2021 Season

20/21 Season CMS Front Row National Subscriber Benefits Cruise of Lights®Laguna Beach Music Festival Concert Information Venue Information

2021 Spring Programming

The Spring season features brand new programming, as well as updates to existing programming. Updates have been made to the existing calendar of events, as all concerts will now be livestreamed from their intended venues, and a decision will be made regarding an in-person option two to three weeks prior to a performance, contingent on guidance from public health and safety officials. Included in this line up is the free, multi-day Triumph Over Adversity Festival, which has been moved from its original fall dates to the spring.

Triumph Over Adversity Festival | February 17-21, 2021

A cornerstone of the Philharmonic Society’s programming, the Triumph Over Adversity Festival—curated by musicians and brothers Anthony and Demarre McGill—is a free, multi-day virtual series of concerts and educational and community outreach offerings advocating for social change on and beyond classical music’s stages. Spotlighting musicians as well as composers from marginalized communities, concerts will feature works by composers such as Gabriela Lena Frank, Valerie Coleman, and Adolphus Hailstork, including works specifically commissioned for the McGill brothers.

Artistic Directors: Anthony McGill, clarinet & Demarre McGill, flute

Winner of the 2020 Avery Fisher Prize, clarinetist Anthony McGill is one of classical music’s most recognizable and brilliantly multifaceted figures. He serves as the principal clarinet of the New York Philharmonic — that orchestra’s first African-American principal player — and maintains a dynamic international solo and chamber music career. He also serves as an ardent advocate for helping music education reach underserved communities and for addressing issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion in classical music.

The elder of the two brothers, flutist Demarre McGill, has gained international recognition as a soloist, recitalist, chamber and orchestral musician. Winner of an Avery Fisher Career Grant and the Sphinx Medal of Excellence, he currently serves as the principal flute of the Seattle Symphony. As an educator, Demarre is Associate Professor of Flute at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, and has taught and presented master classes in South Africa, Korea, Japan, Quebec and throughout the United States.

Spring 2021 Programming

It is our intent to resume live performances in 2021 contingent upon approval from public health and safety officials. For those not ready to return to live in-person performances, virtual viewing options will continue to be available for all performances, and in the event that in-person concerts cannot take place, we will be prepared to transition back to virtual performances. The updated Spring 2021 programming is as follows:

		Smetana Trio Tuesday, March 2, 2021 Virtual Performance			George Li, piano Thursday, March 4, 2021 Virtual Performance
		Brooklyn Rider Thursday, March 11, 2021 Virtual Performance			Yefim Bronfman, piano Sunday, March 21, 2021 Virtual Performance
		Astor Piazzolla at 100: A Musical Portrait Tuesday, April 6, 2021 Virtual Performance			Alisa Weilerstein, cello & Inon Barnatan, piano Thursday, April 8, 2021 Virtual Performance
		Brentano Quartet Friday, April 9, 2021 Virtual Performance			Pinchas Zukerman, violin and Amanda Forsyth, cello Wednesday, April 21, 2021 Virtual Performance
		Jean-Yves Thibaudet, piano Saturday, April 24, 2021 Virtual Performance			Laguna Beach Music Festival feat. Conrad Tao, piano May 12-16, 2021 Laguna Beach
		Danish String Quartet Sunday, May 16, 2021 Virtual Performance			Sergio Assad, Clarice Assad, and Third Coast Percussion Friday, May 28, 2021 Virtual Performance
		Augustin Hadelich, violin & Orion Weiss, piano Monday, June 14, 2021 Virtual Performance			Renée Fleming, soprano Thursday, June 17, 2021 Virtual Performance

Season Supporters

The Philharmonic Society’s 2020-21 season is made possible through the generous support of:

Donna L. Kendall and the Donna L. Kendall Foundation

Anonymous

Howard and Judith Jelinek

The Segerstrom Foundation

Sam and Lyndie Ersan

Additional support is provided by:

The Ann and Gordon Getty Foundation

Anonymous

The Colburn Foundation

Crean Foundation

Dea Stanuszek

Douglas H. and Deirdre Smith

Gail and Robert Sebring

The Isidore & Penny Myers Foundation

National Endowment for the Arts

Steven M. Sorenson MD and the IBEX Foundation

U.S. Bank

More Information

For more information on precautionary measures being taken at our venues, visit:

Segerstrom Center for the Arts

Irvine Barclay Theatre

For more information on COVID-19 and the latest recommendations from the World Health Organization, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Orange County Healthy Care Agency, visit:

World Health Organization (WHO)

U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Orange County Health Care Agency

Support the Philharmonic Society of Orange County

Many of you have expressed concern about the financial impact of cancellations on the Philharmonic Society of Orange County. We invite you to show your support by making a donation to continue supporting world-class music and youth music education programs in our community.