Season 18 Unleashed

Andrew Cleaver, director

WILSON Wizard of Oz Suite
WILLIAMS Selections from Sinatraland
RIDDLE I’ve Got You Under My Skin
VAN HEUSEN Come Fly with Me
RODGERS My Funny Valentine
GERSHWIN They Can’t Take That Away from Me
VAN HEUSEN All the Way

Sinatra & the Wonderful World of Oz: Big Band Meets the Yellow Brick Road opens the Space Coast Symphony Orchestra’s 18th Season with style, swing, and a whole lot of personality, featuring some of the finest jazz musicians in Florida. Two worlds meet in the best possible way — the wide-eyed wonder of The Wizard of Oz and the effortless cool of Frank Sinatra — brought to life by the Space Coast Symphony Jazz Orchestra under Andrew Cleaver. A vibrant suite from The Wizard of Oz sets the journey in motion with color, heart, and adventure, before the program slips into the smooth, unmistakable sound of the American songbook. Songs like I’ve Got You Under My Skin, Come Fly with Me, My Funny Valentine, They Can’t Take That Away from Me, and All the Way don’t just play — they glide, swing, and linger. With a dynamic guest vocalist and the full richness of live jazz orchestra, this opening concert feels like stepping into another world — one that’s a little more stylish, a little more magical, and impossible not to enjoy.

Charles G. Ellis, guest conductor
David Calhoun, guest soloist

MARSHALL  The Lost (David Calhoun, cello) (WORLD PREMIERE)
PISZCZEK Dedication and March (WORLD PREMIERE)
STAHL Solutions
DAUGHERTY  The Decoration Day Parade (WORLD PREMIERE)
DRAGON   America the Beautiful
LOWDEN  Armed Forces Salute
TICHELI Shenandoah
SPARKE  The Year of the Dragon
SOUSA Hands Across the Sea
SOUSA The Thunderer
SOUSA The Stars and Stripes Forever

Your Space Coast Symphony Winds, under the direction of Aaron Collins present America, Together, a free patriotic concert honoring service, sacrifice, and the heroes who make that freedom possible. At the heart of the program is the Armed Forces Salute — the reason we gather each year — as we recognize and celebrate the men and women of our military, past and present. The concert also includes patriotic favorites such as Shenandoah, along with marches by John Philip Sousa. Soprano Beth Green returns to perform with the winds on America the Beautiful, God Bless the USA, and more.

Three world premieres anchor the program: Christopher Marshall’s The Lost, performed by SCSO Principal Cellist David Calhoun, is a deeply personal reflection on memory, absence, and those we carry with us. R. Michael Daugherty’s The Decoration Day Parade draws inspiration from the origins of Memorial Day, while Mark Piszczek’s Dedication and March honors the legacy of Joseph Kreines. Florida composer Sonya Leonore Stahl returns with Solutions, a powerful work shaped by mystery, ritual, and bold cinematic sweep. Philip Sparke’s The Year of the Dragon rounds out the program and is one of the great showpieces in all of wind literature, allowing the wind ensemble a chance to show its virtuosity and power.

Guest Conductor Charles G. Ellis joins Aaron on the podium for this program of remembrance, gratitude, and community. America, Together is a chance to honor our heroes, gather as a community, and celebrate the music that brings us together.

Julian Bond, piano
Jennifer Royals, clarinet
Jordan Bicasan, vocalist

GERSHWIN An American in Paris
WARREN (ARR. HOLCOMBE) Forty Second Street
KANDER (ARR. HOLCOMBE) Cabaret
(ARR. HOLCOMBE) A Tribute to Judy Garland
SCHWANDT / ANDRÉ / KHAN / KAHN Dream a Little Dream of Me (Jordan Bicasan, vocals)
WALLER / BROOKS / RAZAF Ain’t Misbehavin’ (Jordan Bicasan, vocals)
LLOYD WEBBER Evita
JACOBS Grease
GERSHWIN Rhapsody in Blue (Julian Bond, piano)
BOND Rhapsody For a Blue Clarinet, by George! (Jennifer Royals, clarinet) (WORLD PREMIERE)

