The Dallas Symphony Orchestra is roaring back fortissimo in its first full season on stage, post-pandemic. The orchestra has loaded its 2021-22 season, announced April 1, with exciting Dallas debuts, fan-favorite works, and a dizzying lineup of guest artists from the worlds of opera, Broadway, and pop culture: Denyce Graves, Renée Fleming, Anne-Sophie Mutter, Ben Folds, Chris Botti, Hamilton's Renée Elise Goldsberry, and more.
There are tributes to late Supreme Court Justice Ruther Bader Ginsburg and late Tejano pop star Selena. There's the United States Naval Academy Mens & Women's Glee Clubs; the return of former DSO conductor Andrew Litton with Steven Hough on Tchaikovsky's beloved Piano Concerto No. 1; there's Eugene Onegin, Beethoven "Emperor" Concerto, Mozart Requiem, and so much more that the entire schedule prints out as 11 pages.
“We are thrilled to share a full season of music with our patrons and community,” says Kim Noltemy, Ross Perot President & CEO of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, in a release. “We persevered through the 2020-21 season with incredible creativity and innovation .... The health and safety of our patrons and musicians remains of utmost important, and we have shown that as circumstances change, the DSO adapts its concerts to continue to deliver incredible performances in new ways. That will continue as we move into 2021-22, and we look forward to returning to the stage with a full complement of musicians and larger, full orchestral works."
A DSO spokeswoman adds that they do not expect to restrict audience capacity at the Meyerson Symphony Center next season unless the CDC recommends it.
In Fabio Luisi's second season as Louise W. & Edmund J. Kahn Music Director, the orchestra will perform three world premieres and make the Dallas premieres of five major new works. Luisi and the orchestra will continue their exploration of American music, now with an increased focus on music by people of color, the release says.
“I want to look at the full range of American music and those voices that we know, and those that have been perhaps forgotten," Luisi says in the release. "I would like the audience, my orchestra, and our community to learn more ... and to see how important these voices are to today’s musical life.”
Here is a quick look at the first half of the season. Find more information and artist bios on the DSO's website.
September 3-5: Coco: Movie in Concert, Jayce Ogren conducts
September 10-12: The Music of Selena, featuring Isabel Marie Sanchez, vocalist
September 16-19: Fabio Luisi conducts Bradley Hunter Welch, organist (Copland Organ Symphony)
September 23, 36: Fabio Luisi conducts David Buck, flute (DSO premiere of Joan Tower Flute Concerto)
September 25: DSO Gala Concert & After Party with Anne-Sophie Mutter, violin; Fabio Luisi conducts (DSO premiere of John Williams Violin Concerto No. 2)
October 2: Philharmonia Fantastique - Orchestra Showcase including DSO premiere of Mason Bates' Philharmonia Fantastique
October 3: Chelsea Chen, organ
October 7: Dallas Symphony Presents Tribute to Ruth Bader Ginsburg with Denyce Graves, mezzo-soprano, Jeffrey Biegel, piano, Lidiya Yankovskaya conducts. Includes world premiere of Ellen Taaffe Zwilich's New Work: Honoring Ruth Bader Ginsburg
October 8-10: Chris Botti in Concert with DSO
October 14-17: Carlos Kalmar conducts Garrick Ohlsson, piano (Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 5, "Emperor")
October 20: Erich Bergen's Hollywood Songbook with Erich Bergen, vocalist
October 22-24: Ben Folds in Concert with DSO
October 28-30: Sir Mark Elder conducts Isata Kanneh-Mason, piano (DSO debut)
October 31: Dia de los Muertos Concert
November 4-6: Fabio Luisi conducts Dallas Symphony Chorus and guests in Mozart Requiem
November 5-7: Fabio Luisi conducts Renee Fleming, soprano, Rod Gilfry, baritone in Kevin Puts' The Brightness of Light (DSO premiere)
November 8: Renee Fleming: "Music and Mind" Presentation
November 12-14: Veterans Day Patriotic Pops
November 18-21: Gemma New conducts Nathan Olson, violin (Debussy, Bartok, Beethoven)
December: Christmas Pops, Christmas with Cantus, Big Brassy Christmas & Organ Extravaganza, A Very Swingin' Basic Christmas, New Year's Eve with DSO
For the rest of the season, visit dallassymphony.org.
Subscription packages begin at $165 and go on sale April 15; single tickets will be available at a later time. More information at dallassymphony.org.
