The Minnesota Orchestra’s summer programming lineup aims to put “Music in Motion.”
The Summer at Orchestra Hall series runs from July 14 to Aug. 5 in downtown Minneapolis and is curated by piano virtuoso Jon Kimura Parker. The Twin Cities collective BRKFST Dance Company will serve as the orchestra’s artist-in-residence to highlight the “Music in Motion” theme, and local musicians Chastity Brown and Dessa are on the docket, too.
Before each concert, the orchestra is hosting Sounds + Bites on Peavey Plaza, a free outdoor entertainment showcase downtown. Dining options will be available, the orchestra said.
Tickets to summer shows go on sale starting April 4 at minnesotaorchestra.org or by calling 612-371-5656.
In total, last year’s Summer at Orchestra Hall events were attended by 25,000 people, the orchestra said. And 2022 was an eventful year overall for the Minnesota Orchestra — its finances improved from pandemic disruptions, and Danish conductor Thomas Søndergård was appointed to take over from longtime music director Osmo Vänskä. The full 2023-24 season — officially Søndergård’s first — is set to be announced April 18.
Here’s what the Minnesota Orchestra has planned for this summer:
Friday, July 14: For the summer’s inaugural concert, pianist Jon Kimura Parker will perform composer Felix Mendelssohn’s First Piano Concerto, and Lee Mills will conduct the Minnesota Orchestra in two works by contemporary Brazilian composers. Beethoven’s Eighth Symphony is also in the mix. 8 p.m. at Orchestra Hall; tickets are $35–$90.
Saturday, July 15, International Day of Music: An all-day event whose full lineup will be announced in June. For now, we know youth orchestras will perform at Orchestra Hall; dance groups will perform onstage in Peavey Plaza; and another outdoor stage on 11th Street will feature performances curated by The Cedar Cultural Center.
At 8:30 p.m. on the Peavey Plaza stage, the Minnesota Orchestra will perform in a City of Bells show conducted by Chia-Hsuan Lin that concludes with a simultaneous ringing of bells at five local churches including the Basilica of St. Mary. Noon–midnight; free.
Thursday, July 20, Grand Piano Spectacular: Last year, Parker resurrected this hallmark of 1980s Minnesota Orchestra summer festivals. This year, he’ll be joined onstage by married duo Elizabeth and Marcel Bergmann and renowned rising star Chelsea de Souza. Just pianos — no Minnesota Orchestra. 11 a.m. at Orchestra Hall; tickets are $35–$69.
Friday, July 21, and Saturday, July 22: Early-modern classics and contemporary work come together here, starting with Maurice Ravel’s “La Valse” and Sergei Rachmaninoff’s “Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini.” The program moves into American composer Daniel Bernard Roumain’s “Dancers, Dreamers and Presidents,” inspired by a 2007 moment in which Barack Obama and Ellen DeGeneres danced together — and accompanied by the world premiere of choreography by BRKFST Dance Company. Finally, a suite from Igor Stravinsky’s ballet “The Firebird.” Elias Grandy will conduct; Parker will return as soloist. 8 p.m. both nights at Orchestra Hall; tickets are $35–$90.
Sunday, July 23, Chamber Music: Parker has assembled smaller groups of Minnesota Orchestra musicians — on trumpet, flute, violin, alto saxophone, and more — to join his piano performances of chamber music, notably the “Piano Quintet” by composer Samuel Coleridge-Taylor (not to be confused with the similarly named poet). 4 p.m. at Orchestra Hall; tickets are $40.
Tuesday, July 25: Music & Healing: First, music: Sarah Hicks will conduct the Minnesota Orchestra in several pieces by composers Dmitri Shostakovich, Erik Satie and Molly Joyce, whose work “Serenity,” which deals with music as a response to anxiety, will receive its world premiere. Plus, local singer Chastity Brown will perform new music, and BRKFST will perform once again, too. Then, guided meditation, courtesy of Mariann Johnson, from the University of Minnesota’s Earl E. Bakken Center for Spirituality & Healing. 7 p.m. at Orchestra Hall; tickets are $25 to $63.
Friday, July 28, and Saturday, July 29: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon in Concert. The Minnesota Orchestra will perform the score from the 2000 martial arts movie live, while the film is screened in-sync in the background. Gao Hong, one of the world’s best players of the Chinese stringed instrument pipa, and Minnesota Orchestra principal cellist Anthony Ross will take center stage. 7 p.m. both nights at Orchestra Hall; tickets are $43 to $90.
Thursday, Aug. 3, Friday, Aug. 4, and Saturday, Aug 5: Dessa with the Minnesota Orchestra. Dessa, the local rapper and writer who’s a member of the Doomtree hip-hop collective, performed alongside the Minnesota Orchestra in 2017, 2018 and 2019. She’s finally able to return this year with more original music backed by multidisciplinary orchestral arrangements. This is expected to be a popular ticket, and the Aug. 4 performance will be broadcast live on TPT and MPR’s classical station. 8 p.m. all three nights at Orchestra Hall; tickets $35–$85.
Orchestra Hall: 1111 Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis; tickets: minnesotaorchestra.org or 612-371-5656.