Lights Up on Broadway is a high-energy celebration of the songs, stories, and larger-than-life moments that define American musical theater. From the first note, your Space Coast Symphony Orchestra transforms the concert hall into Broadway itself — bold, colorful, and alive with character. At the heart of the program is Gershwin’s An American in Paris, presented with its newly restored film, where music and motion come together in a way that feels dazzlingly alive. That same spirit carries into Rhapsody in Blue with pianist Julian Bond, alongside the world premiere of Bond’s Rhapsody for a Blue Clarinet, by George!, performed by Jennifer Royals — a playful, virtuosic tribute that slips naturally into this world of glamour, rhythm, and theatrical flair. From the sparkle of 42nd Street and the bite of Cabaret to Evita, Grease, and a heartfelt tribute to Judy Garland, the program moves effortlessly between eras, styles, and emotions. The concert also features the vocal debut of Jordan Bicasan, a longtime violinist of the orchestra, stepping into the spotlight for the beloved American standards Dream a Little Dream of Me and Ain’t Misbehavin’, adding another layer of charm, warmth, and surprise to the celebration. Nostalgic, electric, and filled with unforgettable melodies, Lights Up on Broadway is Broadway at full power — immediate, glamorous, and impossible to sit still through.

Jacob Craig, piano

DUKAS  The Sorcerer’s Apprentice
FUCHS  Cloud Slant (U.S. PREMIERE)
MCDOWELL Piano Concerto No. 2 in D minor, Op. 23 (Jacob Craig, piano)
RESPIGHI Pines of Rome

Some music paints pictures. Some tells stories. Landscapes & Legends does both. This program moves from playful magic to sweeping emotion to full cinematic spectacle, showing just how far an orchestra can take you. Dukas’ The Sorcerer’s Apprentice kicks things off with chaos, humor, and unstoppable momentum — a story you can hear unfold in real time. The U.S. premiere of Kenneth Fuchs’ Cloud Slant shifts the focus inward, capturing something more fleeting — light, motion, atmosphere — music that feels like watching the sky change. Pianist Jacob Craig takes center stage in MacDowell’s Piano Concerto No. 2, a work that wears its heart on its sleeve, full of big melodies and real emotional pull. And then comes Pines of Rome — not just a piece, but an experience. Ancient streets, distant echoes, and a final moment that builds into something massive and unforgettable. This is the orchestra at full power — storytelling without words, and sound that stays with you long after the last note.

Mary Anne Kruger, soprano
Kate Whitworth, soprano
Sarah Purser, mezzo-soprano
Samantha Peterson, mezzo-soprano
Bryan Hayes, tenor
Kristopher Cleto, tenor
Andrew Lejeune, baritone
Stephen Mumbert, bass
Robert Chambers, trumpet

HUMMEL Trumpet Concerto in E major (Robert Chambers, trumpet)
SULLIVAN (ARR. COLLINS) Overture: An Overture in Which Appear Pirates, Pinafores, Gondoliers, and a Number of Other Highly Respectable Absurdities
SULLIVAN “Three Little Maids from School Are We” from The Mikado
SULLIVAN “A Wand’ring Minstrel I” from The Mikado
SULLIVAN “My Object All Sublime” from The Mikado
SULLIVAN “Mi-ya Sa-ma” from The Mikado
SULLIVAN “The Sun Whose Rays Are All Ablaze” from The Mikado
SULLIVAN “With Cat-Like Tread” from The Pirates of Penzance
SULLIVAN “I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major-General” from The Pirates of Penzance
SULLIVAN “Poor Wand’ring One” from The Pirates of Penzance
SULLIVAN “Oh, Is There Not One Maiden Breast” from The Pirates of Penzance
SULLIVAN “He Is an Englishman” from H.M.S. Pinafore
SULLIVAN “I Am the Captain of the Pinafore” from H.M.S. Pinafore
SULLIVAN “A Simple Sailor Lowly Born” from H.M.S. Pinafore
SULLIVAN “Love Is a Plaintive Song” from Patience
SULLIVAN “When I Go Out of Door” from Patience
SULLIVAN “Tripping Hither, Tripping Thither” from Iolanthe
SULLIVAN “When Britain Really Ruled the Waves” from Iolanthe
SULLIVAN “Loudly Let the Trumpet Bray” from Iolanthe
SULLIVAN “Take a Pair of Sparkling Eyes” from The Gondoliers
SULLIVAN “Were I Thy Bride” from The Yeomen of the Guard
SULLIVAN “Tit-Willow” from The Mikado

