Concert Preview: Boston University at Symphony Hall

by Sarah Ioannides | Apr 2, 2026 | News, News Articles

Concert Preview: Boston University at Symphony Hall

Sarah Ioannides | Symphony Tacoma Music Director | Female Conductor and Composer

Experience a night of musical brilliance at Symphony Hall as Boston University’s ensembles unite for a powerful celebration of artistry, tradition, and innovation.

From the vibrant rhythms of Jessie Montgomery’s Coincident Dances—a dazzling fusion of styles shaped by one of today’s most compelling living composers—to the spiritual grandeur of Stravinsky’s Symphony of Psalms, commissioned by the Boston Symphony Orchestra, this program honors both the past and the pulse of contemporary creativity.

The evening culminates with Beethoven’s monumental Symphony No. 9, bringing together the Boston University Symphony Orchestra, Symphonic Chorus, and soloists in the timeless “Ode to Joy.” This transcendent masterpiece—born from silence and infused with hope—reminds us of music’s enduring power to unite and uplift.

Join us for an extraordinary showcase of student excellence, living legacy, and the language of joy!

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Concert Preview: Symphony Tacoma presents “Passion & Grace”

by Sarah Ioannides | Mar 17, 2026 | News, News Articles

Concert Preview: Symphony Tacoma presents “Passion & Grace”

Your Symphony Tacoma brings Tchaikovsky’s sweeping melodies and storytelling to life in a concert full of drama, beauty, and grandeur. Tchaikovsky’s Shakespearean musical drama masterfully weaves love, conflict, and tragedy into an extraordinary piece of art. Roman Rabinovich brings his elegant technique to Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 with dazzling precision and deep intensity. The enchantment of Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake Suite, where grace and spectacle come alive in this timeless tale of true love.

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Concert Preview: The Phoenix Symphony

by Sarah Ioannides | Mar 9, 2026 | News, News Articles

Concert Preview: The Phoenix Symphony

Phoenix-born violinist Richard Lin returns to perform Tchaikovsky’s beloved Violin Concerto. Symphony Tacoma Music Director Sarah Ioannides conducts a springtime celebration of young love in Selections from Prokofiev’s ballet Romeo & Juliet and the brief, impressionistic D’un matin de printemps (Of a Spring Morning) by Lili Boulanger.

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Begin your Friday morning in the welcoming atmosphere of Symphony Hall, surrounded by beautiful music, warm company, lively conversation, and complimentary coffee. It’s a relaxed and enriching way to experience the music you love, with the performance at the heart of it all!

Each 90-minute performance offers a delightful, behind-the-scenes look at the music, with engaging stories and insights from the conductor and musicians woven throughout.

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Concert Preview: Symphony Tacoma “A Legacy in Bloom”

by Sarah Ioannides | Feb 18, 2026 | News, News Articles

Concert Preview: Symphony Tacoma “A Legacy in Bloom”

Symphony Tacoma’s Principal Trumpet takes center stage in a spirited program that blends lyrical choral works and orchestral mastery. From the jubilant energy of Academic Festival Overture to the poignant beauty of Schicksalslied, Brahms reveals both his celebratory spirit and deep philosophical soul in this compelling pairing. Arutiunian’s Trumpet Concerto is a fiery, virtuosic showcase that blends Armenian themes with lyrical flair, featuring Symphony Tacoma’s own Principal Trumpet, Sarah Viens. Experience the vivid colors and delicate moods of spring’s renewal in Debussy’s exquisite orchestral work, Printemps, which beautifully captures nature’s awakening and leads you to explore its impressionistic charm.

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Concert Wrap Up: BU Today “Music Makers”

by Sarah Ioannides | Feb 18, 2026 | News, News Articles

Concert Wrap Up: BU Today “Music Makers”

The BU Symphony Orchestra held their first concert of the spring semester at Tsai Performance Center, February 13. Above, featured soloist Juan Shin (CFA’24,’29) (center left), winner of the 2025 CFA Concerto Competition, performs Erich Wolfgang Korngold’s Violin Concerto with the orchestra, led by conductor Sarah Ioannides (center right), College of Fine Arts director of orchestral activities.

Photo by Alicia Hamm (COM’26)

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Concert Preview: Boston University Symphony Orchestra

by Sarah Ioannides | Feb 7, 2026 | News, News Articles

Concert Preview: Boston University Symphony Orchestra

Boston University School of Music presents the Boston University Symphony Orchestra with Sarah Ioannides, Music Director & Conductor, in a concert at BU’s Tsai Performance Center on February 13, 2026. BUSO begins the second semester with Jessie Montgomery’s Caught By the Wind, a vibrant and lyrical piece that captures the restless energy of nature and the momentum of movement itself. With its layered rhythms, vivid string writing, and sense of forward drive, the work reflects Montgomery’s signature fusion of classical traditions with folk, jazz, and improvisational influences. Next, Johannes Brahms’s Variations on a Theme by Haydn follows, offering a masterclass in orchestral variation form. Each of the eight variations transforms the original chorale theme with inventive harmonic shifts, rhythmic vitality, and orchestral color, culminating in a majestic finale that reveals Brahms’s deep reverence for musical tradition paired with his own Romantic voice.

After intermission, the Korngold Violin Concerto features CFA 2025 Competition Winner Juan Shin. The program concludes with Wagner’s Overture to Tannhäuser, a dramatic and emotionally charged prelude that encapsulates the central conflict of the opera—between sacred and profane love. With its iconic “Pilgrim’s Chorus,” sweeping string lines, and thunderous climaxes, the overture offers a powerful and immersive close to the evening’s journey.

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