture from Omar
JOHN WILLIAMS Escapades from Catch Me If You Can
LEONARD BERNSTEIN Three Dance Episodes from On the Town
DARIUS MILHAUD Scaramouche
GEORGE GERSHWIN An American in Paris
CLASSICAL 2
RHAPSODY IN BLUE
Friday, October 11, 2024 at 10:45 a.m.
Saturday, October 12, 2024 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, October 13, 2024 at 3 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Jader Bignamini, conductor
Wayne Marshall, piano
Shakespeare inspired many thrilling orchestral odes. Music Director Jader Bignamini leads dances from Bernstein’s West Side Story and Tchaikovsky’s Overture to Romeo & Juliet, two starkly different takes on stars-crossed lovers. Moved by Othello and Macbeth, Coleridge-Taylor and Verdi created dramatic masterworks of their own. In his DSO debut, pianist Wayne Marshall performs Gershwin’s breakout hit, Rhapsody in Blue.
BERNSTEIN Symphonic Dances from West Side Story
GERSHWIN Rhapsody in Blue
COLERIDGE-TAYLOR Othello Suite
VERDI Ballet Music from Act III of Macbeth
TCHAIKOVSKY Romeo and Juliet, Overture-Fantasy
CLASSICAL 3
SEA SCENES: SIBELIUS & BRITTEN
Friday, October 18, 2024 at 10:45 a.m.
Saturday, October 19, 2024 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, October 20, 2024 at 3 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Tabita Berglund, conductor
Pekka Kuusisto, violin
The sea inspires high-risk, high-reward music-making. Newly appointed DSO Principal Guest Conductor Tabita Berglund, “one of Europe’s greatest promises” (Helsingin Sanomat, Finland), leads sea-inspired scenes by Benjamin Britten plus Jean Sibelius’s take on a Finnish epic. Pekka Kuusisto, who “surely has the most personal sound of any classical violinist now alive,” (The Telegraph, London) plays a new concerto by Grammy Award-nominated composer Anna Clyne.
BRITTEN Four Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes
ANNA CLYNE Time and Tides (US Premiere)
SIBELIUS Lemminkäinen Suite
CLASSICAL 4
RACHMANINOFF & PROKOFIEV
Saturday, November 2, 2024 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, November 3, 2024 at 3 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Leonard Slatkin, conductor
Olga Kern, piano
Music Director Laureate Leonard Slatkin takes the DSO on a musical joyride. Hold on to your seat for Prokofiev’s bold, brassy, and technically marvelous Fifth Symphony—it’s the piece that put the composer on the cover of Time magazine. Olga Kern launches into the rollercoaster thrills and lavish melodies of Rachmaninoff’s final piano concerto. Opening the concert: a new work by Daniel Slatkin.
DANIEL SLATKIN Voyager 130
RACHMANINOFF Piano Concerto No. 4
PROKOFIEV Symphony No. 5
CLASSICAL 5
HOLST’S THE PLANETS
Thursday, November 7, 2024 at 7:30 p.m.
Friday, November 8, 2024 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, November 9, 2024 at 8 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Alpesh Chauhan, conductor
Johannes Moser, cello
A constellation of stars shines at Orchestra Hall. British conductor Alpesh Chauhan brings “genuinely exciting stuff” (The Times, London) to music by fellow Brits, and cellist Johannes Moser dazzles with Saint-Saëns. The star of the show is Holst’s The Planets—one of the most exciting and instantly recognizable works of all time, given a celestial bonus by composer Colin Matthews.
THOMAS ADÈS Three-piece Suite from Powder Her Face
SAINT-SAENS Concerto for Violoncello No. 1, Op. 33
HOLST The Planets
COLIN MATTHEWS Pluto, The Renewer
CLASSICAL 6
MAHLER’S FIFTH SYMPHONY
Thursday, November 21, 2024 at 7:30 p.m.
