TMF Orchestra Series

Renowned conductors lead the Festival Orchestra in exciting performances of the cornerstones of the orchestral repertoire. Please note that programs and artists are subject to change.
Tickets: $30 – general admission / $15 – student/senior/UH alumni/UH faculty

Festival Orchestra 1

Saturday, June 10, 2023, Moores Opera House, University of Houston

6:30 - 7:20 p.m., Moores Opera House Lobby
Pre-concert performance by members of Virtuosi of Houston

6:30 - 7:10 p.m., MSM Room 108
Settling the Score: Pre-concert lecture with Dr. Andrew Davis

7:30 p.m., Moores Opera House
Festival Orchestra
Franz Anton Krager, conductor
Vadym Kholodenko, piano soloist

ARTISTS

• Franz Anton Krager, conductor

  American born and trained conductor, Franz Anton Krager, has made his artistic presence felt both at home and abroad with performance engagements in some of the world's most celebrated concert halls and musical centers. Learn more

•   Vadym Kholodenko, piano soloist
  

  Vadym Kholodenko is fast building a reputation as one of the most musically dynamic technically gifted performers of the new generation of pianists, praised by the Philadelphia Enquirer in his performance of Tchaikovsky with the Philadelphia Orchestra for “his absorbing melodic shading [and] glittering passage work”. Winner of the 2013 Gold Medal at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, Kholodenko has begun to forge an international career throughout Europe, Asia and North America to great critical acclaim. Previous awards include First Prize at the 2011 Schubert Piano Competition in Dortmund, First Prize at the 2010 Sendai Piano Competition in Japan and the Grand Prix at the Maria Callas Competition in Athens.  Learn more

Festival Orchestra 2

Saturday, June 17, 2023, Moores Opera House, University of Houston  

6:30 - 7:20 p.m., Moores Opera House Lobby 
Pre-concert performance by members of Virtuosi of Houston 

6:30 - 7:10 p.m., MSM Room 108 
Settling the Score: Pre-concert lecture with Dr. Andrew Davis 

7:30 p.m., Moores Opera House 
Festival Orchestra
Gerard Schwarz, conductor

ARTIST

•   Gerard Schwarz, conductor
  

  Internationally recognized for his moving performances, innovative programming and extensive catalogue of recordings, American conductor Gerard Schwarz serves as Music Director of the All-Star Orchestra, Eastern Music Festival, Palm Beach Symphony, and Mozart Orchestra of New York and is Conductor Laureate of the Seattle Symphony and Conductor Emeritus of the Mostly Mozart Festival. He holds the position of Distinguished Professor of Music; Conducting and Orchestral Studies of the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami and Music Director of the Frost Symphony Orchestra. Schwarz is a renowned interpreter of 19th century German, Austrian and Russian repertoire, in addition to his noted work with contemporary American composers.  Learn more. 

Festival Orchestra 3

Saturday, June 24, 2022, Moores Opera House, University of Houston 

6:30 - 7:20 p.m., Moores Opera House Lobby
Pre-concert performance by members of Virtuosi of Houston

6:30 - 7:10 p.m., MSM Room 108
Settling the Score: Pre-concert lecture with Dr. Andrew Davis

7:30 p.m., Moores Opera House
Festival Orchestra
Andrew Grams, conductor
Winner, 2023 Cynthia Woods Mitchell Young Artist Competition

 ARTISTS

• Andrew Grams, conductor
  • With a unique combination of intensity, enthusiasm and technical clarity, American conductor Andrew Grams has steadily built a reputation for his dynamic concerts, ability to connect with audiences, and long-term orchestrabuilding. He’s the winner of 2015 Conductor of the Year from the Illinois Council of Orchestras and has led orchestrasthroughout the United States including the Chicago Symphony, Detroit Symphony, National Symphony Orchestra, St. Louis Symphony, Cincinnati Symphony, Baltimore Symphony, Philadelphia Orchestra, Dallas Symphony, and the Houston Symphony. Andrew Grams became music director of the Elgin Symphony Orchestra after an international search in 2013 and recently concluded his tenure there after 8 seasons. His charismatic conducting and easy accessibility have made him a favorite of Elgin Symphony audiences. Learn more.

Berlioz: Overture to Le corsaire

Copland: Symphony No. 3