(Credit: Grant Leighton)

On August 27, The Handel and Haydn Society will celebrate the return of the Boston arts scene with a free concert at the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreations Memorial Hatch Shell.

The concert will showcase Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 and will feature four vocal soloists along with the H+H Chorus and members of the H+H Youth Choruses.

In a statement, David Snead, president and CEO of the Handel and Haydn Society said, “For the past sixteen months, we have not been able to do what arts organizations do best – bring people together around a common experience, one they can appreciate as an individual but also an experience they can revel in, share with one another, debate about and be inspired by. On August 27th, we want to make up for the time we’ve lost, bringing the Boston community together to celebrate the return of live performing arts to Boston.”

The concert will see the US premiere of a new text to “Ode to Joy” by former US Poet Laureate and Massachusetts native Tracy K. Smith, and Marin Alsop will conduct the performance.

The orchestra has announced a rain date for August 28, 2021, at 7:00 PM at the Hatch Shell.