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KURT HEINECKE
If there’s one thing Nashvillians hold near and dear, it’s live music.
And with in-person shows on pause for more than a year, we’re all excited for some of the city’s most talented musicians make their return to the venues we love. One of the most beloved is the Schermerhorn Symphony Center, where the Nashville Symphony will resume regular performances just in time for its 75th anniversary season.
The Nashville Symphony’s 2021-22 season features a remarkable lineup of more than 100 classical, pops, jazz and family concerts with the Grammy-winning orchestra. Additionally, attendees can expect appearances by renowned guest artists, film favorites screened with the accompaniment of a live orchestra, and so much more.
The season kicks off Sept. 16-18 with Fanfare for Music City, a program opening with Aaron Copland’s Fanfare for the Common Man and Joan Tower’s Fanfare for the Uncommon Woman. Keeping in mind the heroes who remained at the forefront of it all, the two works will celebrate the essential workers who played critical roles throughout the pandemic.
As health and safety remain top priority, the Nashville Symphony plans to start its season with social distancing onstage and in the concert hall, with plans to reach full capacity by January while continuing to assess changing conditions.
Running for fourteen weekends, the Nashville Symphony’s Amazon Classical Series—curated and led by Music Director Giancarlo Guerrero—will open with chamber orchestra performances in the fall, leading up to performances of Mozart’s Piano Concert No. 24 and Dvořák’s Eighth Symphony,
for which the full orchestra will be reunited onstage in January. And for Guerrero, starting the season at reduced capacity serves as an opportunity for creative growth rather than a limitation.
“While I am so looking forward to having all of the musicians back onstage by the end of the season, the reduced orchestra size this fall will allow us to dive into repertoire that we have never performed before,” says Guerrero. “This season, the orchestra and I will get to flex some new creative muscles. Even as we relearn what normal is, there is an opportunity to be more than what we were. We can learn from these challenges and get to something better than normal. The bumps along the road can become tools to finding better ways to serve our musicians and our community.”
With such a diverse lineup, the 2021-22 season leaves something to be discovered by everyone and every interest. The dynamic eight-weekend FirstBank Pops Series, led by Principal Pops Conductor Enrico Lopez-Yañez, includes guest appearances by Leslie Odom, Jr., Stewart Copeland of The Police, and Ben Folds, all performing with the Nashville Symphony. The Jazz Series welcomes Wynton Marsalis’ Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, plus a first-ever Schermerhorn appearance by Pat Metheny. And following the successful debut of the Symphony’s Movie Series, season ticket packages will again be available for film screenings with the orchestra; including titles such as The Muppet Christmas Carol, Toy Story, Back to the Future, and Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens.
Other season highlights include a special performance of Copland’s Billy the Kid and Stravinsky’s The Firebird with the Nashville Ballet. The season will conclude with a performance of Beethoven’s Ninth with the Nashville Symphony Chorus, rounding out a season that’s sure to be as unforgettable as it is highly anticipated.
“Throughout its history, the Nashville Symphony has experienced its share of triumphs and challenges,” says President and CEO Alan Valentine. “But none of us could have imagined the year that we have all just experienced. As we reemerge together from the pandemic, the Nashville Symphony looks forward to helping our community heal and celebrating our orchestra’s rich history of resilience, artistic vibrancy, and community service. We are beyond excited as we prepare to welcome audiences back to the Schermerhorn safely, and we are looking to the future with great anticipation as we devote ourselves to becoming an even more community-focused organization.”
(1 Symphony Place, 615-687-6400; nashvillesymphony.org)