National Symphony Orchestra Announces Classical Programming For 2022–2023 Season

The National Symphony Orchestra, led by Music Director Gianandrea Noseda and Executive Director Gary Ginstling, announces its classical programming for the 2022-2023 season. The new season, during which Maestro Noseda appears in 14 programs and leads a total of 36 concerts, embodies the special connection between Orchestra and Music Director that has strengthened over the past five years. NSO Classical subscriptions for the 2022-2023 season are now available here or by calling (202) 416-8500.

"As I embark on my sixth season as Music Director of the National Symphony Orchestra, I continue to be overwhelmed by the artistry and commitment of the great musicians of the Orchestra," said NSO Music Director Gianandrea Noseda. "This wouldn't be possible without the symbiotic relationship we have with our audience and community, and their boundless support. The 2022-2023 season reflects our Orchestra's past, present, and future with musical adventures involving a diverse group of artistic voices with long-standing bonds with the NSO and many who are joining us for the first time. Our overriding goal is to present the highest artistic quality in an open and inviting musical environment at the Kennedy Center. We welcome anyone and everyone to join us on what we anticipate to be extraordinary musical journeys."

The 2022-2023 classical offerings celebrate the NSO's past while serving as a catalyst for its role as an increasingly dynamic and innovative orchestra. This balance is seen throughout the newly announced season-from the performances of Leonard Bernstein's MASS (the work that opened the Kennedy Center in 1971) and a program that nods to former NSO Music Director Mstislav Rostropovich (1977-1994), to the presentation of five new commissions (three of which are world premieres) and a score of artist debuts.

Highlights of the 2022-2023 classical season include:

• The final installment of the Beethoven & American Masters Festival, the first of which took place in January 2022. In Part II, Noseda leads four programs that juxtapose Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphonies No. 2, 6, 7, 8, and 9 with large-scale works by Black American composers George Walker and William Grant Still (May 12 & 13, 2023; May 19 & 20, 2023; May 24 & 25, 2023; and June 1-3, 2023). These performances are part of a major recording project in which the NSO will release all nine Beethoven symphonies and all five sinfonias by George Walker.

• Three performances of Leonard Bernstein's MASS, commissioned by Jacqueline Kennedy as part of the Kennedy Center's opening festivities in September 1971. This new production-the culmination of the Kennedy Center's yearlong 50th anniversary celebrations-features conductor James Gaffigan, director Alison Moritz, choreographer Hope Boykin, and baritone Will Liverman as the Celebrant in his NSO debut (September 15, 17 & 18, 2022).

• A mini-residency with pianist Daniil Trifonov, with three programs conducted by Noseda, including the Season Opening Gala (September 24, 2022). Trifonov performs concertos by Sergei Prokofiev and Alexander Scriabin, as well as Sergei Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini over the course of these programs (September 24, 2022 & April 13-15, 2023).

• A series of Symphonic Surprise! programs, conducted by Gianandrea Noseda, that are not announced in advance (November 3-5, 2022).

• The world premieres of NSO-commissioned works by Philip Glass (October 27-29, 2022) and Kennedy Center Composer-in-Residence Carlos Simon (April 21-23, 2023), and D.C. premieres of NSO co-commissioned works by Steven Mackey (December 1-3, 2022) and Jessie Montgomery (March 2 & 4, 2023). The NSO also gives the world premiere of Michael Daugherty's Blue Electra, commissioned for and performed by violinist Anne Akiko Meyers (November 10-12, 2022).

• 20 NSO debuts: conductors Fabio Biondi, Karina Canellakis, Kevin John Edusei, Stanislav Kochanovsky, Dalia Stasevska, and Joseph Young; pianists Michelle Cann, Beatrice Rana, and Conrad Tao; sopranos Julia Bullock, Liv Redpath, Chen Reiss, and Camilla Tilling; mezzo-soprano Hannah Ludwig; tenors John Matthew Myers and Issachah Savage; baritone Will Liverman; and bass-baritones Hanno Müller Brachmann and Neal Davies. Violinist Francesca Dego makes her NSO subscription debut, having previously performed with the Orchestra at Wolf Trap.

• High-profile returning guest artists, including violinists Leila Josefowicz, Leonidas Kavakos, Anne Akiko Meyers, Midori, and Julian Rachlin; pianists Seong-Jin Cho, Cédric Tiberghien, and Stephen Hough; mezzo-sopranos J'Nai Bridges and Kelley O'Connor; and conductors James Gaffigan, David Robertson, Sir Mark Elder, and Krzysztof Urbański.

• Three programs spotlighting the solo talents of NSO musicians: Principal Cello David Hardy in Benjamin Britten's Cello Symphony (October 22 & 23, 2022); Principal Trumpet William Gerlach in Dmitri Shostakovich's Piano Concerto No. 1 (March 2 & 4, 2023); and members of the NSO Horn section Abel Pereira, Markus Osterlund, James Nickel, and Robert Rearden in Robert Schumann's Konzertstück ("Concert Piece") for 4 Horns and Orchestra (April 27-29, 2023).

As previously announced, the Orchestra continues its commitment to performing and recording all five Sinfonias by George Walker, a native of Washington, D.C. and the first Black composer to win the Pulitzer Prize for Music. The first release, Walker's Sinfonia No. 4, will be distributed digitally through the NSO's record label on June 24, 2022, with subsequent releases through 2023 and 2024, and a physical album coming thereafter. Accompanying the digital releases are music videos, interviews, and behind-the-scenes content. NSO Music Director Gianandrea Noseda describes Walker's sinfonias as "an extraordinary musical discovery."

In addition to its regular subscription concerts, the NSO connects with the larger community in the D.C.-area through performances at The Anthem in D.C.'s The Wharf and Capital One Hall in Tysons, and through its ongoing series NSO In Your Neighborhood. The Orchestra also engages with classical audiences of the future through Family Concerts in the Fall and Spring.

"Now more than ever, the NSO is committed to bringing our community together to experience live orchestral music and to hopefully leave feeling refreshed and energized," said NSO Executive Director Gary Ginstling. "Gianandrea and the NSO musicians have a relationship that continues to develop and blossom, and they are committed to making every evening in the concert hall a special one. With our range of programming and artists next season, we are confident that there will be something for everyone."

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