Friday, November 22, 2024 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, November 23, 2024 at 8 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Jader Bignamini, conductor
From the dramatic opening trumpet solo to one of the most serenely heartfelt symphonic statements ever created, Mahler’s Fifth Symphony is an exercise in extremes with the power of the orchestra fully realized. More than a century earlier, another Austrian composer set the wheels of dramatic intensity in motion with music recalling the clamor of the battlefield.
HAYDN Symphony No. 100 in G major, “Military”
MAHLER Symphony No. 5
CLASSICAL 7
ELLINGTON & THE NUTCRACKER
Friday, December 6, 2024 at 10:45 a.m.
Saturday, December 7, 2024 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, December 8, 2024 at 3 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Jader Bignamini, conductor
Ray Chen, violin
Music Director Jader Bignamini gets us into the holiday spirit with not one, but two Nutcrackers. Tchaikovsky’s ballet music is a beloved favorite, and Duke Ellington really makes it swing. Grammy Award nominee Carlos Simon puts dance at the heart of celebration and guest soloist Ray Chen’s “joy in music making is palpable” (Los Angeles Times) throughout Barber’s Violin Concerto.
CARLOS SIMON Four Black American Dances
BARBER Violin Concerto
TCHAIKOVSKY Selections from The Nutcracker Suite
TCHAIKOVSKY/ELLINGTON/STRAYHORN ARR. TYZIK The Nutcracker Suite
CLASSICAL 8
THE RITE OF SPRING
Thursday, January 16, 2025 at 7:30 p.m.
Friday, January 17, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, January 18, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Daniele Rustioni, conductor
Francesca Dego, violin
Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring is a heart-pounding tour-de-force for the DSO. An otherworldly bassoon fills Orchestra Hall as various instruments interject. Suddenly, the raw and unstoppable dance begins. Francesca Dego’s “verve, and an evident delight in the unexpected,” (Gramophone) comes through in Shostakovich’s First Violin Concerto. Inspired by an ancient legend, French composer Camille Pépin’s Celestial Waters summons cosmic sounds.
CAMILLE PÉPIN Les Eaux célestes
SHOSTAKOVICH Violin Concerto No. 1
STRAVINSKY The Rite of Spring
CLASSICAL 9
PRICE & PROKOFIEV
Friday, January 31, 2025 at 10:45 a.m.
Saturday, February 1, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, February 2, 2025 at 3 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Christian Reif, conductor
Randall Goosby, violin
“For me, personally, music has been a way to inspire others,” says violinist Randall Goosby. The American virtuoso returns to Orchestra Hall with music by Florence Price. Conductor Christian Reif debuts with the DSO, leading a new orchestral fantasy by Jimmy López Bellido, “one of the most interesting young composers anywhere today,” (Chicago Sun-Times), atmospheric sounds by Anatoly Lyadov, and Prokofiev’s great symphonic farewell.
JIMMY LÓPEZ BELLIDO New Work (Co-Commission)
PRICE Violin Concerto No. 2
PRICE Adoration
LYADOV The Enchanted Lake
PROKOFIEV Symphony No. 7
CLASSICAL 10
BIZET’S CARMEN
Friday, February 21, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, February 23, 2025 at 3 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Jader Bignamini, conductor
J’Nai Bridges, mezzo-soprano
Russell Thomas, tenor
Ailyn Pérez, soprano
Paulo Szot, baritone
Opera MODO & Audivi, choir
Ann Arbor Youth Chorale, choir
Experience the timeless delights and drama of Bizet’s Carmen in concert at Orchestral Hall. Jader Bignamini leads an all-star cast with the DSO in a performance celebrating the famous opera’s 150th anniversary. Mezzo-soprano J’Nai Bridges has “the allure, fiery stage presence, and a stunning voice at its prime” (Chicago Tribune) required for the title role.
BIZET Carmen
CLASSICAL 11
CLASSICAL ROOTS
Friday, February 28, 2025 at 10:45 a.m.
