For Immediate Release
CINCINNATI, OH (February 6, 2025)—Today, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra (CSO) unveiled its 2025–26 season, the first under the leadership of new Music Director Cristian Măcelaru. This season introduces an ambitious programming vision that balances timeless orchestral works with contemporary voices, reflecting a deep commitment to both the CSO’s history and the vibrancy of present-day cultural
narratives. Drawing inspiration from both the past and future, the season includes an array of iconic works by George Gershwin, Igor Stravinsky and Margaret Bonds alongside new commissions by composers Daníel Bjarnason and Lisa Bielawa and Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Rita Dove, spotlighting music and art of our time. This season features world-renowned guest artists, including Yo-Yo Ma, Daniil Trifonov and Hélène Grimaud, and conducting debuts by Kristiina Poska, Oksana Lyniv, Tabita Berglund and Samuel Lee. The season also celebrates the return of Music Director Laureate Louis Langrée, who will lead two programs that highlight his ongoing connection to the Orchestra.
CRISTIAN MĂCELARU’S INAUGURAL SEASON
This inaugural season under Cristian Măcelaru’s direction blends a celebration of cultural heritage, contemporary stories and the unifying power of music to inspire reflection. The programs explore national identity and engage with social justice themes to create a platform for cultural exchange and collective reflection.
Măcelaru makes his official debut as Music Director of the CSO on October 3 and 4, 2025 with a program that features pianist Hélène Grimaud, performing George Gershwin’s Concerto in F, and Richard Strauss’ Der Rosenkavalier Suite. The program also includes Anna Clyne’s Abstractions, showcasing Măcelaru and the Orchestra’s continuing commitment to performing music by contemporary composers.
On November 4, 2025, Grammy Award-winning cellist Yo-Yo Ma joins Măcelaru and the CSO for Edward Elgar’s Cello Concerto. Ma’s appearance is bookended by Orchestra performances of Johannes Brahms’ Tragic Overture and George Enescu’s First Romanian Rhapsody, the latter of which Măcelaru recorded on Deutsche Grammophon with the Orchestre National de France as part of a tribute to the Romanian composer as well as Măcelaru’s own Romanian heritage. The album recently won the prestigious 2024 Diapason d’Or of the Year and Choc Classical of the Year.
On November 29 and 30, 2025, Măcelaru leads a program centered on the cultural experiences, traditions and folklore that unite humanity. Măcelaru will conduct the Orchestra in Antonín Dvořák’s Symphony No. 7, reflecting the composer’s own nationalistic themes and love for his Czech heritage; Aaron Copland’s Variations on a Shaker Melody from Appalachian Spring; and PULSE, a new violin concerto by Lisa Bielawa performed by violinist Tessa Lark. Written for Lark, PULSE brings together the regional, traditional music-making that Lark grew up with in her home state of Kentucky with her identity as a virtuoso classical performer, exploring the technical and expressive underpinnings of two discrete musical worlds. The program also includes Carlos Simon’s Tales: A Folklore Symphony, which explores African American folklore as well as Afrofuturism, a cultural aesthetic, philosophy and artistic movement that takes a look at the intersection of African diaspora culture with science, technology and liberated futures for Black life.
Măcelaru and the CSO present George Frideric Handel’s Messiah on December 5 and 6, 2025. Soprano Lauren Snouffer, mezzo-soprano Sasha Cooke, tenor Nicholas Phan, bass Jonathan Lemalu in his CSO debut and the May Festival Chorus, under the direction of Matthew Swanson, join the CSO for selections from this timeless oratorio.
Pianist Daniil Trifonov joins Măcelaru and the CSO for Ludwig van Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 2 on January 10 and 11, 2026. The program also includes the U.S. premiere of the complete Trilogy for Orchestra by composer Daníel Bjarnason. A CSO co-commission, the Orchestra gave the U.S premiere of Part I: “Echo/Narcissus” in November 2023.
