Chattanooga Symphony & Opera Announces 85th Anniversary Season

The Chattanooga Symphony & Opera announces the 2017/18 season - the 85th Season for the organization. Music programmed showcases the old and the new - from music that was written hundreds of years ago to music written more recently.

"For the 2017/18 season," said Kayoko Dan, CSO Music Director, "I've programmed symphonic music from all eras - including the Romantic period, Classical era, and music from today. Classical music is alive and well and while we honor the masters from the past, we also celebrate the new masters. I'm excited to work with Béla Fleck and his new composition just as I'm thrilled to conduct Mahler's Symphony No. 1. Our 85thAnniversary season is filled with powerful, passionate, dramatic, fun, beautiful music and musicians."

The CSO will perform two special event concerts this season. The Classical Special Event features banjo player Béla Fleck performing his new concerto Juno with the CSO at the Tivoli Theatre on October 26, 2017. In addition, the Pops Special Event brings the Bugs Bunny and other Warner Bros. cartoons to life in Bugs Bunny at the Symphony II at the Tivoli Theatre on March 24, 2018. 2017/18 subscribers have pre-sale access to these special events. Remaining tickets will be released for public sale on August 1, 2017.

The Barnett & Company Masterworks Series opens with Mahler's Symphony No. 1 (Titan), and continues with Poulenc's Gloria with the CSO Chorus, Vivaldi's Four Seasons (with guest violinist Soovin Kim), and Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique. During the Orchestra's 85thAnniversary, the CSO is also celebrating the 100th birthday of Leonard Bernstein (Frank Almond, Concertmaster of the Milwaukee Symphony, performs Bernstein's Serenade), and the 125th anniversary of Tchaikovsky's death (pianist Geoffrey Duce performs Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 2).

Other highlights include Benjamin Britten's Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra and Tan Dun's Crouching Tiger Cello Concerto (from the movie soundtrack Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon) with guest cellist Benjamin Karp. Guest pianist and Lee University faculty member Cahill Smith performs Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 22. Kristen Holritz, CSO Principal Flute, performs Nielsen's Flute Concerto. CSO Music Director Kayoko Dan conducts six concerts with one concert guest conducted by Timothy Muffitt (Music Director of the Baton Rouge Symphony). All concerts are performed at the Tivoli Theatre. Subscriptions start at $126 for all seven concerts. Children 17 and under can attend for free with a paid adult.

The Luken Holdings Pops Series begins with Nashville's top country songwriters, Music City Hit Makers. These talented musicians wrote more than 30 of country's top hits recorded by some of the biggest names in country music including Dierks Bentley, Carrie Underwood, and Kelly Clarkson. The series continues with its annual Home for the Holidays performances with special guest and Chattanooga native Neshawn Calloway, as well as the popular annual swing concert, Big Band Fever. In March we celebrate Women's History month with a new show titled Women Rock with performances of music from the famous rock-n-roll female greats including Carole King, Tina Turner, Janis Joplin, and Heart. Continuing the anniversary season theme, we close the series with a celebration of Principal Pops Conductor and Music Director Emeritus Bob Bernhardt's 25th anniversary with the CSO, performing his favorite music from pops, light classical, opera, and music from the movies. All Pops concerts are performed at the Tivoli Theatre. Subscriptions start at $95 for all five programs.

The CSO's regular venue for the Chamber Series, the Read House Silver Ballroom, will be undergoing renovations during our 2017/18 season. The CSO has partnered with Chattanooga State and their Music Department and will perform in their Humanities Theatre. The CSO will also partner with the Chattanooga Ballet for the opening concert of this series to perform Stravinsky's The Soldier's Tale Suite. Other highlights include Sibelius' Suite for Violin and Strings featuring CSO Concertmaster Holly Mulcahy, and Mozart's Horn Concerto No. 4 featuring CSO Principal Horn Gordon James. Subscriptions are $90 for all four concerts.

Subscriptions for new patrons will be available starting February 21, 2017 at www.chattanoogasymphony.org or by calling 423.267.8583. Tickets to individual concerts will go on-sale to the public on August 1, 2017. Subscribers may purchase tickets to our special event concerts Béla Fleck and Bugs Bunny at the Symphony II immediately.

Chamber Series
presented in partnership with Chattanooga State Music Department

Price Level 1: $525, $395

Price Level 2: $329, $250

Price Level 3 $217, $165

Price Level 4: $126, $95

General Admission: $90

For Masterworks only: Children 17 and under can attend for free with a paid adult. For all series, discounts are available for students and music educators. Call the CSO Box Office at 423.267.8583 for more information.

Classical Special Event:

Tivoli Theatre • Thursday • 7:30PM
10/26/17 - Béla Fleck

Barnett & Company Masterworks Series:

Tivoli Theatre • Thursdays • 7:30PM

9/28/17 - Opening Night/Mahler 1 - The Titan

10/19/17 - Poulenc and Rachmaninoff

11/16/17 - Vivaldi: The Four Seasons

1/25/18 - Movie Masterworks

3/1/18 - Sibelius Symphony No. 5

4/5/18 - Tchaikovsky and Prokofiev

4/26/18 - Symphony Fantastique

Pops Special Event:

Tivoli Theatre • Saturday • 7:30PM

3/24/18 - Bugs Bunny at the Symphony II

Luken Holdings Pops Series:

Tivoli Theatre • 7:30PM

10/7/17 - Music City Hitmakers

12/16/17 (7:30PM) & 12/17/17 (3:00PM) - Home for the Holidays

2/16/18 & 2/17/18 - Big Band Fever

3/17/18 - Women Rock

4/21/18 - Bob's Favorites

Chamber Series
Chattanooga State Community College

Humanities Theatre • Sundays • 3:00PM

10/15/17 - Symphonic Tales (with the Chattanooga Ballet)

11/5/17 - Gems from the CSO Principals

1/14/18 - Mozart & Schubert

3/11/18 - European Tour