Day: August 21, 2025

The Alexander Paley Music Festival, the concert series that the Moldavan-born pianist has staged in Richmond since 1998, will return for three concerts, Jan. 9-11, at St. Luke Lutheran Church, 7757 Chippenham Parkway.

Paley and his spouse and piano 4-hands partner, Peiwen Chen, will be joined by violinist Daisuke Yamamoto, concertmaster of the Richmond Symphony, and Neal Cary, the orchestra’s principal cellist, in programs of Russian keyboard and chamber music, including works by Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff, Prokofiev, Anton Arensky and Anton Rubinstein.

Donations of $20 per concert are requested.

For more information, call (804) 665-9516 or visit http://paleymusicfestival.org

Dates, artists and programs for this season’s festival:

Jan. 9 (7:30 p.m.)
Arensky: Piano Trio No. 1 in D minor, Op. 32
Alexander Paley, piano
Daisuke Yamamoto, violin
Neal Cary, cello
Tchaikovsky: “Meditation,” Op. 42, No. 1
Tchaikovsky: Melody, Op. 42, No. 3
Tchaikovsky: “Serenade mélancholique,” Op. 26
Tchaikovsky: “Valse Scherzo,” Op. 34
Daisuke Yamamoto, violin
Alexander Paley, piano
Rachmaninoff: “Trio élégiaque” No. 1 in G minor
Alexander Paley, piano
Daisuke Yamamoto, violin
Neal Cary, cello
Rubinstein: “Bal costumé” (“Costume Ball”), Op. 103 – Part 1
Alexander Paley & Peiwen Chen, piano 4-hands

Jan. 10 (7:30 p.m.)
Prokofiev: Violin Sonata No. 1 in F minor, Op. 80
Daisuke Yamamoto, violin
Alexander Paley, piano
Prokofiev: Cello Sonata in C major, Op. 119
Neal Cary, cello
Alexander Paley, piano
Rubinstein: Sonata in D major, Op. 89
Alexander Paley & Peiwen Chen, piano 4-hands

Jan. 11 (3 p.m.)
Rubinstein: “Bal costumé” (“Costume Ball”), Op. 103 – Part 2
Alexander Paley & Peiwen Chen, piano 4-hands
Prokofiev: Sonata No. 3 in A minor, Op. 28
Rubinstein: Melody in F major, Op. 3, No. 1
Rubinstein: “Valse-Caprice” in E flat major
Alexander Paley, piano

In its 2025-26 season, the Richmond Philharmonic will present three classical and two pops programs, focusing on American music as the US heads toward the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.

Although the orchestra’s classical season is framed by two major symphonies by Europeans – Beethoven’s “Eroica” (No. 3 in E flat major) and Dvořák’s “New World” (No. 9 in E minor), the latter composed in the US – most of the works on its programs are by Americans, including Aaron Copland, Howard Hanson, Samuel Barber, Morton Gould and John Williams.

The philharmonic’s classical concerts will be staged at 4 p.m. Sundays in St. Christopher’s School’s Ryan Recital Hall. Wilson and Mike Goldberg of VPM Music will preview each program at 3 p.m.

Holiday pops concerts will be presented at the Virginia Museum of History & Culture and a location to be announced later. A summer pops concert is planned for the Virginia War Memorial.

Admission is free for all concerts.

The community orchestra, founded in 1972 and conducted since 2012 by Peter Wilson, will hold auditions for musicians playing all instruments from 1-5 p.m. Sept. 7 at Grace Baptist Church, 4200 Dover Road.

For more information on auditions and the season’s concerts, call (804) 556-1039 or visit http://richmondphilharmonic.org

The orchestra’s 2025-26 programs:

Nov. 2 (4 p.m.)
Ryan Recital Hall, St. Christopher’s School, 6010 Fergusson Road
Beethoven: Symphony No. 3 in E flat major (“Eroica”)
Samuel Barber: “Commando March”
John Williams: “Born on the Fourth of July”
Matt Stevens, trumpet
Williams: “Saving Private Ryan” – “Hymn to the Fallen”
Tchaikovsky: “1812 Overture”

Dec. 7 (7 p.m.)
Virginia Museum of History & Culture, Arthur Ashe Boulevard at Kensington Avenue
Dec. 8 (7 p.m.)
location TBA
Holiday Pops
program TBA

March 8 (4 p.m.)
Ryan Recital Hall, St. Christopher’s School, 6010 Fergusson Road
Williams: “Liberty Fanfare”
William Schuman: “New England Triptych”
Morton Gould: “American Salute”
Howard Hanson: Symphony No. 2 (“Romantic”)

May 3 (4 p.m.)
Ryan Recital Hall, St. Christopher’s School, 6010 Fergusson Road
Copland: “Fanfare for the Common Man”
Copland: “Appalachian Spring” Suite
Ryan Nowlin: “Let Freedom Ring”
Dvořák: Symphony No. 9 in E minor (“From the New World”)

June 21 (4 p.m.)
Virginia War Memorial, 621 S. Belvidere St.
Summer Pops
program TBA

In its 2025-26 season, Virginia Opera will present three mainstage productions – Rossini’s “Cinderella” (“La Cenerentola”), Verdi’s “Aïda” and “Intelligence” by Jake Heggie and Gene Scheer – and an evening of three contemporary one-acts.