Saturday, March 1, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Na’Zir McFadden, conductor
Kris Johnson, trumpet
Awadagin Pratt, piano
Acclaimed composer Jessie Montgomery is one of today’s “most distinctive and communicative voices” (BBC). Experience two of her recent masterpieces. Co-commissioned by the DSO, Snapshots brims with “glowing washes and surges of sound,” (Dallas Morning News). The Grammy-nominated Rounds, played by virtuoso Awadagin Pratt, evokes imagery and themes from T. S. Eliot’s Four Quartets. Opening the program, a world premiere by award-winning Detroit composer and trumpeter Kris Johnson.
The co-commission for Jessie Montgomery’s Snapshots is part of the Amplifying Voices program, a New Music USA initiative powered by the Sphinx Venture Fund, with additional support from ASCAP, the Sorel Organization, the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation, and the Wise Music Charitable Foundation.
Program to include:
KRIS JOHNSON (World Premiere)
MONTGOMERY Snapshots (Co-Commission)
MONTGOMERY Rounds
CLASSICAL 12
PICTURES AT AN EXHIBITION
Thursday, March 6, 2025 at 7:30 p.m.
Friday, March 7, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, March 8, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Tabita Berglund, conductor
Cédric Tiberghien, piano
Pictures at an Exhibition is the ultimate art gallery soundtrack. Movement by movement, we’re drawn further into each frame of little chicks, an underground crypt, an argument, a witch, and finally the all-encompassing Great Gate of Kiev. Principal Guest Conductor Tabita Berglund leads an orchestral spectacle and guest soloist Cédric Tiberghien plays Beethoven’s monumental “Emperor” Concerto.
BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 5, “Emperor”
MUSSORGSKY ARR. RAVEL Pictures at an Exhibition
CLASSICAL 13
BEETHOVEN & BRAHMS
Friday, March 21, 2025 at 10:45 a.m.
Saturday, March 22, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, March 23, 2025 at 3 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Jader Bignamini, conductor
Robyn Bollinger, violin
Wei Yu, cello
DSO Concertmaster Robyn Bollinger and Principal Cello Wei Yu pair up for Brahms’s robust and riveting Double Concerto, the great composer’s last large orchestral work. Music Director Jader Bignamini leads the DSO in Beethoven’s lovely, lighthearted, and occasionally stormy Sixth Symphony plus Johann Strauss’s lilting and outrageously fun overture to Die Fledermaus.
J. STRAUSS II Overture to Die Fledermaus
BRAHMS Concerto for Violin and Cello in A minor
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 6, “Pastoral”
CLASSICAL 14
BRAHMS’S THIRD SYMPHONY
Thursday, March 27, 2025 at 7:30 p.m.
Friday, March 28, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, March 29, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Jader Bignamini, conductor
Alexandra Dovgan, piano
Music Director Jader Bignamini conducts Brahms’s dramatic Third Symphony. The music moves in relentless torrents of intensity that transform into joyous affirmations. Having performed at some of the most prestigious concert halls in the world, teenage pianist Alexandra Dovgan makes her Orchestra Hall debut with a concerto by Saint-Saëns, and singular voices emerge in a new work by DSO cellist Jeremy Crosmer.
JEREMY CROSMER Solo
SAINT-SAËNS Piano Concerto No. 2
BRAHMS Symphony No. 3 in F major, Op. 90
CLASSICAL 15
BEETHOVEN & SCHUMANN
Friday, April 4, 2025 at 10:45 a.m.
Saturday, April 5, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, April 6, 2025 at 3 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Markus Stenz, conductor
Ralph Skiano, clarinet
Eric Nowlin, viola
Beethoven’s third attempt at an opener to his only opera stands alone, distilling the drama of the story. A concerto by Bruch doubles up on virtuosos, featuring DSO Principal Clarinet Ralph Skiano and Principal Viola Eric Nowlin. Schumann’s pull-on-your-heartstrings Second Symphony is another standout, led with “considerable sensitivity and imagination at every turn,” (Baltimore Sun) by conductor Markus Stenz.
