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

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 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

Et in Arcadia ego: Brahms’ Symphony No. 2

On November 15, 16, and 17, acclaimed conductor Fabien Gabel returns to Houston for Ax Plays Beethoven, a program featuring works by Beethoven and Brahms. In this post, discover the hidden meanings in Brahms’ gorgeous Symphony No. 2. Brahms took at least 14 years to complete his First Symphony (and perhaps more than 20); to a … Continued

All Is Illusion: Music from Wagner’s Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg

On October 25, 26, and 27, world-renowned Wagner conductor Marek Janowski leads Wagner + Beethoven 2, a program of thrilling orchestral masterpieces by two of history’s most revolutionary composers. In this post, discover some of the moving and festive music Wagner composed for his opera Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg. Visit houstonsymphony.org for tickets and more information. The idea for … Continued