We Speak Arts
The Florida Orchestra’s Fall Lineup Brings Pops in the Park, ‘John Williams @ 95’ and More to Tampa Bay
The Florida Orchestra has kicked off its fall lineup, bringing a run of concerts to St. Petersburg, Tampa and Clearwater under Music Director Michael Francis — headlined by one of Tampa Bay’s most-loved traditions, the free Raymond James Pops in the Park.
Pops in the Park returns to Vinoy Park on Saturday, October 24, with festivities starting at 5 p.m. and the concert at 7 p.m. Resident Conductor Chelsea Gallo leads a program of blockbuster movie music, Broadway favorites and classical hits — and even picks up a guitar for an orchestral rendition of Garth Brooks’ “Friends in Low Places” with guest soloist Brandon Martin. The evening opens with the St. Petersburg Community Band and the Master Chorale of Tampa Bay’s Big Sing, and closes with a crowd sing-along of Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy.” The orchestra is partnering with local education foundations to collect school supplies and with Metropolitan Ministries to collect non-perishable food.
Also ahead: John Williams @ 95, celebrating the iconic film scores of John Williams; Ginastera’s Harp Concerto on November 6–8 at the Straz Center, Mahaffey Theater and Ruth Eckerd Hall, led by Carlos Miguel Prieto in a program of bold sounds from across the Latin world; and The Blue Danube & Beyond on November 20–21, a Viennese evening of Strauss waltzes and the Der Rosenkavalier Suite.
As always, kids and teens ages 5–18 get in free to all Masterworks concerts with a paying adult through Classical Kids tickets. Details at floridaorchestra.org.
WQXR and Carnegie Hall have announced the lineup for the 2026–27 season of Carnegie Hall Live, the broadcast series that brings performances from the legendary New York venue to audiences nationwide and around the world. Now in its 16th season, the series airs live on WQXR-FM and streams at WQXR.org and CarnegieHall.org, with broadcasts also distributed to public radio stations across the country.
The season opened on October 9 with the Berliner Philharmoniker, conducted by Kirill Petrenko, joined by pianist Víkingur Ólafsson in a program of Brahms and Strauss — part of the orchestra’s four-concert Carnegie Hall residency that launched the Hall’s 2026–27 season.
Among the season’s highlights, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s performs an all-Berlioz program on November 5, 2026, led by Louis Langrée and starring tenor Benjamin Bernheim in a rare New York appearance, pairing Les nuits d’été with the Symphonie fantastique. On January 19, 2027, Franz Welser-Möst conducts The Cleveland Orchestra and the Cleveland Orchestra Chorus in Beethoven’s Missa solemnis, with soloists Golda Schultz, Taylor Raven, Julian Prégardien, and Anthony Robin Schneider.
The series also carries performances by the Vienna Philharmonic and The Philadelphia Orchestra as part of Carnegie Hall’s season-long Mahler symphony cycle led by Yannick Nézet-Séguin, alongside chamber music programs spotlighting Beethoven and Brahms.
Carnegie Hall Live is hosted by WNYC and WQXR’s John Schaefer, with guest hosts Elliott Forrest and Paul Cavalconte. The series is produced by WQXR in partnership with Carnegie Hall and American Public Media. For the full broadcast schedule, visit carnegiehall.org.
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