Gilbert & Sullivan Unbuttoned is a brisk, glittering, and gloriously topsy-turvy entertainment in which pirates parade, maidens flutter, captains bluster, baritones patter at perilous speed, and no one in possession of rank, dignity, or self-importance remains entirely safe for very long. Your Space Coast Symphony Orchestra dashes through a sparkling assortment of favorites from The Mikado, The Pirates of Penzance, H.M.S. Pinafore, Patience, Iolanthe, The Yeomen of the Guard, and The Gondoliers, where wit is razor-sharp, melody is endlessly irresistible, and satire arrives dressed in the most charming music imaginable. Featured guest artists Mary Anne Kruger, Sarah Purser, Kit Cleto, Bryan Hayes, Andrew Lejeune and Stephen Mumbert, with additional soloists to be announced, lead a nimble cast of singers who serve as both soloists and chorus, tumbling from the bright sparkle of Three Little Maids from School Are We and the breathless brilliance of I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major-General to the noble sentiment of He Is an Englishman and the deliciously stealthy menace of With Cat-Like Tread. As though this cheerful nonsense were not already abundance enough, trumpeter Robert Chambers joins the festivities for Hummel’s Trumpet Concerto in E major, a dazzling showpiece of elegance, agility, and brilliance that slips into the proceedings as neatly as a perfectly tied cravat. Light-footed, sharp-tongued, and unreasonably tuneful, Gilbert & Sullivan Unbuttoned promises an evening of merriment, mischief, and magnificent musical delight.

WILT Imagined Adventures Suite (WORLD PREMIERE)

I. Running on Rooftops
II. AutoBonn
III. March of the West River

POUPEL Childhood Memories (Persian Suite) (WORLD PREMIERE)
CONTI “Gonna Fly Now” from Rocky
WILLIAMS Jurassic Park Suite
WILLIAMS Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
SILVESTRI Back to the Future
POWELL “Test Drive” from How to Train Your Dragon
POUPEL Foroud, Overture for a Tragic Hero (WORLD PREMIERE)
SILVESTRI The Avengers (Main Theme)

Some stories stay with you because of what you saw. Others because of what you heard. Heroes of the Silver Screen brings both together in a program that moves from childhood wonder to full-scale cinematic adventure. New music stands alongside beloved scores, with world premieres by Farhad Poupel that explore memory, identity, courage, and loss — music that feels personal while still epic in scope. Kevin Wilt’s Imagined Adventures Suite races forward with pure energy, capturing the feeling of a story unfolding in real time. Then come the moments you know: the drive of Rocky, the awe of Jurassic Park, the magic of Harry Potter, the rush of Back to the Future, the exhilaration of How to Train Your Dragon, and the full heroic force of The Avengers. This is music that built worlds — and now it fills the room. Big, emotional, and completely immersive, this is a concert that reminds you why stories matter.

