The first concert of the Victoria Symphony's 2024/25 season is officially on the horizon! On Sept. 15 at 2:30 p.m., Christian Kluxen and the Victoria Symphony will take centre stage at the Royal Theatre to bring Strauss’s Four Last Songs to life.
Later in the month, audiences can look forward to Tanya Tagaq in Concert and Best of Broadway, before Kluxen rounds out September with Mozart’s Prague Symphony. The September lineup offers a glimpse of what to expect from the rest of this eclectic season. From Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 to Dancing Queen – The Music of ABBA, the Victoria Symphony promises a thrilling year ahead with a little something for everyone.
Season opener: Kluxen – Strauss’s Four Last Songs
The 2024/25 Season opens Sept. 15 with Richard Strauss’s Four Last Songs and Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 10. Under the baton of Victoria Symphony Music Director Christian Kluxen and featuring soloist Aviva Fortunata, the performance starts at 2:30 p.m.
“Four Last Songs is a reflection of Strauss’s experiences living through war and oppression under Stalin's rule, before eventually outliving the dictator," Kluxen says. "It’s a meaningful choice as a season opener, ultimately reminding us that humanity can prevail – a truth as relevant today as it was more than 70 years ago.
“We, as a symphony, are not only here to entertain but also to give our audience a chance to reflect on the world and on life. These works were composed against the backdrop of a war in which the world that shaped the composer was burnt to the ground. But even darkness becomes light when music remains alive to offer reflection."
Tanya Tagaq in Concert
A fearless innovator with a visceral stage presence and dizzyingly complex music, Tanya Tagaq is a Canadian cultural icon. Tagaq, an Inuk throat singer whose last performance in Victoria sold out, returns to the University of Victoria's Farquhar Auditorium Sept. 18 at 7 p.m.
Tagaq’s performance will include Qiksaaqtuq, featuring the Victoria Symphony, a moderated discussion and Sivunittinni, accompanied by the Emily Carr String Quartet.
Best of Broadway
On Sept. 21 and 22, the Victoria Symphony will delight audiences with a selection of Broadway musical hits. The program, beginning at 7:30 p.m on Sept. 21 and 2:30 pm on Sept. 22 at the Royal Theatre, will include beloved favourites such as “I Dreamed a Dream” from Les Misérables and “Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again” from The Phantom of the Opera, as well as many others from Broadway hits like The Sound of Music and My Fair Lady.
Soloist Melissa Errico, a Tony Award-nominated Broadway star, recently made her Carnegie Hall debut with the New York Pops, where conductor Steven Reineke introduced her as “a unique force in the musical life of New York City,” adding, “There’s really no one like her!”
Kluxen – Mozart’s Prague Symphony
Maestro Kluxen returns on Sept. 29 to present Mozart’s Prague Symphony at UVic's Farquhar Auditorium. Mozart’s Prague Symphony features the same playful wit and melodic genius found in his operas The Marriage of Figaro and Don Giovanni. “What you see is not always what it is, so attend to the melodies and you’ll emerge transformed,” Kluxen notes.
The performance starts at 2:30 p.m. and includes Ligeti’s Melodien, Mozart’s Symphony No. 38 in D Major, “Prague,” Nielsen’s Clarinet Concerto and Korngold’s Much Ado About Nothing suite.
Learn more about the 2024/25 Season online at victoriasymphony.ca and follow them on Facebook, Instagram and Youtube for performance updates and events. Tickets for the Victoria Symphony's 2024/25 Season are officially on sale and start at $29. Season subscriptions are also available.