May 30-Aug. 22: Brevard Music Center Celebrates 90th Anniversary Summer Season

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 
Contact: Katy Salomon | Primo Artists | VP, Public Relations 
katy@primoartists.com | 646.801.9406

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 Brevard Music Center Celebrates 90th Anniversary 
Summer Season, May 30 – August 22, 2026

Highlights Include:

Opening Night Led by Artistic Director Keith Lockhart Featuring
Garrick Ohlsson Performing Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 

Season Finale with Legendary Artist Yo-Yo Ma Performing Dvorák’s Cello Concerto

The World Premiere of Ellen Taaffe Zwilich’s Viola Concerto Featuring Paul Neubauer

Guest Artists Including Gil Shaham, Branford Marsalis, Sir Stephen Hough, Béla Fleck, Camille Thomas, Nancy Zhou, and Reginald Smith, Jr.

Three Fully Staged Opera Productions from the Janiec Opera Company

A Celebration of American Music with Works by Copland, Carlos Simon,
Joan Tower, and James Stephenson

BMC Presents Series Featuring Jason Isbell, The Buena Vista Orchestra, Branford Marsalis, and Bluegrass Icons Béla Fleck, Bryan Sutton, and Casey Driessen

“BMC is clearly not just a mountain gem, but a top-notch summer music 
festival in an unparalleled setting.” – The Strad

www.brevardmusic.org

Brevard, NC (April 21, 2026) — The Brevard Music Center (BMC) celebrates its 90th anniversary summer season in 2026, marking nearly a century as one of the nation’s leading training grounds for young musicians and an internationally recognized festival where generations of artists have come together to learn, perform, and shape the future of classical music.

Set in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, the 2026 Summer Festival continues that legacy, bringing together more than 1,000 students and faculty alongside internationally renowned guest artists for a season that reflects both Brevard’s history and its forward-looking mission. Across orchestral, chamber, operatic, and cross-genre programming, the festival remains rooted in a singular idea: that young musicians learn best by making music alongside the artists who inspire them. 

“90 years at Brevard is not just a milestone – it’s a living story,” says President & CEO Jason Posnock. “This season reflects who we are at our core: a place where extraordinary music is performed, exceptional guest artists are welcomed, new voices are encouraged, and students learn by making music alongside the very people who inspire them.”

Founded in 1936 by 24-year-old Dr. James Christian Pfohl, Director of Music at Davidson College, BMC began as a summer institute dedicated to both musical excellence and immersive education, modeled after his time at Interlochen Music Camp in Michigan. After staging the 1943 season in Charlotte, Pfohl realized that the ideal place for a music camp was not in a big city and began searching for the perfect setting for a “well-balanced program of outdoor recreation and instruction in music and art.” The name Brevard Music Center was adopted in 1955. In 1964, conductor Henry Janiec became Artistic Director and led BMC for three decades. Maestro David Effron took the helm in 1997 after attending the camp as a piano student in the 1950s, before Keith Lockhart, also a BMC alumnus, assumed his current role in 2007. Across its evolution – from a small summer institute to a nationally recognized festival and training center – Brevard has maintained a continuous thread: the integration of education and performance at the highest level.

Notable alumni of Brevard Music Center include GRAMMY-winning composer and vocalist Caroline Shaw, violinist Robert McDuffie, Principal Bass of the Philadelphia Orchestra Joseph Conyers, Principal Trumpet of the New York Philharmonic Christopher Martin, President and CEO of the Curtis Institute of Music Roberto Díaz, and Atlanta Symphony Orchestra CEO Jennifer Barlament, among many others who now hold positions across major orchestras, conservatories, and ensembles worldwide, underscoring Brevard’s lasting impact on the professional musical landscape. 

