Our 69th season presents a larger-than-life schedule of seven concerts, starting in October with our United Sounds of America concert through to our ever-popular June Pops Benefit Concert celebrating the music of John Williams. Other highlights include Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto featuring violinist In Sun Jang, Stravinsky's Firebird (1919 Suite) featuring violist Pearl de la Motte, and Jaron Lanier's World Premiere Singularity Variations featuring groundbreaking pianist Serene.
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A note about the season artwork:
This season, I’m excited to share a series of posters I created to accompany our concerts—a labor of love resulting from several weeks of designing, experimenting with, and refining the images to help represent the music and ideas behind them—each program testament to the awesome reach of musical creativity across time and place, and what wonders are possible when we embrace the moment, listen carefully, and act in harmony.
Experiencing these moments together is the very essence of community, and it’s a privilege to bring them to life with the great artists of our musical family.
We look forward to sharing these moments and worlds of feeling, full of meaning and magic, together with you.
I imagined our season cover as an almost fairytale-like depiction of how our symphonic events bring community together and unites us harmoniously in spirit.
The scene features our main venue, the Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium, surrounded by familiar features of our coastline. The feeling of magic in the air extends into the clouds above the auditorium, taking shape as musical staff lines, ocean waves, and the silhouette of a Firebird that appears later in the season. All taking place as evening sets in order to suggest the illumination that music brings to our lives. The only text being the powerfully simple idea that runs through the entire season: Music Unites Us.
–Daniel Stewart
Here's what our 2026-27 season offers:
About the concert artwork:
Our season begins with a celebration of the 250th anniversary of our United States through music that has helped define it.
For this image, it was important to me to proudly feature our second home, the Mello Center in Watsonville. With so many musical voices converging in this program, I wanted to let the titles of these iconic pieces of American music speak for themselves as the main visual element—stories in sound that have become part of our shared cultural memory.
–Daniel Stewart
Classical Series Concert 1
UNITED SOUNDS OF AMERICA
Smith, arr. Toscanini: Star Spangled Banner
Antonín Dvořák: Finale from the New World Symphony
Charles Ives: The Unanswered Question
George Gershwin: Rhapsody in Blue
Florence Price: Juba Dance from Symphony No. 1
Samuel Barber: Adagio for Strings
Aaron Copland: Fanfare for the Common Man
Leonard Bernstein: Music from West Side Story
Nina Simone: Come Ye
Jackie Orzel: Chukchansi Overture [World Premiere]
John Williams: Music from Star Wars
FEATURED SOLOISTS
Christine McLeavey, piano
Click here to learn more about the season’s guest artists and composers.
OPEN REHEARSAL
Friday, October 2, 7:30 PM – 10:00 PM (doors open at 7 PM)
Learn more about open rehearsals here.
CONCERT DATES
SATURDAY, October 3 at 7:30 PM, Civic Auditorium
Doors open at 6:00 PM | Pre-concert talk at 6:30 PM
Concert duration: 1 hour 45 minutes
SUNDAY, October 4 at 2:00 PM, Henry J. Mello Center
Doors open at 12:45 PM | Pre-concert talk at 1:00 PM
Concert duration: 1 hour 45 minutes
Concert Sponsors: Edward Houghton & Kathryn Cowan; Garth Illingworth in memory of Wendy Illingworth
Concert Co-Sponsors: Angela Chesnut; Lesley Harris; Vance Landis; John & Jodilynn Larse; Jeannette & Patricia Moretti
Artist Co-Sponsors: Roger Anderson; Dorothy Wise
About the concert artwork:
Our November concerts pair Mendelssohn’s irrepressibly joyful Italian Symphony with Tchaikovsky’s supremely romantic Violin Concerto, featuring violin soloist In Sun Jang.
I've often wondered how composers from the past would have enjoyed themselves in contemporary Santa Cruz, and wanted to depict an imaginary scene of a relaxed conversation between Mendelssohn and Tchaikovsky in the midst of an idyllic Santa Cruz afternoon at the beach.
–Daniel Stewart
Classical Series Concert 2
TCHAIKOVSKY & MENDELSSOHN
Daniel Strebulaev: Overture [World Premiere]
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Violin Concerto
— featuring violin soloist In Sun Jang
Felix Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 4, Italian
FEATURED SOLOIST
Concertmaster In Sun Jang, violin
Click here to learn more about the season’s guest artists and composers.
OPEN REHEARSAL
Friday, November 13, 7:30 PM – 10:00 PM (doors open at 7 PM)
Learn more about open rehearsals here.
