Photos here.
HOUSTON (June 23, 2025) –
The Houston Symphony turns back the clock on the 2024 hit remake, to the remarkable silent-era classic that started it all. Called the original vampire movie, Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror (1922) is one of the most chilling and influential horror movies of all time. For one performance only, Sunday, November 16, 2025 at 3 p.m. at Jones Hall, experience this creepy classic on a giant screen exactly as audiences did when it was originally released. Rather than the orchestra performing a live score, though, organist Brett Miller performs a spinetingling original soundtrack of his own composition, live with the movie.
- W. Murnau’s 1922 silent film Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror is considered a masterpiece of German expressionistic horror cinema. An unauthorized adaptation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Nosferatu changes the name of the powerful undead title character to Count Orlok (played by Max Schreck), whose plot to relocate from his native Transylvania to Germany involve a hapless real estate agent and his soon-to-be-victimized wife.
The Houston Symphony screens Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror with original music by organist Brett Miller, Sunday, November 16, 2025 at 3 p.m. at Jones Hall for the Performing Arts, 615 Louisiana Street, in Houston’s Theater District. For tickets and information, please call or text 713.224.7575 or visit houstonsymphony.org. Tickets may also be purchased at the Houston Symphony Patron Services Center in Jones Hall (Monday–Saturday, 12–6 p.m.).
About Brett Miller
As one of the youngest in a rare art form, Brett Miller is an active organist, conductor, and arranger who specializes in the art of silent film accompaniment. As an award-winning organist, Brett has continued his academic involvement and advocacy for the education and preservation of silent films through performing “live to picture.” In 2021, he was appointed music director of the Empire Film and Media Ensemble, a non-profit based in Rochester, New York, that advocates for the education, performance, and production of film music. He was recently appointed artistic director of the organization. Brett shares a close relationship between the ensemble and the Beal Institute of Film Contemporary Media at the Eastman School of Music.
His recent scores have been recorded with organizations such as the Eye Film museum, the Friedrich-Wilhelm-Murnau Foundation, Kino Lober Classics, and Milestone Films. He has been featured at various film festivals and has played events in conjunction with film preservationists from the Library of Congress and George Eastman House. In 2023, Brett played to a sold-out performance of Nosferatu at Marian Anderson Hall in conjunction with the Philadelphia Orchestra.
Season highlights include performances for the Houston Symphony, The Boston Pops, The Great Auditorium at Ocean Grove, Atlantic City’s Boardwalk Hall, and the Historic Colonial Theater.
Brett studied organ with renowned organist Jelani Eddington and piano with Beth Crompton and Joseph Rackers of the Eastman School of Music. He studied film accompaniment with Ben Model and Bernie Anderson. A native of Bedminster, Pennsylvania, Brett is an alumnus of the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra Institute. He currently studies at the Eastman School of Music pursuing his masters in orchestral conducting with Neil Varon.
About the Houston Symphony
Under the leadership of Music Director Juraj Valčuha, the Grammy Award-winning Houston Symphony continues to inspire and engage diverse audiences in Houston and beyond with exceptional musical performances and enduring community impact. The Symphony held its inaugural performance at The Majestic Theater in downtown Houston on June 21, 1913. Now in its second century as one of America’s premier orchestras, the Houston Symphony is one of the oldest performing arts organizations in Texas and remains a cultural cornerstone of the region.
With an annual operating budget of $40.7 million, the Symphony presents over 130 concerts each year, making it one of the largest performing arts organizations in Texas. Its reach extends far beyond the concert hall, delivering more than 600 performances annually at schools, community centers, hospitals, and other venues, engaging over 160,000 people throughout Greater Houston.
The Symphony's innovative response to the COVID-19 pandemic—completing its 2020-21 Season with in-person audiences and weekly livestreams—earned national recognition and the ASCAP Foundation’s Deems Taylor/Virgil Thomson Broadcast/Media Award. Its commitment to innovation continues, with its 2024-25 Season reaching audiences in over 45 countries and all 50 states via livestreaming, making it one of the few American orchestras to sustain such global digital engagement.
Renowned for its artistry, the Symphony has a distinguished recording legacy under prestigious labels, including Koch International Classics, Naxos, RCA Red Seal, and Pentatone. Highlights include a Grammy and ECHO Klassik Award-winning live recording of Alban Berg’s Wozzeck and recent releases such as Jimmy López Bellido’s Aurora and Ad Astra (2022) and Jennifer Higdon’s Duo Duel (2023).
The Symphony’s educational impact is equally remarkable, with its Harry and Cora Sue Mach Student Concert Series reaching over 50,000 students annually. Its In Harmony after-school program and partnerships with institutions like the Houston Methodist Hospital, MD Anderson Cancer Center, and Texas Children’s Hospital further demonstrate the Symphony’s commitment to fostering community connections and accessibility to the arts.
With a vision centered on artistic excellence, community engagement, and accessibility, the Houston Symphony remains a cultural leader in Houston and a global ambassador for the transformative power of music.
MEDIA CONTACTS:
Eric Skelly: eric.skelly@houstonsymphony.org
Jessica Henderson: jessica@theckpgroup.com