For decades, classical music superstars such as 2026 Legendary Artist Yo-Yo Ma, who first appeared at BMC in 1979, Isaac Stern, Itzhak Perlman, Joshua Bell, Conrad Tao, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Audra McDonald, Wynton Marsalis, Renée Fleming, and Yuja Wang regularly return to Brevard, reveling in its natural setting and atmosphere of collaboration and masterful artistry. Since 2018, Brevard Music Center has remained the only teaching venue for 19-time GRAMMY-winning banjo phenom Béla Fleck. In 2021, BMC opened the state-of-the-art Parker Concert Hall, expanding its offerings to include year-round classical programming rivaling the best performing arts centers in the nation.

The 2026 orchestral summer season opens on Friday, June 26, when Artistic Director Keith Lockhart leads the Brevard Music Center Orchestra in Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3, “Eroica,” paired with the return of pianist Garrick Ohlsson in Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2. This opening program sets the tone for a summer defined by ambitious repertoire and dynamic collaboration between faculty, students, and guest artists.

The season concludes on Sunday, August 2, with a defining moment of the anniversary year as Yo-Yo Ma returns to Brevard as the 2026 Legendary Artist. Performing Dvorák’s Cello Concerto with Keith Lockhart and the Brevard Music Center Orchestra, Ma’s appearance underscores the Center’s longstanding relationship with the world’s leading artists and its role in shaping generations of musicians.

Yo-Yo Ma’s appearance anchors the anniversary season, and he is joined by an exceptional roster of guest artists appearing throughout the summer. Featured performers include violinists Gil Shaham, Nancy Zhou, and Amaryn Olmeda; violist Paul Neubauer; cellist Camille Thomas; baritone Reginald Smith, Jr.; and pianist Sophia Liu, whose performances span orchestral, chamber, and recital settings. 

Complementing the core classical programming, saxophonist Branford Marsalis, GRAMMY-winning singer/songwriter Jason Isbell, and banjo virtuoso Béla Fleck headline the popular BMC Presents Series. Additional offerings include Bryan Sutton’s NC Guitar Celebration, Nathan Chester and The Old Souls Motown Revival, Shannon Whitworth and Woody Platt with Orchestra, The Buena Vista Orchestra, and Fiddle Forward with Casey Driessen.

Education remains central to Brevard’s identity. In 2026, Imani Winds and the Shanghai Quartet will hold the Thomas C. Bolton Distinguished Artist Chair, supported by The Payne Fund, while pianist Sir Stephen Hough will serve as the Ruby Norris Morgan Distinguished Artist Chair in Piano Performance and Instruction. These residencies include performances, teaching, seminars, and masterclasses, reinforcing Brevard’s role as a place where learning and artistry intersect.

Guest conductors Rune Bergmann, Earl Lee, Anna Rakitina, Shih-Hung Young, and Naomi Woo join Artistic Director Keith Lockhart, Principal Guest Conductor JoAnn Falletta, and Resident Conductors Ken Lam and Kraig Alan Williams.

Influential composers featured in residence and performance include Andy Akiho, Zach Redler, Carlos Simon, James Stephenson, Joan Tower, and Ellen Taaffe Zwilich, underscoring the festival’s ongoing commitment to the music of our time.

The Janiec Opera Company presents fully staged productions of Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro, Zach Redler's The Falling and the Rising, and Gilbert and Sullivan’s H.M.S. Pinafore, as well as a cabaret performance titled An Evening of Lerner & Loewe.

The season also includes a cinematic highlight with Star Wars: Return of the Jedi in Concert, performed live alongside the film by the Brevard Sinfonia, Brevard Music Center’s college orchestra.

Brevard Music Center’s summer programming also extends well beyond the core orchestral season, with a broad slate of non-orchestral events that begins with Bryan Sutton’s NC Guitar Celebration (May 30), the first concert of the summer and a kickoff to Brevard’s cross-genre offerings, including Jazz@Brevard and its instrumental seminar programs. Throughout the season, BMC also presents major headliner appearances by Branford Marsalis (June 11), Nathan Chester and The Old Souls Motown Revival (June 27), Shannon Whitworth and Woody Platt with Orchestra (June 30), The Buena Vista Orchestra (July 11), Jason Isbell (July 19), Béla Fleck (August 15), and Fiddle Forward with Casey Driessen (August 22), alongside a series of free community concerts featuring the Jan and Beattie Wood Concerto Competition Finals (July 2), Just Brass (July 7), Brevard Symphonic Winds (July 21), and Supersonic (July 26). Together, these performances reflect the full breadth of Brevard’s artistic life, spanning classical, jazz, bluegrass, folk, popular music, and community-focused programming.

