🎶San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra Season 2025–2026: A Journey Through Sound and Soul 🎶

By Sharon Litsky

Get ready to be swept off your feet by a season of unforgettable performances by our fabulous San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra under the baton of Radu Paponiu, which blends timeless classics, bold contemporary works, and festive family favorites. Whether you’re a seasoned symphony-goer or a curious newcomer, this lineup is designed to stir your heart, challenge your mind, and leave you breathless. 

🍂 November 23, 2025:  2:30 PM | General Admission $40

Opening Concert: Passion, Precision, and Power

• Gabriela Ortiz – Kauyumari: A vibrant, mystical soundscape from one of Mexico’s most celebrated living composers with contemporary, rock, African, and Afro-Cuban influences.
• Felix Mendelssohn – Violin Concerto in E minor: Young virtuoso Aaron Ma brings fire and finesse to this beloved Romantic masterpiece, the composer’s last concerto. 
• Johannes Brahms – Academic Festival Overture: A jubilant toast to student life, brimming with humor, grandeur, and a sophisticated mastery of counterpoint.
• Antonín Dvořák – Symphony No. 8: Lush, lyrical, and bursting with Bohemian folk music and spirit—pure orchestral joy. 
  🎻 Why come? It’s a sonic feast that spans continents and centuries, with a rising star soloist and a program that dances between the mystical and the majestic.

🎄 December 14, 2025:  2:30 PM | Tickets $19.50–$129

Holiday Tradition: Peter and the Wolf

• Sergei Prokofiev – Peter and the Wolf: A magical Russian folktale where each character is brought to life by a different instrument.
• Guest Moderator TBA: Expect a charismatic narrator to guide you through Peter’s adventure.
  🧒 Why come? It’s the perfect family outing—whimsical, educational, and heartwarming. Whether you’re 5 or 95, this timeless story never loses its charm.

❄️ March 8, 2026:  2:30 PM | General Admission $40

Soundscapes of Spirit and Snow

• Jean Sibelius – Finlandia: A stirring anthem of resilience and Finland’s national pride and identity.
• Jennifer Higdon – blue cathedral: Ethereal and introspective, this one-movement tone poem is a meditation on loss and transcendence.
• Gustav Mahler – Symphony No. 4: Featuring soprano Hannah Cho, this symphony ends with a child’s vision of heaven—delicate, divine, and profoundly moving.
  🌌 Why come? It’s a concert that reaches into the soul, with music that whispers, roars, and ultimately uplifts.

🌠 May 17, 2026:  7:30 PM | General Admission $40

Finale: Fireworks of Form and Feeling

• Dylan Hall – Scherzo for Orchestra: A fresh, energetic work from a rising, award-winning 15-year-old composer from Albany CA.
• Ludwig van Beethoven – Symphony No. 1: The bold beginning of a genius—playful, elegant, and revolutionary with dramatic flair and tonal innovations. 
• Dmitri Shostakovich – Symphony No. 5: A gripping journey through despair and defiance in the oppressive political climate of the Stalin era, ending in triumphant ambiguity.
  🌙 Why come? It’s an evening performance that promises drama, brilliance, and catharsis. A fitting close to a season that celebrates the full spectrum of human emotion.

🎟️ Mark your calendars, gather friends and family, and buy your tickets—Whether you’re drawn by the classics, intrigued by new voices, or simply craving some beauty and inspiration, this is your invitation to experience music that matters with one of the foremost youth orchestras in the nation. The ticket prices are phenomenal. Purchase online at https://www.sfsymphony.org/calendar or call the Box Office at 415-864-6000.

🎶Learn more about the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra at https://www.sfsymphony.org/Education/SFS-Youth-Orchestra.🎶Learn more about Radu Paponiu–Conductor & Wattis Foundation Music Director at https://www.sfsymphony.org/About-SFS/Conducting-Staff/Radu-Paponiu