CONCERT DATES
SATURDAY, November 14 at 7:30 PM, Civic Auditorium
Doors open at 6:00 PM | Pre-concert talk at 6:30 PM
Concert duration: 1 hour 45 minutes
SUNDAY, November 15 at 2:00 PM, Henry J. Mello Center
Doors open at 12:45 PM | Pre-concert talk at 1:00 PM
Concert duration: 1 hour 45 minutes
Concert Sponsors: Bob Edmund; Lani LeBlanc; Mr. & Mrs. Jeremy Lieberman and Mr. & Mrs. Eric Schweitzer
in memory of Norman Albright; Phil & Linda Segal
Concert Co-Sponsors: Allen & Shirley Ginzburg; Lester & Martha Miller
Artist Sponsor: Dennis St. Peter & Alice Kollmann
About the concert artwork:
Our January concerts feature Rachmaninoff’s monumental 3rd Piano Concerto and the world premiere of Singularity Variations by local luminary Jaron Lanier, both works featuring piano soloist Serene.
I imagined a dreamlike musical dialogue between the three artists, as they share a seemingly endless keyboard that evolves as it continues, inspired by M.C. Escher and also Dr. Seuss’ The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T.
The main element I wanted to convey being the idea of the sounds that are being played, and the musician’s attention to what they’re carefully listening to, suggesting that the relatively recent past of Rachmaninoff’s 3rd Piano Concerto and the future facing vision of Jaron Lanier are united in the present through the virtuosity of guest artist Serene.
–Daniel Stewart
Serene, piano
Click here to learn more about the season’s guest artists and composers.
OPEN REHEARSAL
Friday, January 15, 7:30 PM – 10:00 PM (doors open at 7 PM)
Learn more about open rehearsals here.
CONCERT DATES
SATURDAY, January 16 at 7:30 PM, Civic Auditorium
Doors open at 6:00 PM | Pre-concert talk at 6:30 PM
Concert duration: 1 hour 45 minutes
SUNDAY, January 17 at 2:00 PM, Henry J. Mello Center
Doors open at 12:45 PM | Pre-concert talk at 1:00 PM
Concert duration: 1 hour 45 minutes
Concert Sponsors: Owen Brown & Mary Akin; David Van Beveren
Concert Co-Sponsors: Allen & Shirley Ginzburg; Mary James; Lester & Martha Miller; Silver Mountain Vineyards
Artist Sponsor: Redtree Properties
Major Program Sponsor: Monterey Peninsula Foundation
Program Sponsors: Anonymous; The Joseph and Vera Long Foundation
Concert Sponsors: Lisa Feintech in memory of Wendy Feintech; Santa Cruz County Office of Education
Concert Co-Sponsors: Kellie Allyn on behalf of Kismet CPR; Catharine & James Gill; Kent & Marie Imai; Omega Nu of Santa Cruz; Rotary of Santa Cruz; Scharf Investments
Family Concert
PETER AND THE WOLF
This engaging, family-friendly concert brings students, families, and our community together.
GUEST ARTISTS
Master of Ceremonies Omari Tau
Click here to learn more about the season’s guest artists and composers.
CONCERT DATE
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28 at 2:00 PM, Civic Auditorium
Doors open at 1 PM | Concert duration: 1 hour 45 minutes
NOTE: There will be NO open rehearsal and NO pre-concert talk for this concert.
Carnegie Hall Link Up Program: The Orchestra Sings
Golden KPop Demon Hunters
— featuring Cabrillo Youth Chorus and El Sistema
El Cascabel
— featuring Esperanza del Valle and Nematatlín de la Universidad Veracruzana
Antonín Dvořák: Music from New World Symphony
— featuring International Academy of Dance
George Gershwin: I Got Rhythm
— featuring Kuumbwaa Honor Jazz Band
Reena Esmail: Ram Tori Maya
— featuring Cabrillo Youth Chorus
Igor Stravinsky: Finale from The Firebird
— featuring International Academy of Dance
Jesús Echevarría: Atravesado from Suite Huasteca
— featuring Esperanza del Valle and Nematatlín de la Universidad Veracruzana
Jim Papoulis: Oye
Sergei Prokofiev: Peter and the Wolf
— featuring Santa Cruz Symphony and Santa Cruz County Youth Symphony
About the concert artwork:
In March, we present Stravinsky's astonishingly colorful music from his first ballet, The Firebird, alongside Black Swan by BTS and Myungsoo Shin, and Walton’s Art Deco infused Viola Concerto, featuring viola soloist Pearl de la Motte.
