Tucson Symphony Orchestra presents its 2025-26 Season: Transcend Your Senses, a season that invites audiences to experience Cosmic Musical Moments – transformative experiences performed by Maestro José Luis Gomez, the 75 musicians of the TSO, and guest artists from around the world.
Beginning his 9th season as TSO Music Director, José Luis Gomez says, “This season, we invite you to experience and celebrate these momentos cósmicos with us through incredible musical selections and shared experiences. Whether it’s the thrill of Rachmaninoff’s Third Piano Concerto, the heartbreakingly beautiful Agnus Dei by Barber, or the uplifting melodies of Copland, this season is designed to make you FEEL.”
A season highlight is the appearance of pianist Lang Lang to perform Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 2 (March 29, 2026). Lang Lang has been dazzling audiences around the world since he burst onto the stage in 1999, and his return to the TSO for the first time in 14 years is highly anticipated. This concert is available exclusively for TSO subscribers through November 1, 2025.
The Classic series encompasses the full range of Cosmic Moments, from the uplifting and the passionate to the romantic and the revolutionary, all showcasing the full might of the TSO.
These eight concerts are presented at the Linda Ronstadt Music Hall Fridays at 7:30 PM and Sundays at 2:00 PM.
The season opens with Olga Kern performing Rachmaninoff’s technically demanding and virtuosic Piano Concerto No. 3 on Kern Plays Rachmaninoff (September 26 & 28, 2025), which also features Sibelius’s Symphony No. 2 and Chávez’s Toccata.
2022-23 Artist in Residence Francisco Fullana joins guest conductor Manuel Hernández Silva for the triumphant Saint-Saëns Violin Concerto on Saint-Saëns and Tchaikovsky (October 24 & 26, 2025), alongside Brahms’ Academic Festival Overture, Gili Schwarzman’s Portrait, and Tchaikovsky’s tale of doomed lovers Francesca da Rimini.
Multifaceted musician Yura Lee makes her TSO debut with a double turn, performing the Walton Viola Concerto before pirouetting to the violin for Vaughan Williams’ The Lark Ascending under guest conductor Alexander Prior. Strauss and Britten (November 14 & 16, 2025) will also feature Strauss’s Death and Transfiguration and Britten’s classic The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra.
Another debutant, Alessio Bax tackles Beethoven’s monumental ‘Emperor’ Piano Concerto on Beethoven’s Emperor (December 5 & 7, 2025). Beethoven’s influence can be felt throughout the program in Carlos Simon’s Fate Now Conquers, inspired by a journal entry from the composer, and Shostakovich, who leaned heavily into his influence for the revolutionary Symphony No. 5.
One of the most sought-after lyric mezzo-sopranos of her generation, Arizona-native Angela Brower performs the first of two concerts in partnership with the Tucson Desert Song Festival. On Debussy’s La mer (January 23 & 24, 2026), Brower will sing Berlioz’s cantata Cléopâtre. Two classic works by Debussy, La mer and Ibéria, are complemented by Messiaen’s (featured for the first time on the Classic Series) early symphonic poem Le tombeau resplendissant.
Mahler’s full-evening emotion-packed Sixth Symphony is presented on Mahler’s Tragic (February 20 & 22, 2026). A showcase for a huge orchestra, Mahler covers the fullest range of orchestral sounds from the tinkling of cowbells to epic hammer blows. His wife Alma wrote – “No other work flowed so directly from his heart as this one”.
Tessa Lark joins forces with guest conductor Shiyeon Sung to perform Barber’s poignantly lyrical Violin Concerto on Bizet and Barber (March 20 & 22, 2026). Bizet’s full-blooded Carmen Suites are also featured alongside the delightful miniatures of fellow French composer Lili Boulanger.
The Classic season concludes with a tribute to the upcoming 250th anniversary of America with Copland’s Fanfare for America (April 10 & 12, 2026). The composer’s Symphony No. 3, which strikingly features the familiar Fanfare for the Common Man, pairs with Joan Tower’s Sixth Fanfare for the Uncommon Woman and the TSO premiere of Robert Mucyznski’s Symphony, continuing Maestro Gomez’s project to discover this Tucson-based composer.
The Masterworks series weaves threads of joy, remembrance, and longing. This series is presented at Catalina Foothills High School Saturdays at 2:00 and 7:30 PM and Sundays at 2:00 PM.