On January 16 and 17, 2026, Măcelaru conducts a program in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. that aims to create a space for reflection and dialogue around civil rights, justice and the power of music to bring communities together. The program features CSO premieres of Margaret Bonds’ Montgomery Variations, composed in the wake of the 1963 firebombing of Birmingham, Alabama’s 16th Street Baptist
Church; and Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Wynton Marsalis’ Blues Symphony, a sonic journey through America’s revolutionary era, which was recorded by The Philadelphia Orchestra under the direction of Măcelaru and released in 2021. The program also includes a pairing of Samuel Barber’s Adagio for Strings with original poetry written by Pulitzer Prize-winning poet and Akron, Ohio native Rita Dove, the first African American to serve as Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress. It will be performed by narrator and bass Morris Robinson.
On April 24 and 25, 2026, Măcelaru conducts the full production of Igor Stravinsky’s The Firebird paired with the storytelling power of larger-than-life, multi-medium puppets created and designed by South Africa’s Janni Younge, world-renowned for her powerful visual storytelling. Măcelaru reunites with Younge for this evocative production which draws from the symbolism and dramaturgy of Michel Fokine’s original ballet and reinterprets them in a contemporary South African setting. Choreographed by Jay Pather, who was awarded the Order of Arts and Letters in 2017 (shortly after the production’s premiere), towering puppets maneuvered by expert puppeteers and dancers will join Măcelaru and the CSO for this sonic and theatrical depiction of The Firebird that builds to a dramatic, fiery finish.
“It is with great excitement that I look forward to each and every concert in my first season as Music Director of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. The opportunity to share music that represents my Romanian heritage, and bring a special focus to the American culture which I embrace, is an absolute honor,” said Măcelaru. “In my inaugural season, I will be joined by the superb musicians of the CSO and many of my closest artistic partners who will help me achieve the excellence the Cincinnati community has come to expect. I have come to know Cincinnati as a special place with a deep love for the arts. Through music, I look forward to creating a deeper sense of knowing and understanding each other, and I can’t wait to begin our journey together.”
MUSIC DIRECTOR LAUREATE LOUIS LANGRÉE RETURNS
This season, Music Director Laureate Louis Langrée returns to the CSO for two dynamic and varied programs that highlight his longstanding connection to the Orchestra.
On November 21 and 22, 2025, Langrée leads a vibrant program that includes Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante, featuring CSO principal musicians. The program also includes blue cathedral by Jennifer Higdon, a piece that explores themes of grief, reflection and transcendence. Completing the program is Igor Stravinsky’s Petrushka, a dramatic and colorful ballet score that evokes
the emotional tension and vibrancy of Russian folk life.
On March 6 and 7, 2026, Langrée reunites with the CSO and pianist Clayton Stephenson for performances of Johannes Brahms’ Piano Concerto No. 2. Stephenson was the inaugural winner of the 2023 Nina Simone Piano Competition, a biennial competition created by Awadagin Pratt and Art of the Piano to showcase and support talented young African American pianists; Stephenson performed in the
finals with the CSO under Langrée. The March program will also include Schumann’s Symphony No. 4.
CONDUCTING DEBUTS
In the 2025–26 season, the CSO welcomes an exciting roster of debut conductors, each bringing their unique artistry to the podium.
Oksana Lyniv makes her highly anticipated debut on January 30 and 31, 2026, leading a program that includes Evgeni Orkin’s Five Interrupted Lullabies, Sergei Prokofiev’s Violin Concerto No. 1 featuring returning violinist Esther Yoo, and Dvořák’s evocative Golden Spinning Wheel. The program also highlights the iconic Vltava from Bedřich Smetana’s Má vlast.
On February 6 and 7, 2026, Tabita Berglund takes the podium for Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 4, an exploration of life in heaven through a child’s vision. Soprano Camilla Tilling joins Berglund and the CSO for performances of Mahler’s Symphony No. 4 as well as his Rückert-Lieder. The program opens with ARCHORA by Icelandic composer Anna Thorvaldsdottir.
After substituting for Louis Langrée during the 2023–24 season, Samuel Lee makes his CSO subscription series debut on February 28 and March 1, 2026 with a French-inspired program that includes Louise Farrenc’s Overture No. 2, Maurice Ravel’s Le tombeau de Couperin and Piano Concerto for the Left Hand with Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 4. Lee is the 2024 Malko Competition
Winner and a former CSO Associate Conductor.