BEETHOVEN Leonore Overture No. 3 in C major
BRUCH Concerto for Clarinet and Viola, Op. 88
SCHUMANN Symphony No. 2 in C Major
CLASSICAL 16
BRUCKNER’S EIGHTH SYMPHONY
Saturday, April 12, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, April 13, 2025 at 3 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Donald Runnicles, conductor
Scottish conductor Sir Donald Runnicles leads a bucket-list experience—Bruckner’s Eighth Symphony at Orchestra Hall. This is music-making on the largest possible scale; a breathtaking masterpiece of strings and shattering brass inspired by Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony; a cathedral of sound designed to make you settle back in awe.
BRUCKNER Symphony No. 8
CLASSICAL 17
FRENCH SHOWPIECES
Friday, May 2, 2025 at 10:45 a.m.
Saturday, May 3, 2025 at 8:00 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Marie Jacquot, conductor
Hunter Eberly, trumpet
Having “played her way into the forefront of exciting young conductors,” (Dallas Morning News), Marie Jacquot leads imaginative works by French composers. Ravel interprets dances and fairy tales. Poulenc does the same with fables, adding “the characteristic mélange… that makes [his] voice so unmistakable.” (Gramophone). DSO Principal Trumpet Hunter Eberly adds his effortless sound to a high-wire showpiece by André Jolivet.
RAVEL Valses nobles et sentimentales
POULENC Les animaux modèles, Op. 11 (Model Animals) Suite
JOLIVET Concertino for Trumpet
RAVEL Ma Mère l’Oye (Mother Goose)
CLASSICAL 18
SHOSTAKOVICH’S TENTH SYMPHONY
Thursday, May 8, 2025 at 7:30 p.m.
Friday, May 9, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, May 10, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Jader Bignamini, conductor
Alina Ibragimova, violin
Jader Bignamini leads the obliterating brass of the Shostakovich’s Tenth Symphony, music filled with the composer’s signature style, growing more shockingly intense as it drives further into darkness. Prokofiev’s First Violin Concerto showcases soloist Alina Ibragimova, “one of the most expressive violinists around,” (BBC Magazine). More music by Prokofiev, infused with playful klezmer themes, begins an evening that grows only more audacious.
PROKOFIEV Overture on Hebrew Themes
PROKOFIEV Violin Concerto No. 1
SHOSTAKOVICH Symphony No. 10
CLASSICAL 19
RAVEL’S PIANO CONCERTOS
Friday, May 16, 2025 at 10:45 a.m.
Saturday, May 17, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, May 18, 2025 at 3 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Jader Bignamini, conductor
Bertrand Chamayou, piano
Jader Bignamini leads Ravel’s nod to the past and French pianist Bertrand Chamayou has the “big technique that you need,” (Seattle Times) to play Ravel’s piano concertos back-to-back. Composed at the same time, the two magnificent works combine Ravel’s flair for orchestral color with pianistic virtuosity and the influence of jazz. Rimsky-Korsakov’s Capriccio espagnol began as a feature for the violin but ended up a showpiece for the entire orchestra.
RAVEL Le Tombeau de Couperin
RAVEL Piano Concerto in G major
RAVEL Concerto for the Left Hand
RIMSKY-KORSAKOV Capriccio espagnol, Op. 34
CLASSICAL 20
SCHUMANN & STRAUSS
Friday, May 30, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, May 31, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, June 1, 2025 at 3 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Jader Bignamini, conductor
Steven Isserlis, cello
Strauss’s Don Juan erupts with line after line of angst and virtuosity for every member of the DSO and Till Eulenspiegel gives us the quintessential soundtrack to fooling around and finding out. Liszt’s Préludes tell a different story, of deep worlds and big moods. Guest soloist Steven Isserlis brings his “profoundly moving” playing (Los Angeles Times) to Schumann’s Cello Concerto.
LISZT Les Préludes
SCHUMANN Cello Concerto in A minor
STRAUSS Don Juan, Op. 20
STRAUSS Till Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks, Op. 28
CLASSICAL 21
TCHAIKOVSKY’S FIRST PIANO CONCERTO
Thursday, June 5, 2025 at 7:30 p.m.
Friday, June 6, 2025 at 10:45 a.m.