Across nine decades, Brevard has welcomed many of the most celebrated artists of our time while maintaining its central mission as an educational institution. Alumni and faculty connections span major orchestras and ensembles worldwide, and its influence continues to shape the next generation of performers, composers, and educators. The 2026 season stands as both a reflection on that legacy and an affirmation of the Center’s continuing role in the cultural life of the United States.

2026 BMC SEASON DETAILS

Tickets and Subscriptions: Subscriptions for the 2026 Summer Festival are on sale now. Single tickets go on sale to the general public on April 24, 2026, with early access available through membership and subscription benefits. For tickets and full season details, visit brevardmusic.org or call the BMC Box Office at 828-862-2105.

SYMPHONY SERIES:
All events at Whittington-Pfohl Auditorium

Friday, June 26 | 7:30 PM
Opening Night: Garrick Ohlsson Plays Rachmaninoff
Brevard Music Center Orchestra | Keith Lockhart, conductor | Garrick Ohlsson, piano

ANNA CLYNE Masquerade
SERGEI RACHMANINOFF Piano Concerto No. 2
LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 3, “Eroica”

Sunday, June 28 | 3:00 PM
America 250
Brevard Sinfonia | Keith Lockhart, conductor | Charles Vernon and David Jackson, trombones | Scott Hartman, bass trombone | Aubrey Foard, tuba

SAMUEL BARBER Overture to The School for Scandal
JAMES M. STEPHENSON Pillars Low Brass Concerto
AARON COPLAND Suite from Billy the Kid
CARLOS SIMON Four Black American Dances

Friday, July 3 | 7:30 PM
Brahms Symphony No. 4
Brevard Music Center Orchestra | Anna Rakitina, conductor | Nancy Zhou, violin

CARLOS SIMON Festive Fanfare and Overture
DMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH Violin Concerto No. 1
JOHANNES BRAHMS Symphony No. 4

Saturday, July 4 | 2:00 PM
Pendergrast Family Patriotic Pops
Brevard Concert Orchestra | Brevard Symphonic Winds | Kraig Alan Williams and Ken Lam, conductors

CHARLES IVES Variations on America
JOHN WILLIAMS E.T.
JOHN WILLIAMS Star Wars (Imperial March)
PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY 1812 Overture
JOHN PHILIP SOUSA Stars and Stripes Forever

Sunday, July 5 | 3:00 PM
Bruckner's Romantic Symphony
Brevard Sinfonia | Naomi Woo, conductor | Leonardo Soto, timpani

ETHEL SMYTH The Wreckers: Overture
ANDY AKIHO Timpani Concerto
ANTON BRUCKNER Symphony No. 4

Friday, July 10 | 7:30 PM
Tchaikovsky's Rococo Variations
Brevard Music Center Orchestra | JoAnn Falletta, conductor | Camille Thomas, cello

JOAN TOWER Fanfare for the Uncommon Woman
JOAN TOWER Made in America
PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY Variations on a Rococo Theme
CARL NIELSEN Symphony No. 4, “Inextinguishable”

Sunday, July 12 | 3:00 PM
Daphnis and Chloé
Brevard Sinfonia | JoAnn Falletta, conductor | Paul Neubauer, viola

MORTON GOULD Cowboy Rhapsody
ELLEN TAAFFE ZWILICH Viola Concerto (World Premiere)
ALBERT ROUSSEL Bacchus et Ariane, Suite No. 2
MAURICE RAVEL Daphnis et Chloé, Suite No. 2

Thursday, July 16 | 7:30 PM
Shostakovich 10
Brevard Concert Orchestra | Ken Lam, conductor