For this Belle Époque inspired musical crossroads, I imagined Stravinsky’s Art Nouveau Firebird, flying over the Black Swan choreography taking place onstage, but connected through a conversation of movement and music between the earthbound dancers and the Firebird above them.
–Daniel Stewart
Classical Series Concert 4
THE FIREBIRD
BTS & Myungsoo Shin: Black Swan
William Walton: Concerto for Viola
—- featuring viola soloist Pearl de la Motte
Igor Stravinsky: The Firebird (1919 Suite)
FEATURED SOLOIST
Pearl de la Motte, viola
Click here to learn more about the season’s guest artists and composers.
OPEN REHEARSAL
Friday, April 2, 7:30 PM – 10:00 PM (doors open at 7 PM)
Learn more about open rehearsals here.
CONCERT DATES
SATURDAY, April 3 at 7:30 PM, Civic Auditorium
Doors open at 6:00 PM | Pre-concert talk at 6:30 PM
Concert duration: 1 hour 45 minutes
SUNDAY, April 4 at 2:00 PM, Henry J. Mello Center
Doors open at 12:45 PM | Pre-concert talk at 1:00 PM
Concert duration: 1 hour 45 minutes
Concert Sponsors: Todd & Corinne Wipke; Valerie Macken; Anonymous
Concert Co-Sponsor: David Fulton & Natalie Grant
Artist Co-Sponsor: Michael & Colleen Harrison
About the concert artwork:
Our final concerts bring together music by Leonard Bernstein, Richard Strauss, Reena Esmail, and Friedrich Nietzsche, joined by the Cabrillo Symphonic Chorus under the direction of Carlin Truong, singing in Marāthī, German, and Hebrew.
I imagined the four composers deep in conversation and contemplation, while behind them the horizon, rising sun, and mysterious monolith evokes Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey and its famous setting of Strauss’s Also Sprach Zarathustra, based on Nietzsche’s work of the same title. I also wanted to represent each composer at approximately the age they were when they composed the work of theirs on this program: A youthful Strauss regards Nietzsche, himself lost in thought, with fascination while Bernstein, later in life, shares a conversation with the youthful Reena Esmail.
–Daniel Stewart
Classical Series Concert 5
ALSO SPRACH ZARATHUSTRA
Reena Esmail: Ram Tori Maya
Leonard Bernstein: Chichester Psalms
Friedrich Nietzsche: Hymnus an das Leben
Richard Strauss: Also Sprach Zarathustra
FEATURED GUEST ARTISTS
Cabrillo Symphonic Chorus under the direction of Carlin Truong
Click here to learn more about the season’s guest artists and composers.
OPEN REHEARSAL
Thursday, April 29, 7:30 PM – 10:00 PM (doors open at 7 PM)
Learn more about open rehearsals here.
CONCERT DATES
SATURDAY, May 1 at 7:30 PM, Civic Auditorium
Doors open at 6:00 PM | Pre-concert talk at 6:30 PM
Concert duration: 1 hour 45 minutes
SUNDAY, May 2 at 2:00 PM, Henry J. Mello Center
Doors open at 12:45 PM | Pre-concert talk at 1:00 PM
Concert duration: 1 hour 45 minutes
Concert Sponsors: Mark Chambers-Bray in memory of Roy Chambers-Bray; Carolyn & Robert Levering
Concert Co-Sponsors: James Barton & Kathryn Schlepphorst; Dr. Frederick & Kate Chen; Julie Mazurek; Mary Ann Orr
Artist Co-Sponsor: Andrea London
Pops Benefit Concert
CELEBRATING JOHN WILLIAMS
Including music from E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park, Harry Potter, and more!
CONCERT DATE
SATURDAY, JUNE 12 at 7:30 PM, Civic Auditorium
Doors open at 6:00 PM | Concert duration: 1 hour 45 minutes
PRE-CONCERT STREET PARTY
SATURDAY, JUNE 12 at 5:00 PM in front of Civic Auditorium. Free to attend. Featuring live music, dancing, food trucks, and more. Movie costumes are encouraged!
NOTE: There will be NO open rehearsal and NO pre-concert talk for this concert.
Concert Sponsors: Dale & Chris Attias in memory of Gwen Laffoon; Donna Maurillo & Gary Reece; West Coast Community Bank
Concert Co-Sponsor: John Dickman & Lisa McEuen
