Symphony Notes
Love, Obsession, and Revenge: The Jacksonville Symphony Presents Carmen
Courtney Lewis, Music Director of the Jacksonville Symphony On April 12 and 14, the Jacksonville Symphony will stage our biggest production of the season, our symphonically staged opera, which this year is Georges Bizet’s beloved and ever-relevant Carmen. For those of you who haven’t attended one of these operas before, Jacoby Symphony Hall is transformed into an opera house with a stage built behind the orchestra and several 30-feet screens onto which we project sets. It’s a thrilling experience to see, even...
read moreMusic For You: The Jacksonville Symphony Premieres Another New Commission
Jacksonville, FL – November 9: Jacksonville Symphony Rehearsal on November 9th, 2022. Photo by James Gilbert / Jacksonville Symphony By Courtney Lewis, Music Director of the Jacksonville Symphony, Haskell Endowed Chair Last season, the Jacksonville Symphony began a series of new commissions from today’s brightest composers. Building on the legacy of our Composer in Residence program in 2018, this series is very close to my heart. I think of the tradition of classical music as continuous and unbroken from the earliest Gregorian chants of...
read moreSYMPHONY NOTES
The Jacksonville Symphony Casts Operatic Enchantment with The Magic Flute By Courtney Lewis, Music Director of the Jacksonville Symphony On April 28 and 30, the Jacksonville Symphony will present one of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s most beloved and famous operas, The Magic Flute. The two performances will be the culmination of several years of planning and preparation and the symphony’s largest production of the season. This is the story of what goes into staging an opera in Jacoby Symphony Hall. Before our last opera production, La...
read moreSpend Your Holidays with the Jacksonville Symphony
Fall is officially upon us. As the weather starts to cool and festive decorations shine vibrantly all around, the joyous sounds of the holidays begin to waft through the air. The holidays are mere weeks away, and the Jacksonville Symphony is bursting with excitement to share this year’s festive programming with you. All December long, Jacoby Symphony Hall will be your destination for experiencing magical holiday performances and creating memories your family will forever cherish. First Coast Nutcracker 50th Anniversary December 16...
read moreBoundless Possibilities: The Jacksonville Symphony’s 2022/23 Season
The 73rd season of the Jacksonville Symphony will be kicking off in just a few short weeks, and we could not be more excited. Featuring world-class music performed by one of America’s finest orchestras, we expect to reach new heights of artistic excellence and take our patrons on a journey of musical adventures. Whether it’s the classics or new favorites yet to be explored, the symphony offers an exceptional experience for everyone to enjoy.
read moreSounds of Summer
The Jacksonville Symphony ended its 2021/22 season on June 11, 2022, with a grand finale of Beethoven’s Ninth: Ode to Joy. The concert, conducted by Music Director Courtney Lewis, featured a quartet of star vocalists, the Symphony Chorus, and the world premiere of Tarik O’Regan’s Jacksonville Symphony commission, Trances. With the first performance of the symphony’s 2022/23 season starting in September, many of the orchestra’s musicians packed their suitcases and embarked on rejuvenating adventures that fuel their passions for music and travel over the summer.
read moreCreating Future Stories Through Music
The Jacksonville Symphony Youth Orchestra (JSYO) has delighted the community with another spectacular season. With more than 350 talented musicians from all over Northeast Florida, the JSYO consists of six levels of ensembles, two full symphonies, and four levels of string ensembles that are all differentiated through their repertoire and level of expertise. Each concert in the season is designed so the various ensembles perform pieces that are both rewarding and challenging.
read moreOpera Returns to Jacoby Symphony Hall
For more than 70 years, Jacksonville locals have flocked to the city’s one and only Performing Arts Center, located right on the edge of the St. Johns River in the heart of downtown, to experience world-class concerts performed by the Jacksonville Symphony. Whether your musical palate prefers the sounds of Beethoven and Brahms or perhaps the violin section rocking along to the music of Queen, the Jacksonville Symphony has something for everyone.
read moreThe First Notes on the Model D
In August, I travelled to New York City with our CEO and artistic administrator on an especially exciting mission: we were headed to the Steinway factory to choose a new concert grand piano for Jacoby Symphony Hall. While good pianos in our homes can last for generations, the sheer volume of use on concert instruments means they usually need to be replaced every twenty years, and our existing piano was at the end of its distinguished career. With a season full of Mozart piano concertos on the horizon, we needed to get something new quickly.
read moreDeck the (Symphony) Hall with Boughs of Holly!
As the weather starts to cool and the festive decorations come out, the joyous sounds of the holidays begin to waft through the air, much like the smell of chestnuts roasting on an open fire. The light of menorahs and string lights twinkle throughout our office buildings, homes, and windows. The scarves and sweaters are removed from the depths of our Floridian closets, and we eagerly look forward to traditions of baking cookies or singing carols. Yet, regardless of the holiday traditions or activities we attentively adhere to, there is one common theme that ties us all together: music.
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