Wheeling Symphony Orchestra (WSO) announces its 95th Anniversary Celebration
with the 2024-25 season. The season will feature a seven-concert subscription series in the Capitol Theatre presented by Capitol Series Sponsor WesBanco Bank and Pops Series Sponsor WVU Medicine. Community favorites will return to mark holiday celebrations, including the Celebrate America July 4th Tour, Music Under the Stars, and Symphony on Ice.

The WSO’s Capitol Concert Series, sponsored by WesBanco Bank, will highlight the WSO’s legacy and “Your community in concert,” with four Masterworks concerts and three Pops Concerts. According to John Devlin, WSO Music Director, says,  “The showcasing of local talent will be front and center in our Masterworks series as we celebrate the artistry of our own WSO musicians as soloists, perform selections from our inaugural 1929 season, and pay tribute to historic musical figures from Wheeling, such as soprano Eleanor Steber, conductor Everett Lee, and saxophonist Chu Berry.”  In addition to the nods to the 95th Anniversary and local talent, a newly created WSO Community Choir will make its debut, and the WSO will premiere two new works by American composers. Masterworks
highlights include Ravel’s Daphnis and Chloe Suite No. 2, Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4, and works by living composers including Clarice Assad, Brittany Green, Matt Jackfert, Nathan Lincoln-DeCusatis, Matthew Harder and Jonathan Kolm.

The WSO’s Pops concerts, sponsored by WVU Medicine, will delight audiences of all ages with HARRY POTTER AND THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS™ IN CONCERT, which will feature the original film with the WSO performing John Williams’ iconic score. The second concert in the series, Bravo Broadway!, will feature Broadway stars Hugh Panaro (The Phantom of the Opera), Scarlett Strallen (Mary Poppins), and Dee Roscioli (Wicked). This talented trio will join forces to wow the crowd with live renditions from all your favorite musicals. Rounding out the WSO Pops series is WSO favorite Capathia Jenkins in her new show entitled She’s Got Soul!, a love letter to the women of soul and R&B.

About the season, Maestro Devlin relates that “for the last 95 years, the WSO has used orchestral music to connect the people within our beloved community.  We look forward to continuing that legacy and cannot wait to welcome you back to the Capitol Theatre in downtown Wheeling for our 2024-2025 season!”

In addition to the Capitol Concert Series, the WSO will present a slate of community concerts beginning with the Celebrate America Tour with stops in Weirton, Clarksburg, and Canaan Valley and a patriotic celebration at the Heritage Port Amphitheater on July 4th . Tenor soloist Ben Gulley will join the orchestra for the tour. The annual Labor Day weekend concert at Oglebay’s Anne Kuchinka Amphitheater, where the first public performance of the WSO was held in 1929, will feature Broadway actress Siri Howard and local rising star Amanda McGovern. The Ohio Valley’s favorite holiday tradition, Symphony on Ice, will return to WesBanco Arena on December 5.

Existing Capitol Series Season Subscribers will have first access to renew their subscriptions through June 24, 2024. New Subscriptions will go on sale June 28, 2024, and single tickets for Capitol Series concerts will be available beginning August 2, 2024. For ticket pricing and subscription packaging, visit wheelingsymphony.com or call 304-232-6191.

 

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE
2024-2025 WesBanco Bank Capitol Concert Series

Masterworks I: The Legacy of the WSO
September 27, 2024, 7:30 pm
Capitol Theatre – Wheeling, WV
Guest Artists: Rachel Stegeman, violin; Juan Jaramillo, violin; Anne Moskal, violin; Sean Elliott, violin; Andy Sledge, bassoon; Eliseo Rael, vibraphone; Curtis Johnson, alto saxophone; Jeff Mangone, bass; Dr. Linda Cowan, soprano

It’s the WSO’s 95th birthday!
As we begin our 95th anniversary season, we will start the year-long process of celebrating our beloved community, symphony, and the relationship between the two. We will open our 95th season with a kaleidoscopic concert that honors our past, highlights our present, and looks forward to our bright future. Eight WSO players will take center stage as soloists for this performance, and the evening’s selections pay tribute to the WSO’s past and significant historical figures in the Ohio Valley’s musical community.

