Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3

Arguably one of the hardest-to-master piano concertos, Rachmaninoff’s Third starts quietly, then unleashes an astonishing torrent of notes and hurtles to a jaw-dropping conclusion. In-between you’ll hear echoes of Slavic melancholy, lush themes and page upon page of passionate and virtuosic music-making.

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Sibelius’s Symphony No. 3

Principal Harp Emily Levin is front and center for Henriette Renié’s gorgeous Concerto. Widely recognized for his dual career, John Storgårds both plays and conducts Beethoven’s composition of poignant lyricism and songlike eloquence as well as Keith Jarrett’s Elegy, which pushes the boundaries of what we think of as “classical.”

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Stravinksy’s The Rite of Spring

The Rite of Spring is an iconic work that changed classical music forever and even today continues to be a thrilling, visceral experience. Abandon yourself to its raw energy and revel in its electrifying intensity as Aziz Shokhakimov, Music Director of Strasbourg Philharmonic Orchestra, guest conducts the DSO.

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Mendelssohn’s Scottish Symphony

Inspired by seeing the ruins and moors of Scotland, and especially Mary Queen of Scots’s Holyrood Castle on a walking tour, Mendelssohn created his aptly named Third Symphony.

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Conrad Tao Plays Mozart

Jaap van Zweden  returns to Dallas for Shostakovich’s eloquent Fifth Symphony. Despite its grandeur and optimistic façade — huge climaxes, triumphant marches, exhilarating brass and percussion — a profound sadness cries out in the third movement, the spiritual center of the work.

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Beethoven’s “Eroica”

World-renowned violinist Leonidas Kavakos interprets Shostakovich’s Concerto, whose sonorities range from quiet contemplation to the most spectacular cadenza you’re ever likely to witness to a frenzied finale, guaranteed to leave you amazed.

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Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 – “Resurrection”

“What is life and what is death? Why did you live? Why did you suffer? … Do our life and death have a meaning? … Whoever hears this call must give a reply. And this reply I give in my last movement.” Thus Mahler guides us to the meaning of his stirring Second Symphony, a work with a beautiful, consoling message.

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Ring Cycle: Das Rheingold

Tonight, the “Prologue” of Wagner’s masterpiece The Ring of the Nibelung sets the mighty saga in motion and prepares you for what is to come: the conflict between love and power, and, ultimately, redemption through love.

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Ring Cycle: Die Walküre

The most well-loved opera of the tetralogy, it encompasses some of its most beautiful music: impassioned expressions of love, Wotan’s farewell to his beloved child Brünnhilde, the Magic Fire Music, and, of course, The Ride of the Valkyries, the rousing battle cry sung by eight Valkyrie sisters (memorably on the soundtrack of Apocalypse Now). With English supertitles.

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Ring Cycle: Siegfried

Siegfried answers the question: What has become of Brünnhilde these 20-or-so years since DIE WALKÜRE? As Wagner’s epic continues to unfold, you might think you’ve entered the world of Dungeons and Dragons: the young hero of the story goes in search of a rich treasure, slays the monstrous cave-dwelling dragon who guards the hoard, and discovers a beautiful woman on a mountain top protected by impenetrable fire.

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