JOHANNES BRAHMS Tragic Overture
LEONARD BERNSTEIN Three Dance Episodes from On the Town
DMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH Symphony No. 10

Friday, July 17 | 7:30 PM
An Alpine Symphony
Brevard Music Center Orchestra | Rune Bergmann, conductor | Sir Stephen Hough, piano

JOHANNES BRAHMS Piano Concerto No. 1
RICHARD STRAUSS An Alpine Symphony

Saturday, July 18 | 7:30 PM
Mendelssohn's Italian Symphony
Brevard Sinfonia | Earl Lee, conductor | Amaryn Olmeda, violin

HECTOR BERLIOZ Roman Carnival Overture
SERGEI PROKOFIEV Violin Concerto No. 2
FELIX MENDELSSOHN Symphony No. 4, “Italian”

Friday, July 24 | 7:30 PM
Gil Shaham Mahler 4
Brevard Music Center Orchestra | Keith Lockhart, conductor | Gil Shaham, violin | Emma Marhefka, soprano

GUSTAV MAHLER Symphony No. 4
JOHANNES BRAHMS Violin Concerto

Saturday, July 25 | 8:30 PM
Star Wars: Return of the Jedi in Concert
Brevard Sinfonia | Shih-Hung Young, conductor

JOHN WILLIAMS Star Wars: Return of the Jedi

Sunday, July 26 | 3:00 PM
Soloists of Tomorrow
Brevard Music Center Orchestra | Ken Lam, conductor

ALEXANDROS DARNA Tectonic Dances
Jan and Beatie Wood Concerto Competition Winners TBA
FRANZ SCHUBERT Symphony No. 8 "Unfinished"

Friday, July 31 | 7:30 PM
Rachmaninoff Symphony No. 2
Brevard Concert Orchestra | Brevard Symphonic Winds | Keith Lockhart and Kraig Alan Williams, conductors

GUSTAV HOLST (arr. PAUL NOBLE) Ballet Music from The Perfect Fool
MICHAEL DAUGHERTY Lift Up Thine Ears
SERGEI RACHMANINOFF Symphony No. 2

Saturday, August 1 | 7:30 PM
Liszt Piano Concerto No. 1
Brevard Sinfonia | Ken Lam, conductor | Sophia Liu, piano

DAVID DZUBAY Ridgeline
FRANZ LISZT Piano Concerto No. 1
JOHANNES BRAHMS Haydn Variations
BÉLA BARTÓK Dance Suite

Sunday, August 2 | 3:00 PM
Season Finale: Legendary Artist Yo-Yo Ma with Keith Lockhart
Brevard Music Center Orchestra | Keith Lockhart, conductor | Yo-Yo Ma, cello | Reginald Smith, Jr., baritone

WILLIAM WALTON Belshazzar’s Feast
ANTONÍN DVORÁK Cello Concerto

OPERA SERIES (JANIEC OPERA COMPANY):
All events at Porter Center at Brevard College

Thursday, June 25 | 7:30 PM
The Marriage of Figaro
Janiec Opera Company | Brevard Festival Orchestra | Craig Kier, conductor

WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART The Marriage of Figaro

Saturday, June 27 | 2:00 PM
The Marriage of Figaro
Janiec Opera Company | Brevard Festival Orchestra | Craig Kier, conductor

WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART The Marriage of Figaro

Thursday, July 9 | 7:30 PM
The Falling & The Rising
Janiec Opera Company | Brevard Festival Orchestra | Joshua Horsch, conductor

ZACH REDLER The Falling and The Rising

Saturday, July 11 | 2:00 PM
The Falling & The Rising
Janiec Opera Company | Brevard Festival Orchestra | Joshua Horsch, conductor

ZACH REDLER The Falling and The Rising

Thursday, July 23 | 7:30 PM
H.M.S. Pinafore
Janiec Opera Company | Brevard Festival Orchestra | Emily Urbanek, conductor