Once upon a time, in a world not so far from our own, there was a castle that only appeared when the air was just right — when the clouds leaned low, when the moon felt brave, and when the wind carried the faintest hint of music. Most people walked past the hillside and never noticed a thing. But a few did. The ones who listened closely. The ones who still believed that stories can open doors. At the foot of the path, Kevin Wilt’s Imagined Adventures Suite sets the journey in motion — racing across rooftops, darting through dazzling machines, and marching toward distant horizons with all the thrill of a story just beginning. Then, as the path climbs higher, Farhad Poupel’s Childhood Memories (Persian Suite) unfolds like a treasured storybook — scenes of distant places, bright colors, and memories that glow like lantern light. And then…the gates swing wide. Beyond them waits the wonder of Welcome to Jurassic Park — towering, majestic, and filled with awe. Turn the page and you’re suddenly in a candlelit hall where magic is real and every staircase has a secret: music from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone shimmers with spells, friendship, and daring. From there the adventure grows even larger, as heroes rise with the power of The Avengers and dragons soar through the sky in the exhilarating “Test Drive” from How to Train Your Dragon. But the heart of the tale is the one whispered about in every corridor of the castle: Foroud. In Farhad Poupel’s Foroud, Overture for a Tragic Hero, a hero steps forward — not perfect, not fearless, but brave in the way that matters most. The music becomes a legend: a song of courage, loss, and the kind of hope that refuses to disappear. Performed especially for kindergarten and first-grade students in Vero Beach, with young listeners arriving by school bus to experience the magic of live orchestra for the very first time, Foroud and the Song of the Castle is a place where stories open doors, heroes come alive, and the orchestra doesn’t just play music… it tells a story.

Evgeny Komarnitskiy, violin
David Calhoun, cello

PERTTU Appalachian Vistas
BRAHMS Double Concerto in A minor, Op. 102
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 7 in A, Op. 92

Beethoven’s Seventh brings together sweeping landscape, lyrical beauty, and exhilarating symphonic energy in a program that moves from reflection to pure rhythmic drive. This is a program about momentum — music that begins in quiet focus and builds into something unstoppable. Daniel Perttu’s Appalachian Vistas draws on real American folk songs, reshaping melodies that feel both ancient and immediate into something vivid and alive. At the center, Brahms’ Double Concerto becomes a true conversation, with violinist Evgeny Komarnitskiy and cellist David Calhoun playing off one another in music that feels both intimate and powerful. And then there is Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony — pure motion: boisterous, intense, energetic, and full of unforgettable melody. It is one of the greatest works ever written.

Emmet Cahill, guest artist

Christmas with Emmet Cahill is a Limited Edition holiday event built around one of the season’s most beloved guest artists. Known around the world for his radiant voice, commanding stage presence, and years as a principal singer with Celtic Thunder, Irish tenor Emmet Cahill returns to Your Space Coast Symphony Orchestra for a concert filled with beauty, warmth, and unmistakable star power. A familiar favorite with SCSO audiences, Cahill has a rare gift for making even the largest hall feel personal, bringing both grandeur and intimacy to every song he sings. The program moves effortlessly between sacred masterworks and cherished holiday favorites, from O Come, O Come Emmanuel, Ave Maria, O Holy Night, and The Holy City to I’ll Be Home for Christmas, Winter Wonderland, and The Christmas Song. The orchestra and chorus surround these melodies with rich, luminous sound, while touches of Ireland — including the haunting Wexford Carol — add something especially personal and unforgettable. Elegant, heartfelt, and filled with the glow of the season, Christmas with Emmet Cahill is more than a holiday concert — it is a special event, and one of the season’s true highlights.

ELLINGTON / STRAYHORN The Nutcracker Suite
GOODMAN / HAMPTON Winter Wonderland
MARKS Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
BERLIN White Christmas
TORMÉ The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)
ANDERSON Sleigh Ride
ELLINGTON Satin Doll
STRAYHORN Take the “A” Train

Holiday music, but with a groove. Jazz the Halls takes the familiar sounds of the season and gives them a fresh, swinging edge, led by your Space Coast Symphony Jazz Orchestra under the direction of Andrew Cleaver. At the center is Duke Ellington’s legendary reimagining of The Nutcracker, a bold and brilliant transformation that turns Tchaikovsky’s classic into something entirely new — playful, stylish, and unmistakably jazz. Around it, holiday favorites like Winter Wonderland, White Christmas, and The Christmas Song shine with new color, while classics like Satin Doll and Take the “A” Train bring that unmistakable big band energy. This isn’t background music — it’s alive, vibrant, and full of personality. It feels less like a concert and more like the best holiday party you’ve been to in years.

