Cleveland Repertory Orchestra Announces Expanded Four-Concert 2026-2027 Season

Fifth season opens September 12 with a commemoration of the 25th anniversary of September 11

CLEVELAND, June 2 — The Cleveland Repertory Orchestra (CRO) has announced its 2026-27 season, expanding from three concerts to four. Under the direction of founder and Music Director Matthew Salvaggio, the orchestra's fifth season opens September 12 with a commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks and concludes in April with a season finale centered on dance. All four concerts begin at 7:00 PM and admission is pay-what-you-will.

The season features an array of guest artists: Cuyahoga Community College East Campus President Todd Kitchen as narrator, clarinetist Benjamin Chen and bassoonist Arleigh Savage as duo soloists, and returning founding CRO member Juan Riveros as harp soloist. The season concludes with a finale showcasing the orchestra's principal clarinetist, Emilio Rosario. Programming features works by contemporary composers including Joseph Schwantner, Carlos Simon, Joan Tower, Jennifer Higdon, Jessie Montgomery, and Oscar Navarro alongside canonical works by Ravel, Strauss, Dvorák, and Beethoven.

"This season is about voices in conversation," said Salvaggio. "From Joseph Schwantner setting Martin Luther King's words for a 9/11 commemoration to Carlos Simon bringing African American folktales into the symphonic repertoire, each concert is a meeting point between musical traditions and the people who carry them forward."

The season opens with New Morning: Twenty-Five Years After September 11 on Saturday, September 12, 2026, at Cuyahoga Community College East Campus. Campus President Todd Kitchen will serve as narrator for Joseph Schwantner's New Morning for the World, a setting of texts by Martin Luther King Jr. The program also includes Charles Ives's The Unanswered Question, Howard Hanson's Elegy in Memory of Serge Koussevitzky, and Joan Tower's Made in America.

Tales: Three Folk Traditions follows on Saturday, November 7, 2026, at Federated Church in Chagrin Falls. Clarinetist Benjamin Chen and bassoonist Arleigh Savage join the orchestra for Richard Strauss's Duett-Concertino. The program also includes Maurice Ravel's Mother Goose Suite and Carlos Simon's Tales: A Folklore Symphony, a recent work drawing on African American folktales.

In February, the orchestra welcomes back founding CRO member Juan Riveros, now on the faculty of Michigan State University and a member of the Detroit Opera Orchestra. Homecoming takes place on Saturday, February 20, 2027, at First Congregational Church in Akron. Riveros will perform Jennifer Higdon's Harp Concerto, followed by Antonín Dvorák's Symphony No. 8.

The season concludes on Saturday, April 10, 2027, with Dance at Rocky River Presbyterian Church. CRO Principal Clarinetist Emilio Rosario will perform Oscar Navarro's Clarinet Concerto No. 2. The program also features Jessie Montgomery's Coincident Dances and Beethoven's Symphony No. 7.

The Cleveland Repertory Orchestra performs on a pay-what-you-will basis, with reservations available through clevelandrepertoryorchestra.org. Program books are digital and accessible by mobile device at each concert.

About the Cleveland Repertory Orchestra

Founded in 2021 by Music Director Matthew Salvaggio, the Cleveland Repertory Orchestra explores the full breadth of orchestral music, championing new works, rediscovering historically excluded voices, and reimagining the concert experience for today's audiences. Through inclusive programming, community partnerships, and free public performances, the CRO makes exceptional music accessible to all and fosters a more connected, equitable, and inspired Cleveland. Annual support comes from Cuyahoga Arts and Culture. For more information, visit clevelandrepertoryorchestra.org.

High resolution photos available at: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1W3uskwjJng_ZOb4HoH0x7cpkJWrREVce?usp=sharing