Sarasota Orchestra

Concerts

Featured

Beethoven's Fifth

Concerts

On Sale: Yes
Flex: Yes
Date(s):
- Date: 03-19-2026 19:30, Venue: Neel Performing Arts Center, Purchase URL: https://buy.sarasotaorchestra.org/7585/7662, Is Sold Out?: No, Is Cancelled?: No, Is Postponed?: No
- Date: 03-20-2026 19:30, Venue: Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, Purchase URL: https://buy.sarasotaorchestra.org/7585/7666, Is Sold Out?: No, Is Cancelled?: No, Is Postponed?: No
- Date: 03-21-2026 19:30, Venue: Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, Purchase URL: https://buy.sarasotaorchestra.org/7585/7673, Is Sold Out?: No, Is Cancelled?: No, Is Postponed?: No
- Date: 03-22-2026 14:30, Venue: Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, Purchase URL: https://buy.sarasotaorchestra.org/7585/7680, Is Sold Out?: No, Is Cancelled?: No, Is Postponed?: No
Event Cancelled: No
Program (short):
- Composer: BRAHMS, Piece: Academic Festival Overture
- Composer: DVOŘÁK, Piece: Cello Concerto
- Composer: BEETHOVEN, Piece: Symphony No. 5
Has intermission?: No
Conductor: Katharina Wincor
Featured Guest Artists: None/Single Artist, Zlatomir Fung
Program: 2526 | MW6 | BRAHMS Academic Festival Overture, 2526 | MW6 | DVOŘÁK Cello Concerto, 2526 | MW6 | BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 5

The program features Beethoven’s iconic Fifth Symphony, whose four opening notes are recognized the world over and whose sheer power remains unmatched. One of the most popular symphonies of all time, every performance brings something memorable to enthusiastic audiences. Brahms composed his Academic Festival Overture as a musical thank-you for his awarding of an honorary doctorate. The lighthearted work incorporates several student “beer hall” songs and spotlights Brahms’ sense of humor. Cellist Zlatomir Fung performs Dvořák’s glorious Cello Concerto, adored for its nobility and sentimentality.

Rite of Spring

Concerts

On Sale: Yes
Flex: Yes
Date(s):
- Date: 02-27-2026 19:30, Venue: Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, Purchase URL: https://buy.sarasotaorchestra.org/7584/7665, Is Sold Out?: No, Is Cancelled?: No, Is Postponed?: No
- Date: 02-28-2026 19:30, Venue: Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, Purchase URL: https://buy.sarasotaorchestra.org/7584/7672, Is Sold Out?: No, Is Cancelled?: No, Is Postponed?: No
- Date: 03-01-2026 14:30, Venue: Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, Purchase URL: https://buy.sarasotaorchestra.org/7584/7679, Is Sold Out?: No, Is Cancelled?: No, Is Postponed?: No
Event Cancelled: No
Program (short):
- Composer: JOAN TOWER, Piece: {i}1920/2019{/i}
- Composer: MOZART, Piece: Violin Concerto No. 5 {i}(Turkish){/i}
- Composer: STRAVINSKY, Piece: {i}The Rite of Spring{/i}
Has intermission?: No
Conductor: Giancarlo Guerrero
Featured Guest Artists: None/Single Artist, Benjamin Beilman
Program: 2526 | MW5 | TOWER 1920/2019, 2526 | MW5 | MOZART Violin Concerto No. 5, 2526 | MW5 | STRAVINSKY The Rite of Spring

Spring is in the air as Sarasota Orchestra offers a program of monumental works, each of which broke new ground in their day. Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring was so novel and unprecedented that a riot broke out at its premiere. A tour de force for the orchestra musicians and conductor, its live performance is a not-to-be-missed event. Violinist Benjamin Beilman brings his trademark flair to Mozart’s final and most virtuosic violin concerto. The program opens with Joan Tower’s 1920/2019, composed in 2019 to honor the 1920 passage of the 19th amendment granting women suffrage.

Variations on America

Concerts

On Sale: Yes
Flex: Yes
Date(s):
- Date: 02-12-2026 19:30, Venue: Neel Performing Arts Center, Purchase URL: https://buy.sarasotaorchestra.org/7583/7661, Is Sold Out?: No, Is Cancelled?: No, Is Postponed?: No
- Date: 02-13-2026 19:30, Venue: Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, Purchase URL: https://buy.sarasotaorchestra.org/7583/7664, Is Sold Out?: No, Is Cancelled?: No, Is Postponed?: No
- Date: 02-14-2026 19:30, Venue: Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, Purchase URL: https://buy.sarasotaorchestra.org/7583/7671, Is Sold Out?: No, Is Cancelled?: No, Is Postponed?: No
- Date: 02-15-2026 14:30, Venue: Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, Purchase URL: https://buy.sarasotaorchestra.org/7583/7678, Is Sold Out?: No, Is Cancelled?: No, Is Postponed?: No
Event Cancelled: No
Program (short):
- Composer: ADOLPHUS HAILSTORK, Piece: {i}An American Port of Call{/i}
- Composer: GERSHWIN, Piece: Concerto in F
- Composer: IVES/ arr. SCHUMAN, Piece: {i}Variations on America{/i}
- Composer: DAWSON, Piece: {i}Negro Folk Symphony{/i}
Has intermission?: No
Conductor: Giancarlo Guerrero
Featured Guest Artists: None/Single Artist, Clayton Stephenson
Program: 2526 | MW4 | Hailstork Port of Call, 2526 | MW4 | GERSHWIN Concerto in F, 2526 | MW4 | IVES Variations on America, 2526 | MW4 | DAWSON Negro Folk Symphony