GILBERT & SULLIVAN H.M.S. Pinafore

Saturday, July 25 | 2:00 PM
H.M.S. Pinafore
Janiec Opera Company | Brevard Festival Orchestra | Emily Urbanek, conductor

GILBERT & SULLIVAN H.M.S. Pinafore

Thursday, July 30 | 7:30 PM
An Evening of Lerner & Loewe
Janiec Opera Company

PARKER CONCERT HALL SUMMER SERIES:
All events at Parker Concert Hall

Monday, June 15 | 7:30 PM
An Evening of Classical Guitar

Tuesday, June 23 | 7:30 PM
Balourdet Quartet

Wednesday, June 24 | 7:30 PM
World of Schumann

Monday, June 29 | 7:30 PM
Beethoven's Ghost Trio

Wednesday, July 1 | 7:30 PM
Shostakovich Piano Quintet

Monday, July 6 | 7:30 PM
Imani Winds

Wednesday, July 8 | 7:30 PM
Mozart Piano Trio

Monday, July 13 | 7:30 PM
Shanghai Quartet

Tuesday, July 14 | 7:30 PM
Sir Stephen Hough in Recital

Wednesday, July 15 | 7:30 PM
Music of Five

Monday, July 20 | 7:30 PM
BMC Chamber Voices

Wednesday, July 22 | 7:30 PM
A Steinway Celebration

Monday, July 27 | 7:30 PM
Horszowski Piano Trio

Tuesday, July 28 | 7:00 PM
Piano Competition Finals

Wednesday, July 29 | 7:30 PM
The Last Round

BMC HEADLINERS:
All events at Whittington-Pfohl Auditorium

Saturday, May 30 | 7:30 PM
Bryan Sutton's NC Guitar Celebration

Thursday, June 11 | 7:30 PM
Branford Marsalis with Jazz@Brevard

Saturday, June 27 | 7:30 PM
Nathan Chester and The Old Souls Motown Revival

Tuesday, June 30 | 7:00 PM
Shannon Whitworth and Woody Platt with Orchestra

Saturday, July 11 | 7:30 PM
The Buena Vista Orchestra

Sunday, July 19 | 7:30 PM
An Evening With Jason Isbell

Saturday, August 15 | 7:30 PM
Béla Fleck's Blue Ridge Banjo Concert

Saturday, August 22 | 7:30 PM
Fiddle Forward with Casey Driessen

FREE COMMUNITY CONCERTS:
All events at Whittington-Pfohl Auditorium

Thursday, July 2 | 7:00 PM
Jan and Beattie Wood Concerto Competition Finals

Tuesday, July 7 | 7:30 PM
Just Brass

Tuesday, July 21 | 7:30 PM
Brevard Symphonic Winds

Sunday, July 26 | 7:30 PM
Supersonic

About Brevard Music Center
The Brevard Music Center (BMC) is one of the nation’s premier summer music training programs and festivals. Each summer, it welcomes nearly 1,000 gifted students of all ages, with a broad national reach and growing international participation. Under Keith Lockhart’s artistic direction, BMC presents over 100 public performances, including orchestra, opera, chamber music, jazz, bluegrass, and film with live orchestra. 

For nine decades, BMC has provided exceptional training for young musicians who study with principal players from major symphonies, GRAMMY-winning composers, and world-renowned conductors and soloists. Legendary artists such as Yo-Yo Ma, Yuja Wang, Itzhak Perlman, Wynton Marsalis, Joshua Bell, Renée Fleming, and Béla Fleck have performed on BMC’s stages, reinforcing its tradition of musical excellence. Beyond its celebrated summer festival, BMC’s Parker Concert Hall Series offers world-class performances year-round, enriching the local cultural landscape. Learn more at brevardmusic.org. 

Season Support
The 2026 Summer Festival Season is made possible in part through the generous support of Season Sponsors Jacquelyn and Bruce Rogow. The Legendary Artists Series is sponsored by Drs. Joanne and Tom Parker, and the BMC Presents Series Premier Sponsors are Maggi and Rick Swanson.

2026 BMC Summer Media Kit here.

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