Insatiable: Strauss’s Don Juan

On November 29, 30, and December 1, the Houston Symphony celebrates Thanksgiving with A Musical Feast: All-Strauss Thanksgiving, a program featuring four of Richard Strauss’s greatest masterpieces. In this post, discover Strauss’s Don Juan, a swashbuckling romp that scandalized Strauss’s contemporaries with its shocking eroticism and ultra-modern musical style. Richard Strauss was a musically precocious child who … Continued

Looking Ahead to the 2019–20 Chamber Music Series

The Houston Symphony is excited to present a new Chamber Music Series, featuring members of the orchestra and some of this season’s most acclaimed guest soloists. With luminaries like Gil Shaham, John Storgårds, Alisa Weilerstein, and Cédric Tiberghien, the Chamber Music Series brings Houston Symphony musicians to the greater Houston community, up close and personal … Continued

The Ultimate Mystery: Strauss’s Death and Transfiguration

On November 29, 30, and December 1, the Houston Symphony celebrates Thanksgiving with A Musical Feast: All-Strauss Thanksgiving, a program featuring four of Richard Strauss’s greatest masterpieces. In this post, discover Strauss’s Death and Transfiguration, a powerful tone poem that explores the ultimate mystery of what lies beyond earthly existence. Over the course of the … Continued

The Cities of Lovecraft: Connesson’s Celephaïs

On November 22, 23, and 24, the Houston Symphony presents Trifonov Plays Tchaikovsky, a program featuring world-renowned virtuoso Daniil Trifonov in Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 together with Ravel’s vibrant orchestration of Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition. Opening the program is Celephaïs from The Cities of Lovecraft, a recent work by French composer Guillaume Connesson. … Continued

The Quest for Immortality: Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition

On November 22, 23, and 24, the Houston Symphony presents Trifonov Plays Tchaikovsky, a program featuring world-renowned virtuoso Daniil Trifonov in Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1, plus Ravel’s vibrant orchestration of Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition. In this post, discover the pictures that inspired this musical art gallery. Learn more about Mussorgsky’s masterpiece in our podcast. One … Continued

Heart, Meet Sleeve: Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1

On November 22, 23, and 24, the Houston Symphony presents Trifonov Plays Tchaikovsky, a program featuring world-renowned virtuoso Daniil Trifonov in Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1. In this post, discover one of history’s most popular (and unconventional) masterpieces. You Can’t Please Everyone Today, Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 is one of the most popular pieces of … Continued