PASADENA, CA — The Pasadena Symphony announced Wednesday its upcoming 2026-27 Classics season, featuring five programs combining works by Beethoven, Brahms, Bach and other composers under Music Director Brett Mitchell.
"I'm so pleased during my third season as Music Director of the Pasadena Symphony to continue this great musical journey we've been sharing," Mitchell said. "From timeless works by Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Rachmaninoff, and Tchaikovsky to more contemporary masterpieces by Joan Tower, Carlos Simon, Jennifer Higdon, and Kevin Puts, our 2026/27 season has something for every lover of orchestral music, and the orchestra and I can't wait to share it with you."
The season is set to open Oct. 24 at Ambassador Auditorium with Tower's "Made in America," inspired by "America the Beautiful" and presented as part of the orchestra's commemoration of America's 250th anniversary. Violinist Benjamin Beilman will perform Barber's Violin Concerto, and the program will conclude with Brahms' Symphony No. 1.
The Nov. 14 program will feature Beethoven's Symphony No. 7 and Elgar's Cello Concerto performed by Pasadena Symphony Principal Cellist Michael Kaufman. The program also will include Carlos Simon's "Fate Now Conquers."
On Feb. 13, Mitchell will conduct Jennifer Higdon's "blue cathedral" and Stravinsky's "The Firebird" Suite, while pianist Clayton Stephenson, a 2025 Sphinx Medal of Excellence winner, will perform Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2.
Violinist Simone Porter will return March 20 to perform Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons." The program also will include Stravinsky's "Dumbarton Oaks" and Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No. 3.
The season will conclude May 1 with violinist Paul Huang making his Pasadena debut to perform Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto. The program also will feature Kevin Puts' "Millennium Canons" and Shostakovich's Symphony No. 5, marking the latter work's return to the Pasadena Symphony stage after more than a decade.
Before each performance, KUSC Classical California's Brian Lauritzen will host a pre-concert conversation with Mitchell and special guests, including soloists and composers.
All five programs will be performed at Ambassador Auditorium, 131 S. St. John Ave., with performances at 2 and 8 p.m.
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