Artist in Residence Steven Moeckel, familiar to Tucson audiences as TSO’s former concertmaster, will perform Mozart’s Violin Concerto alongside Schubert’s Symphony No. 1 on Mozart and Schubert (October 11 & 12, 2025).
Cellist Julian Schwarz joins guest conductor Conner Gray Covington for two masterpieces of the repertoire, Bruch’s Kol Nidrei and Tchaikovsky’s Variations on a Rococo Theme. One of Beethoven’s most beloved symphonies concludes the program on Beethoven’s Pastoral (November 8 & 9, 2025).
Maestro Gomez presents a new work by Arizona-raised Paola Prestini and music by Haydn, Gabriela Lena Frank, and Villa-Lobos on Haydn’s Farewell (January 10 & 11, 2026).
Mezzo-soprano Angela Brower returns for a second week on Mozart’s Requiem (January 31 & February 1, 2026), thanks again to a partnership with the Tucson Desert Song Festival. Mozart’s unfinished Requiem and Ave Verum Corpus, featuring the TSO Chorus, are bridged by a new connecting work by Tucson composer Dan Coleman.
The Masterworks season closes with the debut of Argentinian conductor Fernanda Lastra introducing a program of vibrant French and Latin-American sounds. Principal flute Alexander Lipay takes a solo turn on Ibert’s Flute concerto on Debussy and Piazzolla (March 7 & 8, 2026).
The 2025-26 lineup of Special Events highlights old friends, new partnerships, and the joy of what makes Tucson so special.
The TSO is proud to partner with the Tucson International Mariachi Festival to present Día de los Muertos: A Celebration of Life (November 1, 2025). Featuring Tlen Huicani, the international masters of the Son Jarocho style, and special guests Mariachi Aztlán de Pueblo High School and Grupo Folklórico Los Guerreros de Pueblo High School, this concert celebrates the rich and beautiful musical traditions of Día de los Muertos.
Underscore: Shostakovich (December 6, 2025) is a new way to explore and experience the TSO. Maestro Gomez will uncover the fascinating story behind Shostakovich’s most popular symphony, the Fifth, in this 75-minute concert (on Saturday at 5:30 pm) that also includes excerpts and commentary.
Celebrate the holidays as only Tucson can with Holidays in Tucson (December 13 & 14, 2025). Gomez and the TSO will be joined by the UA School of Dance for a newly created dance piece to Duke Ellington’s The Nutcracker, vocalist Katherine Byrnes will perform holiday classics, and the concert closes with a set from local favorites Calexico.
The full Messiah (December 20 & 21, 2025) is directed by the legendary Baroque specialist Nicholas McGegan. Featuring the TSO Chorus and a quartet of soloists, this concert is the perfect holiday tradition.
Pink Martini (January 17 & 18, 2026) makes a joyful stop at the Music Hall for another weekend of boisterous fun, in partnership with the Tucson Jazz Festival. Featuring vocalist Storm Large, this extravaganza will highlight the music of their forthcoming new album.
Celebrating America at 250 (February 14 & 15, 2026) highlights the many shades of America in advance of the nation’s 250th birthday. From Bernstein’s West Side Story and Copland’s Lincoln Portrait (narrated by Tom McNamara of AZPM’s Arizona Illustrated)) to Ellington’s MLK and Juan Pablo Contreras’s MeChicano, the program showcases the best of American music. The concert rises to a stupendous conclusion with Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture, joined by the TSO Chorus under the direction of Marcela Molina.
Go back to where it all began with Star Wars: A New Hope in Concert (May 16 & 17, 2026). Relive your favorite moments from the beginning of the epic series, with the John Williams score played live by the TSO while the film is projected. Hear and see the movie like you have never experienced before!
The chamber series returns with four phenomenal programs: Up Close with Steven Moeckel (October 18 & 19, 2025), Percussion Plus (November 23 & 24, 2025), Strings and Winds (February 28 & March 1, 2026), and Chorus and Brass (April 18 & 19, 2026). These concerts take place at the Tucson Symphony Center, Saturdays at 7:30 PM and Sundays at 2:00 PM.
Subscriptions for the 2025-26 season are available now. Individual tickets go on sale August 1, 2025.
