The Philadelphia Orchestra Yannick Nézet-Séguin Music Director

A pair of Philadelphia Orchestra debuts, by two rapidly rising stars: David Afkham on the podium and Seong-Jin Cho at the keyboard. Cho brings his prize-winning technique to Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 20. Beethoven's stirring Coriolan Overture was inspired by a play about war and peace in ancient Rome. Brahms was daunted by Beethoven's towering legacy; that may be why it took him so long to finish his majestic Symphony No. 1. For almost 150 years, audiences have agreed it was worth the wait.

Don't miss hearing this powerful musical partnership. The legendary Emanuel Ax solos in Brahms's stirring Second Piano Concerto (he seems “to enfold every listener in a metaphorical embrace”—The Seattle Times). And Yannick and the Orchestra present Dvorák's Seventh Symphony, inspired by Brahms (and by Dvorák's intense Czech patriotism).

The breadth and depth of Tchaikovsky's musical genius are on display in this dazzling celebration of his music, led by our dynamic Assistant Conductor Kensho Watanabe. Inspired by a trip to sunny Italy, Tchaikovsky transforms the sounds he heard all around him into a delightful “Italian Fantasia” (his original title for Capriccio italien). He turns to Mozart for inspiration in his Rococo Variations, the closest Tchaikovsky came to writing a cello concerto, performed by rising star Edgar Moreau.

Soloist James McVinnie cut his teeth in the great British cathedrals (he played for William and Kate's wedding at Westminster Abbey) and consistently wows the critics (“musically and technically immaculate”—Los Angeles Times). He joins the Orchestra in the East Coast premiere of Nico Muhly's Organ Concerto, a co-commission with the Los Angeles Philharmonic. In McVinnie's hands, hear the Fred J. Cooper Memorial Organ in all its glory.

Hannibal completes his tenure as composer-in-residence with the world premiere of Healing Tones, a hymn for the City of Brotherly Love. He's spent the past two years immersing himself in Philadelphia, collecting inspiration, texts, and music from all walks of life. Given his past triumphs here (including One Land, One River, One People), Hannibal's new piece is sure to enthrall. Yannick continues his complete cycle of the Sibelius symphonies with the Second.

With a premiere performance by Fritz Kreisler, and a premiere recording by a teenaged Yehudi Menuhin, Elgar's Violin Concerto was no doubt destined to become a staple of the violin repertoire. Our soloist, Nikolaj Znaider, is internationally renowned as a violinist. And he has a special connection to the Elgar Concerto: He plays Kreisler's Guarneri violin! Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 5 is among his most popular works, with its stirring evocation of “fate,” from somber to triumphant.