Berkeley Symphony Announces 2022-23 Season

Today, Berkeley Symphony announced its 2022-23 Season, led by Music Director Joseph Young, who is now in his fourth season with the organization. The 51st season, entitled Find Your Frequency, builds on Berkeley Symphony's history of presenting orchestral music from a variety of genres featuring reimagined classics and vital new voices. With innovative programming, sweeping scores, and vital new voices, Find Your Frequency will feature three Symphonic Series performances at Zellerbach Hall and five Chamber Series performances. Subscription ticket packages are on sale now and may be purchased by visiting berkeleysymphony.org or by calling the box office at 510.841.2800. Individual concert tickets go on sale on September 6, 2022.

"Our milestone 50th year marked a return to joy - now, as we embark on our next season, we invite you to Find Your Frequency through a range of performances," says Young. "Our upcoming season will feature performances that explore music as a form of self-expression, a means for creating connections, and a vehicle for sharing our stories with one another."

Symphonic Series

The season opens with a powerful statement on musical identity at Symphonic I: Identities on Sunday, October 16, 2022, exploring individual triumphs and challenges through music. The performance will open with Upon Daybreak, a world premiere commissioned by Berkeley Symphony's New Music USA composer in residence Brian Raphael Nabors. The voice of pioneering African American composer Florence Price comes to life in a performance of her Violin Concerto No. 2, featuring violinist Rachel Barton Pine. Rediscovered in 2009, Price's forgotten gem is a perfect pairing with Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's powerful Fifth Symphony. Behind the immensely rich symphony was a composer struggling with his personal identity, fighting against his perceived tragic fate. His emotional turmoil is poured into this gripping work.

On Sunday, April 2, 2023, Symphonic II: Connections explores friendships old and new, and pays tribute to places and people that inspire connections made through music. Connections will transport audiences to Jalisco, Mexico; the birthplace of Juan Pablo Contreras and the origin of mariachi music. Mariachitlán is an energetic homage that highlights traditional mariachi rhythms, accompanied by original melodies. A true champion of long-forgotten and diverse voices, pianist Lara Downes performs a pair of works for piano and orchestra by Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn, highlighting the lifelong musical partnership and deep friendship between the two. Ellington referred to Strayhorn as "My right arm, my left arm, and all the eyes in the back of my head." Rounding out the evening of celebrating relationships, Elgar's theme and fourteen variations are sketches of friends-full of admiration, deep seriousness, and humor. Each variation is a reflection of an individual, immortalizing their connection and friendship.

The third of the series, Symphonic III: Enduring Stories, is also the final performance of the season on Sunday, June 4, 2023. Berkeley Symphony will weave together three tales of its own, inspired by strong women. The concert will feature Rimsky-Korsakov's lush masterpiece Scheherazade, which draws from the Middle Eastern collection of tales One Thousand One Nights, whose lead character changed her life and the lives of those around her. The vivid, imaginative orchestration is paired with Carlos Simon's Portrait of a Queen, which weaves together spoken word and music to tell the history of Black America from the vantage point of a strong, female narrator. The final Symphonic performance will also include the world premiere of Lotus Prayer by Chinese-born composer Xi Wang. Enduring Stories brings together these powerful works, elevating the musical portraits of trailblazing women.

Chamber Series

Five Chamber Series performances will accompany the Symphonic Series, exploring similar themes to complement the programming. The Chamber Series will feature works by iconic composers such as Tchaikovsky and Florence Price, juxtaposed brilliantly with contemporary pieces by Brian Nabors, Carlos Simon, Amy Beach, Lili Boulanger and more. Featuring a wide range of styles, textures, and emotions, from the jazzy tango of Piazzolla's Four Seasons to the richness of the quartets of Borodin and Tchaikovsky, the Chamber concerts offer something for everyone. All Chamber Series concerts will take place at Piedmont Center for the Arts, unless otherwise noted.

The Chamber Series begins with Fall Colors on Sunday, October 2, 2022, featuring Brian Nabors' 7 Dances for flute, clarinet, and cello; Florence Price's Five Folksongs in Counterpoint for string quartet; and String Quartet No. 3 by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The performance serves as a primer to the Symphonic Series season opener, Identities, on October 16, which will feature work from the same composers.

On Sunday, December 4, 2022, Berkeley Symphony will present Holiday Blast, a concert of festive holiday favorites performed by the Berkeley Symphony Brass Quintet, at Piedmont Community Hall.

The Chamber Series continues on Sunday, February 5, 2023 with Winter of Love, featuring Romance for violin and piano by Amy Beach; selections from Elvis Costello's The Juliet Letters, for baritone and string quartet, and Johannes Brahms' Piano Quartet in G Minor, Op. 25.

Berkeley Symphony will welcome spring on Sunday, March 19, 2023 with Spring Fever, which will include Lili Boulanger's D'un matin de printemps (Of a Spring Morning); Astor Piazzolla's The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires; and Maurice Ravel's Piano Trio in A Minor.

Rounding out the series is Between Worlds on Sunday, May 21, 2023, featuring move it and Between Worlds by Carlos Simon, accompanied by Amy Beach's Theme and Variation for flute and string quartet, Op. 80; and Alexander Borodin's String Quartet No.2.

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