Music Director Giancarlo Guerrero opens the rich treasure chest of American music. Adolphus Hailstork’s An American Port of Call captures the relentless energy of the port of Norfolk, Virginia. Pianist Clayton Stephenson performs Gershwin’s jazz and blues-infused Concerto in F. Charles Ives composed his delightful and quirky Variations on “America” when he was only 17. Audiences at the 1934 premiere of Dawson’s Negro Folk Symphony were so moved that they erupted in applause at the end of each movement. Decades later, the extraordinary work has returned to the standard repertoire with accolades.

Pictures at an Exhibition

Concerts

On Sale: Yes
Flex: Yes
Date(s):
- Date: 01-16-2026 19:30, Venue: Neel Performing Arts Center, Purchase URL: https://buy.sarasotaorchestra.org/7582/7656, Is Sold Out?: No, Is Cancelled?: No, Is Postponed?: No
- Date: 01-17-2026 19:30, Venue: Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, Purchase URL: https://buy.sarasotaorchestra.org/7582/7670, Is Sold Out?: No, Is Cancelled?: No, Is Postponed?: No
- Date: 01-18-2026 14:30, Venue: Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, Purchase URL: https://buy.sarasotaorchestra.org/7582/7677, Is Sold Out?: No, Is Cancelled?: No, Is Postponed?: No
Event Cancelled: No
Program (short):
- Composer: MICHAEL ABELS, Piece: {i}Amplify{/i}
- Composer: BRUCH, Piece: Violin Concerto No. 1
- Composer: MUSSORGSKY/arr. RAVEL, Piece: {i}Pictures at an Exhibition{/i}
Has intermission?: No
Conductor: Peter Oundjian
Featured Guest Artists: None/Single Artist, Himari
Program: 2526 | MW3 | MICHAEL ABELS Amplify , 2526 | MW3 | Bruch Violin, 2526 | MW3 | Mussorgsky pictures at an exhibition

The program showcases Ravel’s orchestration of Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition. The vibrant musical depictions of Viktor Hartmann’s paintings, including the majestic Great Gate of Kiev, have been inspiring audiences for generations. Fourteen-year-old Japanese violinist Himari has been described as a once-in-a-generation talent. The prodigy will perform Bruch’s richly Romantic Violin Concerto No. 1. Pulitzer Prize-winner Michael Abels is best known for his genre-defying scores for the Jordan Peele films Get Out, Us, and Nope. His work Amplify was co-commissioned by Sarasota Orchestra.

Close Encounters

Concerts

On Sale: Yes
Flex: Yes
Date(s):
- Date: 12-06-2025 19:30, Venue: Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, Purchase URL: https://buy.sarasotaorchestra.org/7581/7669, Is Sold Out?: No, Is Cancelled?: No, Is Postponed?: No
- Date: 12-07-2025 14:30, Venue: Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, Purchase URL: https://buy.sarasotaorchestra.org/7581/7676, Is Sold Out?: No, Is Cancelled?: No, Is Postponed?: No
Event Cancelled: No
Program (short):
- Composer: DUKAS, Piece: {i}The Sorcerer's Apprentice{/i}
- Composer: RODRIGO, Piece: {i}Concierto de Aranjuez{/i}
- Composer: JOHN WILLIAMS, Piece: Suite from {i}Close Encounters of the Third Kind{/i}
- Composer: RESPIGHI, Piece: {i}Pines of Rome{/i}
Has intermission?: No
Conductor: Giancarlo Guerrero
Featured Guest Artists: None/Single Artist, Pablo Sáinz-Villegas
Program: 2526 | MW2 | DUKAS The Sorcerer's Apprentice , 2526 | MW2 | RODRIGO Concierto de Aranjuez, 2526 | MW2 | WILLIAMS Suite from Close Encounters of the Third Kind, 2526 | MW2 | RESPIGHI Pines of Rome

Magic is in the air as Sarasota Orchestra journeys to locales both real and imagined. Dukas’ The Sorcerer’s Apprentice brings to life Goethe’s tale of magic gone awry and was featured in Disney’s original Fantasia. The virtuosic Suite from Close Encounters of the Third Kind reminds us why film composer John Williams is revered as one of the most gifted orchestral composers of our time. Spanish guitar virtuoso Pablo Sáinz-Villegas takes us to the Royal Palace of Aranjuez in Rodrigo’s popular guitar concerto. Respighi’s Pines of Rome offers a vivid portrait of the Roman countryside.

Concerts

Beethoven's Fifth

Rite of Spring

Variations on America

Pictures at an Exhibition

Close Encounters

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