Saturday, June 7, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Jader Bignamini, conductor
Behzod Abduraimov, piano
Behzod Abduraimov “has the magic touch” (The Times, London) for the keyboard pyrotechnics and heart-aching melodies of Tchaikovsky’s First Piano Concerto. Music Director Jader Bignamini leads a world premiere by Pulitzer Prize-winner Michael Abels (known for the scores to Jordan Peele’s films Get Out, Us, and Nope) and the Detroit premiere of Leokadiya Kashperova’s lyrical Symphony in B minor.
MICHAEL ABELS (World Premiere)
TCHAIKOVSKY Piano Concerto No. 1
KASHPEROVA Symphony in B minor
2024–2025 PNC POPS SERIES
POPS 1
THE MUSIC OF QUEEN
Friday, September 20, 2024 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, September 21, 2024 at 8 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Brent Havens, conductor
"We will, we will ROCK YOU!" Bridging the gulf between rock n’ roll and classical music, conductor and arranger Brent Havens takes the podium for a tribute to one of the greatest rock bands of all time. Performed by the DSO and a full rock band, join us for a kaleidoscope of Queen's greatest hits, including “Bohemian Rhapsody,” “Killer Queen,” “Somebody to Love,” and so much more.
POPS 2
THE MUSIC OF STAR WARS
Friday, October 4, 2024 at 10:45 a.m.
Friday, October 4, 2024 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, October 5, 2024 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, October 6, 2024 at 3 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Enrico Lopez-Yañez, conductor
Feel the force of the entire Star Wars saga as the DSO performs the best of John Williams’s film music from every episode in the series. Plus, selections from Michael Giacchino’s score to Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.
POPS 3
MUSIC OF THE KNIGHTS
Friday, October 25, 2024 at 10:45 a.m.
Saturday, October 26, 2024 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, October 27, 2024 at 3 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Na’Zir McFadden, conductor
They are music’s royalty—Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber, Sir Elton John, and Sir Paul McCartney. Experience the crown jewels of Broadway and pop at Orchestra Hall, featuring "Can You Feel the Love Tonight," "Circle of Life," "Phantom of the Opera," "Yesterday," "Memory," "Hey Jude," and more.
POPS 4
UNDER THE STREETLAMP
Friday, November 15, 2024 at 10:45 a.m.
Saturday, November 16, 2024 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, November 17, 2024 at 3 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Enrico Lopez-Yañez, conductor
Former cast members from the hit musical Jersey Boys match tight harmonies and slick dance moves with old school hits by The Drifters, Roy Orbison, Nat King Cole, The Beach Boys, and The Beatles, plus a showstopping celebration of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons.
POPS 5
HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS
Friday, December 13, 2024 at 10:45 a.m.
Friday, December 13, 2024 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, December 14, 2024 at 3 p.m.
Saturday, December 14, 2024 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, December 15, 2024 at 3 p.m.
Sunday, December 15, 2024 at 7 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Enrico Lopez-Yañez, conductor
Gather the family for one of the best holiday traditions in Detroit! The DSO and special guests play all your favorites inside warm and wonderful Orchestra Hall. Make the season bright and make memories of a lifetime everyone can share.
POPS 6
BROADWAY LOVE SONGS
Friday, February 14, 2025 at 10:45 a.m.
Friday, February 14, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, February 15, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, February 16, 2025 at 3 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
If you love someone, bring them to Orchestra Hall! The DSO plus an all-star cast of vocalists perform Broadway’s heart-on-sleeve classics, featuring timeless songs by Rogers and Hammerstein and more.
POPS 7
CELTIC JOURNEY
Sunday, March 9, 2025 at 3 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Ernest Richardson, conductor
Susanna Perry Gilmore, fiddle
William Coulter, guitar
Tomáseen Foley, Irish storyteller
Take a spirited trip across the Emerald Isle when authentic Irish music, dance and storytelling join forces with the lush sounds of the DSO to revive the majesty and charm of Celtic culture. “Danny Boy,” “Marie’s Wedding,” and “O’Neill’s March” never sounded so moving and magnificent.
