The San Francisco Symphony has announced the appointment of Manfred Honeck as Festival Director. The newly created position, will see Honeck begin in the 2028–29 season for a five-year term. In this position, Honeck will conceive and lead a new annual, multi-week Festival exploring universal elements of the human experience through innovative performance concepts of iconic works from the core {…}
The San Francisco Symphony has announced that Elim Chan will become the Orchestra’s next Music Director, beginning in September 2027. Chan will be the 13th Music Director in the San Francisco Symphony’s 115-year history when she takes the post in the 2027–28 season for an initial six-year term. Chan will join the San Francisco Symphony as Music Director Designate effective {…}
(Photo credit: Andrew Eccles) The San Francisco Symphony has announced its 2026–27 season, taking place September 8, 2026–June 27, 2027. Here are the vocal performances on offer. Conductor Santtu-Matias Rouvali leads soprano Renée Fleming in Richard Strauss’s “Four Last Songs,” alongside Strauss’s “Ein Heldenleben.” In connection with Fleming’s performances, the Symphony presents Music and the Mind, an evening of discussion {…}
(Image Source: Jenny Wong Official Website) The San Francisco Symphony has announced that Chorus Director Jenny Wong will continue her leadership of the San Francisco Symphony Chorus through the 2028–29 season. Wong joined the Symphony at the start of the 2023–24 season, becoming only the fourth Chorus Director in the ensemble’s 52-year history. In her role, she leads the annual {…}
The Musicians of the San Francisco Symphony have announced that the Orchestra has voted to approve a strike authorization, allowing for a labor action to take place in the near future if a new contract is not reached. The Musicians of the San Francisco Symphony have played for nearly a year without a long-term contract and despite their efforts to {…}
The San Francisco Symphony has announced its 2025-26 season. Here is a look at the vocal performances. Donald Runnicles conducts Alban Berg’s Seven Early Songs and Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 1. Irene Roberts is a soloist. Performance Dates: Sept. 26-28, 2025 Jane Glover conducts Händel’s “Messiah” with Heidi Stober, Jennifer Johnson Cano, Josh Lovell, and Will Liverman. Performance Dates: Dec. 5 {…}
In response to the devastating Los Angeles wildfires, the Musicians of the San Francisco Symphony, the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and the San Francisco Symphony are teaming up to present “SF Musicians for LA: A Benefit for Fire Relief.” Music Director of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and frequent the San Francisco Symphony guest conductor Edwin Outwater with {…}
After months of controversy, a donor has stepped into help the San Francisco Symphony and has finally reached an agreement with the American Guild of Musical Artists (AGMA) and the SF Symphony Chorus. Per the organization’s press release, the two-year agreement that maintains current compensation rates for 32 paid AGMA choristers during the 2024-25 and 2025-26 seasons was facilitated by {…}
(source: San Francisco Symphony Official Website) The American Guild of Musical Artists (AGMA) is speaking out against the San Francisco Symphony’s management for misleading patrons about the negotiations with the San Francisco Symphony Chorus. Per a press release, AGMA claims that it offered a one-time reduction in compensation back in September to settle the dispute and did all it could {…}
(source: San Francisco Symphony Official Website) UPDATE: “For background, on the evening of September 16, AGMA leadership and the AGMA members of the San Francisco Symphony Chorus voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike. The Choristers voted 100% in favor of the authorization. 98.1% of eligible members participated in the vote, and 81.1% of the unpaid singers from the Verdi Requiem Chorus have {…}
Vance George, Chorus Director Emeritus of the San Francisco Symphony, has written an open letter to Matt Spivey, the CEO of the ensemble, in response to proposed chorus budget cuts. In his letter, George, who served as conductor of the Chorus for 23 years and accepted two Grammy Awards and one Emmy Award on behalf of the ensemble, noted that {…}