HANDEL The Messiah

Feel the season ignite in a blaze of sound as your Space Coast Symphony Orchestra presents the 19th Annual Messiah Sing-Along.  The Messiah Sing-Along turns a concert into something shared. This is Handel’s Messiah not as something you sit back and observe, but something you step into — where the audience becomes part of the sound. Voices rise together across the hall, from seasoned singers to those trying it for the first time, all joining with the orchestra and soloists to bring this music to life. From For Unto Us a Child Is Born to And the Glory of the Lord, and finally the Hallelujah Chorus, the experience builds into something larger than any one performer. You can sing every note or simply listen — either way, you’re part of it. It’s joyful, powerful, and completely unique — a FREE tradition that feels new every time.

Michelle Knight, soprano
Cesar De La Rosa tenor

LLOYD WEBBER Masquerade from “The Phantom of the Opera”
SONDHEIM Johanna (Act II) from “Sweeney Todd”
LLOYD WEBBER Love Changes Everything from “Aspects of Love”
SONDHEIM Send in the Clowns from “A Little Night Music”
LLOYD WEBBER All I Ask of You from “The Phantom of the Opera”
SONDHEIM Sweeney Todd Sequence from “Sweeney Todd”
LLOYD WEBBER Tell Me on a Sunday from “Song & Dance”
LLOYD WEBBER Starlight Sequence from “Starlight Express”
SONDHEIM Finishing the Hat from “Sunday in the Park with George”
LLOYD WEBBER As If We Never Said Goodbye from “Sunset Boulevard”
SONDHEIM No One Is Alone from “Into the Woods”
LLOYD WEBBER Beneath a Moonless Sky from “Love Never Dies”
SONDHEIM Children Will Listen from “Into the Woods”
LLOYD WEBBER And the Money Kept Rolling In (And Out) from “Evita”

Two composers. Two completely different worlds. One unforgettable program. Music of the Night brings together the sweeping romanticism of Andrew Lloyd Webber and the sharp, searching brilliance of Stephen Sondheim in a program that moves effortlessly between spectacle and intimacy. Soprano Michelle Knight and tenor Cesar De La Rosa carry the story, shifting from the grandeur of The Phantom of the Opera and Sunset Boulevard to the psychological depth of Sweeney Todd and Into the Woods. Songs like All I Ask of You, Send in the Clowns, and As If We Never Said Goodbye sit alongside lesser-known gems that reveal just how deep these composers go. This isn’t just a collection of songs — it’s a conversation between two giants, full of contrast, connection, and unforgettable moments.

Evgeny Komarnitskiy, violin

THOMAS Come Sunday
ELLINGTON Three Black Kings
MARSALIS Violin Concerto in D Major (Evgeny Komarnitskiy, violin)

American Masters brings together three distinct voices in a program built on rhythm, storytelling, and unmistakable character. Omar Thomas’ Come Sunday opens with warmth and groove in a two-part journey rooted in the sound and spirit of Black worship, moving from reflection to full, joyful release. Duke Ellington’s Three Black Kings follows with swagger, soul, and a profound sense of history — a brass-forward salute that places Martin Luther King Jr. alongside the biblical kings Balthazar and Solomon, honoring leadership, resilience, and legacy in music that blends jazz, gospel, and orchestral grandeur. At the heart of the program is Wynton Marsalis’ Violin Concerto in D major, performed by Evgeny Komarnitskiy, a bold and imaginative work that moves from drama and urban tension to blues inflection, theatrical wit, and exuberant dance. From the swirling energy of its opening pages to the off-kilter New Orleans character of the Rondo Burlesque, the languid blue notes of the Blues, and the propulsive joy of the final Hootenanny, the concerto is rich with rhythmic vitality, cultural memory, and unmistakable American character.  This truly is a celebration of American music at its most expressive, individual, and alive.

