Season Finale: With its rich, sweeping melodies and dynamic brass chorales, Sibelius’s Second Symphony vividly evokes the beauty of his native Finland. Icy Nordic landscapes are also heard in Rautavaara’s Cantus Arcticus, a haunting “concerto for birds and orchestra” that weaves recordings of birdsong into the orchestral tapestry. Julia Perry’s setting of the 13th-century Stabat Mater hymn adds a powerful …

Bartók’s The Miraculous Mandarin tells of a girl forced to lure a wealthy mandarin to his tragic fate. Its theme of the tragic, dark passions between men and women is equally as gripping and powerful – and controversial – as when it first premiered. It’s paired with a striking arrangement for string orchestra of Bartók’s String Quartet No. 3, by …

Mahler’s Fourth Symphony paints an uplifting picture of the afterlife, a child’s vision of heaven as a place filled with earthly delights and tuneful melodies. Here it is paired with Ces belles années… (These Good Years), a new work by esteemed French-American composer Betsy Jolas, which reveals hidden allusions to the classic “Happy Birthday” tune within its sparkling and wondrous …

Embodying music with an unparalleled dramatic sensibility, soprano and conductor Barbara Hannigan is an artist at the forefront of creation. Her much-anticipated Severance conducting debut features a fascinating juxtaposition of works by Haydn, Ligeti – marking the centenary of the composer’s birth – and Vivier. The program concludes with Richard Strauss’s exploration of the most universal of questions: what lies …

Plus the world premiere of a percussion concerto commissioned for Christoph Sietzen, “a refreshingly natural musician notable for his technical mastery and powerful stage presence.” 

Trifonov’s not-to-be-missed performance of Brahms’s well-loved concerto is paired with a late symphony by Prokofiev, filled with powerful atmospheric writing and dark, thrilling melodic lines.

In 1937 at the height of the Stalinist purges, Shostakovich was in disgrace – an outcast who feared for his life. (He slept in the stairwell outside his apartment so that his family might be spared if he were arrested.) In these darkest moments, he somehow found the courage to write his Fifth Symphony, publishing it with the ironic subtitle …

Cleveland-born cellist Alisa Weilerstein joins music director Franz Welser-Möst to perform Barber’s “lyric and romantic” Cello Concerto, a piece praised for its “Brahms-like grandeur.” Written while Barber was serving in the U.S. military during World War II, the concerto is bookended by the world premiere of Allison Loggins-Hull’s Can You See? and Prokofiev’s Symphony No. 4 (revised 1947 version), a …

Dvořák traveled to America in the 1890s, and this wild, new country thrilled him. He admired the beauty of African American spirituals and was fascinated by Native American traditions. When describing his “New World” symphony, he said, “I tried to write only in the spirit of those national American melodies,” but his Ninth is clearly an expression of both the …

Works by Scott Joplin, Julia Perry, William Grant Still, Bernard Herrmann, Raven Chacon, and Edgard Varèse.

Music by Alban Berg and Franz Schubert conducted by Cleveland’s music director.

The venerable American orchestra makes its debut as part of the WFMT Orchestra Series.

“I do not share the same goals for the future of the institution as the board of governors does,” Salonen said in a statement.

Performed by the Cleveland Orchestra and Chorus directed by Leonard Bernstein.

Music director Franz Welser-Möst leads a bold juxtaposition between the first and second Viennese schools in selections by Alban Berg and Franz Schubert.

The grant amounts to the largest gift in the orchestra’s 103-year history.

Conductor James Levine, who ruled over the Metropolitan Opera for more than four decades before being eased aside when his health declined and then fired for sexual improprieties, has died.

Picketing began yesterday on the sidewalks outside the entrances to Symphony Center in the Loop, as the musicians of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra marched off their first full day on strike.

The orchestra on Wednesday announced the dismissals of concertmaster William Preucil and principal trombonist Massimo La Rosa.

The Cleveland Orchestra says it was unaware of the allegations and will conduct an independent investigation.

Memorable performances by orchestras at recent sporting events.

We asked you to vote on your favorite piano concertos, which we have been counting down for two weeks along with works that might be new to you. Here are your top 10 favorite piano concertos revealed!