All productions will be staged at Harrison Opera House, 160 E. Virginia Beach Boulevard in Norfolk, and the Carpenter Theatre of Dominion Energy Center, Sixth and Grace streets in Richmond. “Cinderella” and “Intelligence” also are scheduled at George Mason University’s Center for the Arts in Fairfax.

Heggie’s and Scheer’s “Intelligence,” introduced in 2023 by Houston Grand Opera, is based on the espionage ring organized by Elizabeth Van Lew, a pro-Union resident of Richmond, the Confederate capital in the US Civil War. The opera’s protagonist, Mary Jane Bowser, was an enslaved woman who was one of the ring’s key operatives.

The set of one-acts, “One Hour – Three Acts – #NoFilter,” will present “Service Provider” by Christopher Weiss and John de los Santos, “The Whole Truth” by Robert Paterson and Mark Campbell, and “Cinderella 99” by Heggie and Scheer. This non-subscription production will be staged in Norfolk and Richmond.

Adam Turner, Virginia Opera’s artistic director, is scheduled to conduct all performances.

Ticket subscriptions for the three mainstage productions are $218.99-$345.02 in Norfolk, $59.99-$345.01 in Richmond. Flexible subscriptions for two operas also are available. Fairfax opera tickets can be included in a subscription package of three or more “Great Performances at Mason” events, with a 15 percent discount on ticket prices.

Single tickets are $27.01-$152 in Norfolk, $27.67-$168.10 in Richmond, $45-$116 in Fairfax. Tickets for the program of one-acts are $15-$25 in Norfolk, $18.60-$28.60 in Richmond.

For more information, call Virginia Opera’s box office at (866) 673-7283 (Norfolk and Richmond), (703) 993-2787 (Fairfax), or visit http://vaopera.org/events

Dates, venues and casts for Virginia Opera’s 2025-26 season:

Sept. 26 (7:30 p.m.)
Harrison Opera House, Norfolk
Oct. 3 (7:30 p.m.)
Carpenter Theatre, Dominion Energy Center, Richmond
“One Hour – Three Acts – #NoFilter”
Christopher Weiss & John de los Santos: “Service Provider”
Robert Paterson & Mark Campbell: “The Whole Truth”
Jake Heggie & Gene Scheer: “Cinderella 99”
casts TBA
in English

Nov. 7 (7:30 p.m.)
Nov. 9 (2:30 p.m.)
Harrison Opera House, Norfolk
Nov. 14 (7:30 p.m.)
Nov. 16 (2:30 p.m.)
Carpenter Theatre, Dominion Energy Center, Richmond
Nov. 22 (7:30 p.m.)
Nov. 23 (2 p.m.)
Center for the Arts, George Mason University, Fairfax
Rossini: “Cinderella” (“La Cenerentola”)
Lisa Marie Rogali (Angelina)
David Walton (Don Ramiro)
Patrick Wilhelm (Dandini)
Levi Hernandez (Don Magnifico)
Maggie Kinabrew (Clorinda)
Melanie Dubil (Tisbe)
David Lefkowich, stage director
in Italian, English captions

Jan. 30 (7:30 p.m.)
Feb. 1 (2:30 p.m.)
Harrison Opera House, Norfolk
Feb. 6 (7:30 p.m.)
Feb. 8 (2:30 p.m.)
Carpenter Theatre, Dominion Energy Center, Richmond
Feb. 14 (7:30 p.m.)
Feb. 15 (2 p.m.)
Center for the Arts, George Mason University, Fairfax
Jake Heggie & Gene Scheer: “Intelligence”
Jacqueline Echols (Mary Jane Bowser)
Ashley Dixon (Elizabeth Van Lew)
Cierra Byrd (Lucinda)
Maureen McKay (Callie van Lew)
Craig Irvin (Travis Briggs)
Edward Graves (Wilson)
Kyle Lang directing
in English, English captions

March 13 (7:30 p.m.)
March 15 (2:30 p.m.)
Harrison Opera House, Norfolk
March 20 (7:30 p.m.)
March 22 (2:30 p.m.)
Carpenter Theatre, Dominion Energy Center, Richmond
Verdi: “Aïda”
Indira Mahajan (Aïda)
Jonathan Burton (Radames)
Deborah Nansteel (Amneris)
Grant Youngblood (Amonasro)
Ricardo Lugo (Ramphis)
Sergio Martinez (the king of Egypt)
Maggie Kinabrew (priestess)
Daniel Esteban Lugo (messenger)
stage director TBA
in Italian, English captions