Finally, Kristiina Poska joins the CSO on April 17 and 18, 2026, conducting a program that includes Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 2 with pianist Lise de la Salle, last seen with the Orchestra in 2019, alongside Mendelssohn’s Scottish Symphony and Julia Adolphe’s Underneath the Sheen.
RETURNING GUESTS
Throughout the season, the Orchestra will also welcome an array of esteemed instrumentalists and returning guest conductors.
A renowned expert in Mozart, Dame Jane Glover returns to the Orchestra on October 18 and 19, 2025 to conduct a program celebrating the genius of the composer. The concert opens with Mozart’s Overture to Lucio Silla, followed by Sinfonia Concertante, featuring the Orchestra’s own Concertmaster Stefani Matsuo and Principal Viola Christian Colberg. The program concludes with Mozart’s final
symphony, Symphony No. 41, Jupiter.
On October 24 and 25, 2025, the Orchestra, under the leadership of guest conductor Giancarlo Guerrero, will present the CSO premiere of Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 4, a piece rooted in the composer’s life-or-death struggle for creative expression under a repressive regime. On the same program, award-winning violinist Stella Chen makes her CSO debut with Barber’s Violin Concerto, a
piece written during the outbreak of World War II.
On November 8 and 9, 2025, CSO Creative Partner Matthias Pintscher conducts a program with two works connected by the ancient Dies irae hymn and tolling bells: Rachmaninoff’s The Bells, a choral symphony that will feature the May Festival Chorus, directed by Matthew Swanson; and Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique, featuring the CSO’s very own pair of bronze bells that were made by Cincinnati
bell manufacturing company, Verdin.
Conductor James Conlon returns to lead the Orchestra on March 20 and 21, 2026 in a program featuring key works from the Classical period: Franz Joseph Haydn’s Symphony No. 103, Drum Roll; Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 3, Strassburg, with violinist Renaud Capuçon; and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 2.
On April 11 and 12, 2026, Ramón Tebar conducts a program rooted in the late Romantic tradition. The program includes Margaret Brouwer’s Pulse, a contemporary work that explores rhythmic and textural innovation; Max Bruch’s Scottish Fantasy, featuring violinist James Ehnes; and Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Symphony No. 2, a pivotal work in the composer’s life that reflects the sweeping melodies and
emotional intensity that would become his signature style.
The CSO season concludes on May 8 and 9, 2026 with Roderick Cox conducting the Orchestra in a program featuring Jennifer Higdon’s Fanfare Ritmico; Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5, Emperor, with Stephen Hough; and Tchaikovsky’s beloved Symphony No. 4.
The list of esteemed guest artists includes returns by Jean-Efflam Bavouzet (piano), Renaud Capuçon (violin), Sasha Cooke (mezzo-soprano), James Ehnes (violin), Hélène Grimaud (piano), Stephen Hough (piano), Tessa Lark (violin), Yo-Yo Ma (cello), Nicholas Phan (tenor), Morris Robinson (bass, narrator), Lise de la Salle (piano), Lauren Snouffer (soprano), Clayton Stephenson (piano), Daniil Trifonov (piano) and Esther Yoo (violin). Orchestra musicians include: Principal Horn Elizabeth Freimuth, Concertmaster Stefani Matsuo, Principal Viola Christian Colberg, Principal Oboe Dwight Parry, Principal Clarinet Christopher Pell and Principal Bassoon Christopher Sales. Guest conductors include Roderick Cox, Dame Jane Glover, Giancarlo Guerrero, CSO Music Director Laureate Louis Langrée, former CSO Associate Conductor Samuel Lee, CSO Creative Partner Matthias Pintscher and Ramón Tebar.
SPECIAL EVENT: NINA SIMONE PIANO COMPETITION FINALS
The Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra will participate in the Nina Simone Piano Competition on September 10, 2025 at Music Hall. Created for Black American pianists and supported by the Sphinx Organization, the Nina Simone Piano Competition was launched in 2023 in collaboration with the Art of the Piano Festival presented by Awadagin Pratt and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory
of Music.
Read the full article here.