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March 28, 2024

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Nashville Symphony Returns with 75th Anniversary

After a year and a half of silence at the Schermerhorn, the Nashville Symphony will make its long-awaited return this September β€” just in time to celebrate its 75th anniversary.

After more than a year without in-person performances, the Nashville Symphony is celebrating its 75th anniversary by reopening to audiences with more than 100 β€―classical, pops, jazz and family concerts, as well as appearances byβ€―guest artists,β€―film favorites with live orchestraβ€―and more.

“Throughout its history, the Nashville Symphony has experienced its share of triumphs and challenges,” said President & CEO Alan Valentine. “But none of us could have imagined the year that we have all just experienced. We are beyond excited as we prepare to welcome audiences back to the Schermerhorn safely, and we are looking to the future with great anticipation as we devote ourselves to becoming an even more community-focused organization.”

The new seasonβ€―kicks offβ€―on Sep. 16-18, 2021,β€―with Fanfare for Music City, a program that will celebrate the essential workers who have played critical roles throughout the pandemic. The Nashville Symphony has planned to start its season with social distancing onstage and in the concert hall, with plans for reaching full capacity by January 2022.

Arts Voices: Symphony's Music Director Giancarlo Guerrero On The Classical  Side Of Music City | Nashville Classical Radio
Music Director Giancarlo Guerrero and the Nashville Symphony

Classical Series

Curated and led by Music Director Giancarlo Guerrero, the Nashville Symphony’s Amazon Classical Series will open with chamber orchestra performances in the fall, leading up to the moment when the full orchestra is reunited onstage in January for performances of Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 24 and DvoΕ™ák’s Eighth Symphony. Closing out the 75th Anniversary season will be a performance Beethoven’s Ninth with the Nashville Symphony Chorus. 

Show your love for the Nashville Symphony and Ben Folds
Ben Folds witht the Nashville Symphony

Pop Series

Led by Principal Pops Conductor Enrico Lopez-Yañez, the β€―FirstBank Pops Series β€―includes β€―appearances byβ€― Leslie Odom, Jr.,β€―Stewart Copeland of The Police and Ben Folds, all performing with the Nashville Symphony. The Jazz Seriesβ€―welcomesβ€― Wynton Marsalis’β€― Jazz at Lincoln Centerβ€―Orchestra, plus a first-ever Schermerhorn appearance by Pat Metheny. And following theβ€―successful debutβ€―of theβ€―Symphony’sβ€―Movie Series in 2019/20, season ticket packagesβ€―will again be availableβ€―for film screeningsβ€―with the orchestra, with titlesβ€―including The Muppet Christmas Carol,β€―Toy StoryBack to the Future andβ€―Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens.

Kool & the Gang - Wikipedia
Kool & the Gang

More Highlights

Other highlights of the forthcoming season include a special performance of Copland’s Billy the Kid and Stravinsky’s The Firebird with the Nashville Ballet; a one-night appearance by Balletβ€―Folklórico de México; Latin Fire, a Latin-themed program led by Lopez-Yañez and featuring trumpeter José Sibaja and soprano Mónica Abrego; Kool & the Gang making their first Nashville appearance in a decade; and the FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE Orchestra World Tour returning to Nashville.

For a full listingβ€―of the Nashville Symphony’s 2021/22β€―lineup, visit NashvilleSymphony.org/2021-22.

About the Author

Michael Aldrich

Michael Aldrich is Nashville Parent's Managing Editor and a Middle Tennessee arts writer. He and his wife, Alison, are the proud parents of 4-year-old Ezra and baby Norah.