National Philharmonic Announces 2024-2025 Season

Featuring:

An all-Rachmaninoff program to celebrate NatPhil’s 40^th Anniversary

Orchestral works by Ethel Smyth, Margaret Bonds, and Dmitri Shostakovich

Choral works by Giuseppe Verdi, Leonard Bernstein, Common and John Legend, Nkeiru Okoye, and Rollo Dilworth

Concerts presented in partnership with Cantate and The Washington Chorus

Three performances of Handel’s Messiah with Baltimore Choral Arts Society

New and returning guest artists and conductors

(NORTH BETHESDA, MD) — National Philharmonic (NatPhil) announces its 2024-2025 Season, which opens in September with an all-Rachmaninoff program to celebrate NatPhil’s 40^th Anniversary. The full season includes two orchestral concerts; two choral concerts presented in partnership with Cantate and The Washington Chorus (TWC); three performances of Handel’s Messiah; and the return of pianist Brian Ganz in recital. All season concerts will be held at The Music Center at Strathmore in North Bethesda, Maryland—the orchestra’s longstanding home in Montgomery County—with one performance of Handel’s Messiah also presented at Capital One Hall in Tysons, Virginia.

“NatPhil’s 2024-2025 Season is a celebration of the first 40 years of the orchestra, as well as an exciting look at the future of the organization and of classical music in the DMV,” said NatPhil President & CEO Jim Kelly. “We’re proud to present new and returning guest artists, stirring collaborations—including a new partnership with Cantate and the return of The Washington Chorus—and an exceptional assortment of orchestral and choral works.”

Concerts throughout 2024-2025 will be led exclusively by guest conductors, several of whom are new to the NatPhil stage. The Orchestra is also focusing the length of the season, with mainstage programming running from September 2024 through April 2025.

Kelly added, “We are thankful for four decades of leadership under Maestro Piotr Gajewski, the founder of our organization. His musical and civic contributions have been invaluable to our audiences and to Montgomery County as a whole. As we embark into this new era at NatPhil, we’re delighted to partner with six outstanding guest conductors, each presenting a program that highlights their unique talents and styles.”

Notable repertoire and guest artists in the newly announced season include:

• a 40^th Anniversary celebration concert conducted by Joseph Young and featuring piano soloists Daniil Trifonov, Sergei Babayan, and Oleg Volkov in some of Sergei Rachmaninoff’s most notable works: Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Piano Concerto No. 1, and Piano Concerto No. 3 (September 14, 2024)
• a performance of Giuseppe Verdi’s Messa da Requiem, presented as part of a new partnership with Cantate, the Tacoma Park-based choral organization, and conducted by Cantate Music Director and former NatPhil Associate Conductor Victoria Gau (November 23, 2024)
• a reunion with The Washington Chorus for Stand the Storm, conducted by TWC Artistic Director Eugene Rogers and featuring works by Leonard Bernstein (Chichester Psalms) and Nkeiru Okoye (Invitation to a Die-In), an arrangement of “Glory” (from the movie Selma) by Rogers, and the world premiere orchestration of Rollo Dilworth’s Weather: Stand the Storm (March 15, 2025)
  
  
• guest artists in their first appearance with NatPhil, including conductors Joseph Young, Anthony Blake Clark (Music Director of Baltimore Choral Arts Society), and Naima Burrs (who recently conducted NatPhil’s orchestra in concerts for Montgomery County second graders, presented in partnership with Strathmore and Montgomery County Public Schools); pianist Sergei Babayan; soprano Amber Monroe; tenor Rafael Moras; bass Zaikuan Song; mezzo soprano Monique Holmes-Spells; and baritone Damian Norfleet
• returning artists, including conductor Victoria Gau (Music Director of Cantate); pianists Daniil Trifonov, Oleg Volkov, and Brian Ganz; mezzo soprano Magdalena Wor; and the complete cast of Handel’s Messiah: soprano Aundi Marie Moore, mezzo soprano Lucia Bradford, tenor Norman Shankle, and baritone Jorell Williams.

National Philharmonic 2024-2025 Season Schedule:


Rachmaninoff Festival
Joseph Young, conductor
Sergei Babayan, piano
Daniil Trifonov, piano
Oleg Volkov, piano
September 14, 2024 at 7:30 p.m. at The Music Center at Strathmore

Sergei Rachmaninoff, Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini           
Oleg Volkov, piano

Sergei Rachmaninoff, Piano Concerto No. 1
Daniil Trifonov, piano

Sergei Rachmaninoff, Piano Concerto No. 3
Sergei Babayan, piano

This concert was made possible, in part, by generous financial support from Edward Maguire, Brad Clark, Cameron Beebe, and Jacqueline Mars. 

Verdi’s Requiem
Victoria Gau, conductor
Presented by National Philharmonic and Cantate
Amber Monroe, soprano
Magdalena Wor, mezzo soprano
Rafael Moras, tenor
Zaikuan Song, bass
November 23, 2024 at 7:30 p.m. at The Music Center at Strathmore

Guiseppe Verdi, Messa da Requiem

Handel’s Messiah with Baltimore Choral Arts Society
Anthony Blake Clark, conductor
Aundi Marie Moore, soprano
Lucia Bradford, mezzo soprano
Norman Shankle, tenor
Jorell Williams, baritone
December 21, 2024 at 7:30 p.m. and December 22, 2024 at 3 p.m. at The Music Center at Strathmore
December 23, 2024 at 7:30 p.m. at Capital One Hall

George Frideric Handel, Messiah

An Evening of Chopin with Brian Ganz
Brian Ganz, piano
February 28, 2025 at 7:30 p.m. at The Music Center at Strathmore

All Chopin. Programming to be announced.

Stand the Storm with The Washington Chorus
Eugene Rogers, conductor
Monique Holmes-Spells, mezzo soprano
Damian Norfleet, baritone
March 15, 2025 at 7:30 p.m. at The Music Center at Strathmore

Leonard Bernstein, Chichester Psalms
Monique Holmes-Spells, mezzo soprano

Nkeiru Okoye, Invitation to a Die-In
Damian Norfleet, baritone

John Stephens (John Legend), Lonnie Lynn (Common) and Che Smith arr. Eugene Rogers, “Glory” (from Selma)

Rollo Dilworth, Weather: Stand the Storm (world-premiere orchestration)

Shostakovich Symphony No. 5
Naima Burrs, conductor
April 5, 2025 at 7:30 p.m. at The Music Center at Strathmore

Ethel Smyth, Overture to The Boatswain’s Mate
Margaret Bonds, Montgomery Variations
Dmitri Shostakovich, Symphony No. 5

Programs, artists, dates, and times are subject to change.


Subscription and Ticket Information
Subscriptions and single tickets to National Philharmonic’s 2024-2025 Season will be on sale beginning July 15, 2024 at nationalphilharmonic.org.

About the National Philharmonic

Celebrated for showcasing world-renowned guest artists in time-honored symphonic masterpieces, National Philharmonic continuously strives to create remarkable educational opportunities in the community while promoting diversity and representation in classical music.

National Philharmonic is an accessible, enriching component in the Greater Washington D.C. Metropolitan Area, believing that music has the power to spark imagination and shape the world around us. As the only organization with a united orchestra and chorus in the region, over the years National Philharmonic has expanded its footprint beyond its home at Strathmore, with year-round masterclasses along with Summer String and Summer Chorale Institutes for youth, armed services programs, and partnerships with community organizations. In addition to these programs, National Philharmonic fosters a love of music in young people across the region by offering free admission to all children between the ages 7 to 17 years old.

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