POPS 8
LA VIDA LOCA
Friday, March 14, 2025 at 10:45 a.m.
Saturday, March 15, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, March 16, 2025 at 3 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Enrico Lopez-Yañez, conductor
Get on your feet and let’s get loud with the greatest hits of the ‘90s and ‘00s Latin pop explosion! La Vida Loca celebrates artists including Enrique Iglesias, Gloria Estefan, Santana, Ricky Martin and more. Conductor Enrico Lopez-Yañez, world-renowned vocalists Ender Thomas and Jackie Mendez, and multi-Grammy Award winners José Sibaja on trumpet and Luisito Quintero on percussion join the DSO for a high-octane program featuring all-new symphonic arrangements by Lopez-Yañez and Sibaja.
POPS 9
WOMEN ROCK!
Friday, April 25, 2025 at 10:45 a.m.
Friday, April 25, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, April 26, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, April 27, 2025 at 3 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Jeff Tyzik, conductor
This is the set list of legends. The Pops and special guests perform rock hits by Carole King, Janis Joplin, Aretha Franklin, Pat Benatar, Tina Turner, and more, including "What’s Love Got To Do With It," "Proud Mary,” "Piece Of My Heart," "Love Is A Battlefield," and "Flashdance.”
POPS 10
BEN FOLDS
Friday, May 23, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, May 24, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Enrico Lopez-Yañez, conductor
Ben Folds, piano and vocals
Ben Folds can play any song and have you hooked by the chorus. One of the most charming singer-songwriters around joins the DSO for an evening of genre-crossing favorites from his career.
POPS 11
LET’S MISBEHAVE: THE SONGS OF COLE PORTER
Friday, June 20, 2025 at 10:45 a.m.
Friday, June 20, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, June 21, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, June 22, 2025 at 3 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Tony DeSare, piano and vocals
Aubrey Logan, trombone and vocals
John Manzari, tap dance and vocals
Cole Porter's songs feel forever new. Pianist Tony DeSare, trombonist Aubrey Logan, and tap dancer John Manzari put fresh spins on "Night and Day," "I Get A Kick Out of You," "I've Got You Under My Skin," "Anything Goes," and more.
YOUNG PEOPLE’S FAMILY CONCERT SERIES
YPFC1
SYMPHONY SPOOKTACULAR
Saturday, October 26, 2024 at 11 a.m.
Orchestra Hall
Na’Zir McFadden, conductor
Calling all ghosts and goblins to celebrate Halloween with musical tricks and treats with the DSO! From spooky classics to silly characters, the orchestra takes you on a symphonic thrill ride of haunted melodies and fantastical stories. Come early to participate in our family-friendly pre-concert activities and the annual Halloween costume contest!
YPFC 2
LET IT SNOW!
Saturday, December 7, 2024 at 11 a.m.
Orchestra Hall
Na’Zir McFadden, conductor
The weather outside may be frightful, but the orchestra is so delightful! Get in the spirit of the winter season as Frosty and friends take you over the hills and through a snow-filled musical adventure.
YPFC 3
GOLD RUSH: AN AMERICAN MUSICAL ADVENTURE
Saturday, March 15, 2025 at 11 a.m.
Orchestra Hall
Enrico Lopez-Yañez, conductor
Gold has just been discovered in California, and Rico "Roughrider" Lopez is looking for some brave adventurers to join him on his perilous journey across the United States. Do you have what it takes to cross raging rivers, outwit nasty outlaws, and stare down wild buffalo? Join us on this musical adventure celebrating the great American composers including Copland, Sousa, Grofé, E. Bernstein, and more!
YPFC 4
CARNIVAL OF THE ANIMALS
Saturday, May 3, 2024 at 11 a.m.
Orchestra Hall
Na’Zir McFadden, conductor
When does a piano hop like a kangaroo, a violin bray like a donkey, and a cello swim like a swan? In Carnival of the Animals, of course! Through playful poems and Saint-Saëns’s beloved music, the orchestra brings nature’s most amazing creatures to life!