Melissa Whitworth, soprano
Katherine Stenzel Whitworth, soprano
Kristoffer Cleto, tenor
Brandon Martin, tenor
Bryan Hayes, tenor
Andrew Lejeune, baritone

LOESSER Guys and Dolls

Bright lights, big personalities, and one of the greatest scores ever written — Guys and Dolls in Concert brings Broadway’s most charming characters to life with full orchestra and outstanding vocal soloists. Set in a stylized New York filled with gamblers, dreamers, and unlikely love stories, the show moves quickly from laugh-out-loud moments to genuine heart. Nathan Detroit, Adelaide, Sky Masterson, and Sarah Brown pull you into a world that feels larger than life, but instantly familiar. And then there’s the music — Luck Be a Lady, Sit Down, You’re Rockin’ the Boat, A Bushel and a Peck — one unforgettable number after another. Presented in concert, the score takes center stage, revealing just how rich, clever, and timeless it really is. This is Broadway at its most fun — smart, stylish, and impossible not to love.

Ilana Zaks, violin

BORODIN Polovtsian Dances
PROKOFIEV Violin Concerto No. 1 (Ilana Zaks, violin)
MARSHALL Te Rerenga
MARSHALL Presence (WORLD PREMIERE)
ELGAR Enigma Variations

Fire, Song & Spirit moves from raw energy to something deeply personal, bringing together music that hits fast, lingers, and stays with you. Borodin’s Polovtsian Dances open with bold rhythm and striking color, launching the program with undeniable force. Violinist Ilana Zaks takes the spotlight in Prokofiev’s Violin Concerto No. 1, a piece that shifts between dream and brilliance — delicate one moment, electric the next. Two works by Christopher Marshall bring the center inward. The world premiere of Presence, written in memory of John Endemann, offers a quiet, powerful reflection on loss and the feeling that someone never truly leaves. Te Rerenga follows, drawing on Māori tradition and natural sound to create something atmospheric, spiritual, and deeply human. The program closes with Elgar’s Enigma Variations, a series of musical portraits filled with personality, warmth, and one of the most moving finales in the repertoire. This is music that moves — physically, emotionally, and completely.

Tesia Kwarteng, soprano
Charles G. Ellis, guest conductor

WILLIAMS (ARR.) The Star-Spangled Banner
WILLIAMS American Journey
WILLIAMS Seven for Luck (Tesia Kwarteng, soprano) (SE U.S PREMIERE)
WILLIAMS  The Mission Theme (Theme for NBC Nightly News)
WILLIAMS Born on the Fourth of July
WILLIAMS The Cowboys Overture
WILLIAMS Summon the Heroes
WILLIAMS The Patriot
WILLIAMS March from 1941
PISZCZEK The Song of Arion (WORLD PREMIERE)

John Williams’ America brings together music that has come to define how we hear our country — bold, reflective, heroic, and deeply human. From the sweeping optimism of American Journey to the familiarity of The Mission Theme and the emotional weight of Born on the Fourth of July, the program moves across a wide emotional landscape. Soprano Tesia Kwarteng takes the stage in the Southeast U.S. premiere of Seven for Luck, a deeply expressive song cycle that traces the arc of a life with honesty and beauty. Familiar favorites like The Cowboys Overture, Summon the Heroes, The Patriot, and the spirited March from 1941 bring energy and scale, while the world premiere of The Song of Arion shines a special spotlight on Mark Piszczek, a longtime SCSO collaborator whose music has become a beloved part of the orchestra’s artistic life. Rooted in myth, lyricism, and vivid thematic writing, The Song of Arion is a natural companion to the music of John Williams — expansive, cinematic, and full of story. In the second half, more than fifty student musicians join the orchestra on stage in a thrilling side-by-side performance, turning the concert into something even bigger — a shared experience across generations. This is a celebration of music, community, and the sound of America itself.