BOSTON CIVIC SYMPHONY BEGINS ITS SECOND CENTURY
WITH THE FIRST OF FOUR CONCERTS DURING THE 2025-26 SEASON NOVEMBER 9 AT JORDAN HALL
(Boston, MA – October 30, 2025) — The Boston Civic Symphony launches its 101st season on Sunday, November 9, 2025, at Jordan Hall. Under the baton of Music Director Francisco Noya, the orchestra’s 2025–26 season features four concerts that continue its long-standing commitment to presenting beloved masterworks alongside significant contemporary compositions. Tickets and information for all Boston Civic Symphony performances are available at bostoncivicsymphony.org.
For more than a century, the Boston Civic Symphony has set itself apart from other community orchestras by bringing together exceptionally talented student musicians and accomplished amateur performers. On November 9, two former Civic musicians—both now members of the Boston Symphony Orchestra—return as soloists in Brahms’s Double Concerto for Violin and Cello. Sophie Wang, BSO Associate Concertmaster, and Mickey Katz, BSO cellist, each performed with Civic while students at the New England Conservatory of Music.
Maestro Noya will also lead the orchestra in Amanda Harberg’s Solis for Orchestra (2015) and Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 6, Pathétique, rounding out an inspiring program that bridges tradition and innovation.
The annual Family Holiday Concert on December 14 will be at the Boston Latin School Auditorium, continuing a Civic’s collaboration with the Boston Latin School Chorus, conducted by Ryan Snyder. The concert will open with George Chadwick’s Jubilee (from Symphony Sketches)and include Vivaldi’s Gloria (sung by the chorus), Russell Peck’s The Thrill of the Orchestra, selections from Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker, and more. The Family Holiday concert will also showcase the winner of Boston Civic Symphony’s Concerto
Competition For Youth Musicians. Cellist Hayden Ren, a senior at Newton North High will be the soloist for a performance of Dvorak’s Cello Concerto in B minor, op 104, mvt.1.
On March 28, the Boston Civic Symphony will perform Aaron Copland’s masterful Lincoln Portrait in honor of the 250th anniversary of the United States. Blending Copland’s quintessentially American sound with narration drawn from Abraham Lincoln’s writings and speeches, this powerful work invites reflection on shared ideals and the enduring strength of the American spirit. The program concludes with Mahler’s Symphony No. 5, a fitting companion piece that underscores the resilience of humanity and the optimism that shines even in challenging times.
The 101st Season will conclude on April 26th with a characteristically thoughtful and reflective pairing of Montgomery’s Hymn for Everyone, Britten’s Double Concerto for Violin and Viola, and Elgar’s Enigma Variations. Britten’s Double Concerto will feature the Grammy-nominated Ariana Kim on the violin and the BSO’s Daniel Kim on the viola.
About Boston Civic Symphony
Founded in 1924 by the late educator, conductor, and composer Joseph Wagner, the Boston Civic Symphony is one of Boston’s most respected musical organizations. At the time, Wagner was director of music in Boston public schools and had formed an all-high school orchestra of Boston students. Those musicians became the nucleus of the Boston Civic Symphony that performed during the 1924-25 season.
Over the past century, Civic has distinguished itself from other community classical music groups by building on Wagner’s model of engaging exceptionally skilled student musicians alongside classically trained amateur performers. Leonard Bernstein and Yo-Yo Ma are two notable soloists who performed with Civic, during their time as undergrads at Harvard.
This year’s soloists Sophie Wang and Mickey Katz among others have gone on to professional careers after playing with the orchestra. They include Boston Symphony Orchestra flutist James Pappoutsakis as well as Bryce Leafman who is currently the assistant principal timpanist for the San Francisco Symphony.
Boston Civic’s roster for the 101st season remains true to Wagner’s original vision. It is composed of talented pre-professionals pursuing advanced degrees in the Boston area, alongside classically trained amateur musicians from the Greater Boston area, many of whom have been members of the orchestra for many decades.
Music Director Francisco Noya is a prominent figure in the Boston and New England music scene, where he has earned a reputation as a versatile interpreter of symphonic and operatic literature. Noya began his professional career in his native Venezuela, as conductor of the Youth Orchestra of Valencia, one of the original ensembles of “El Sistema.” After earning advanced degrees in composition and conducting from Boston University, Noya was appointed to serve as assistant conductor of the Caracas Philharmonic and assistant to the music director of the Teatro Teresa Carreño, one of the most prestigious theaters in Latin America.
In addition to serving as music director of the Empire State Youth Orchestra in Albany, New York for ten seasons, Noya has appeared as guest conductor of the Boston Symphony, Boston Pops, Baltimore, Nashville, San Antonio, and Omaha Symphony Orchestras, among others. He has been a member of the Conducting faculty at Berklee College of Music since 2001.
Boston Civic Symphony concerts for the 2025-26 season will take place on Sunday, November 9th at 3PM, Saturday, March 28th at 8PM, and Sunday, April 26th at 3PM, all at Jordan Hall. The Family Holiday Concert will take place at the Boston Latin School Auditorium 78 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston, MA on Sunday, December 14th at 3PM.
Tickets and information can be found at bostoncivicsymphony.org.