The program for our kickoff concert covers everything from John Williams to Vivaldi, Clarice Assad to Mahler. To celebrate the start of our 95th season, the evening will begin with the Overture to The Barber of Seville—a selection that the WSO performed during our inaugural season in 1929.

Masterworks II: ATTENTION! With Chris Thile
October 25, 2024, 7:30 pm
Capitol Theatre – Wheeling, WV
Conductor: John Devlin
Guest Artist: Chris Thile, mandolin

Our second Masterworks pays tribute to our Appalachian musical roots, as mandolin virtuoso Chris Thile joins us to perform his new concerto “ATTENTION! A narrative song cycle for extroverted mandolinist and orchestra.” Other works on this concert include In the Beginning by North Carolina-based composer Brittany J. Green, Verdi’s Overture to La Forza del Destino (another reference to the WSO’s inaugural season), and Three Dance Episodes from Leonard Bernstein’s On the Town, a tribute to Wheeling native and accomplished conductor Everett Lee, a Black conductor who broke barriers in the 1950s and worked closely with Bernstein throughout his life.

Masterworks III: Nature. Beauty.
February 8, 2025, 2:00 pm
Capitol Theatre – Wheeling, WV
Conductor: John Devlin
Guest Artist: Madeline Adkins, violin

In West Virginia, we treasure the fact that our physical landscape has provided so much and is so beautiful. It is a point of pride that in 2020, New River Gorge became the country’s newest national park. This performance pays homage to the landscape of our state with Foggy Moon over the Gorge by West Virginia-based composer Matt Jackfert, a work inspired by the natural beauty found in New River Gorge. In addition, we welcome Utah Symphony Concertmaster Madeline Adkins to perform The Maze, a tribute to the Canyonlands National Park in Utah. We will end the performance with Tchaikovsky’s beloved Symphony No. 4.

Masterworks IV: 95th Anniversary Celebration
May 15, 2025, 7:30 pm
Capitol Theatre – Wheeling, WV
Conductors: John Devlin and André Raphel
Guest Artists: Elisa Kohanski, cello; Wheeling Symphony Orchestra Community Choir

We end our 95th season with a huge birthday bash in a true celebration of our community! The concert starts with a new composition from Dr. Matthew Harder, Professor of Music at West Liberty University, inspired by the impact of the WSO over the last 95 years. Equally exciting, the new Wheeling Symphony Orchestra Community Choir will debut on this opening piece. We will then have another world premiere—two on one concert!—that pays tribute to the broad impact of the WSO and our musicians. Jonathan Kolm’s commissioned work will feature WSO Principal Cellist Elisa Kohanski, whose dedication to performing on every continent worldwide inspired this composition. After intermission, the WSO welcomes André Raphel, the WSO’s Conductor Laureate, back to the stage to conduct Ravel’s whirlwind La Valse.

The concert—and our season—will close with Ravel’s effervescent Suite No. 2 from Daphnis and Chloe, celebrating not only our 95 th anniversary but also the 150 th anniversary of Ravel’s birth. This three-movement work will once again feature the Wheeling Symphony Community Choir in this musical painting of the famous fantasy story in the perfect capstone to a celebratory season.

Pops Concerts sponsored by WVU Medicine
Pops I: HARRY POTTER AND THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS™ IN CONCERT
January 18, 2025, 2:00 pm
Capitol Theatre – Wheeling, WV
Conductor: John Devlin

Cars fly, trees fight back, and monsters are on the loose in Harry’s second year at Hogwarts™ School of Witchcraft and Wizardry! This concert features the film Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets™ in high-definition, on a giant screen, while the WSO performs John Williams’ unforgettable score. Relive every magical moment as the music brings life to a story that has enchanted the world.

Pops II: “Bravo Broadway!”
March 21, 2025, 7:30 pm
Capitol Theatre – Wheeling, WV
Conductor: John Devlin

Give our regards to Broadway! The WSO transports you to 42 nd Street with Bravo Broadway!, a lively performance uniting three Broadway talents with the WSO for an unforgettable evening of theatrical hits. Featuring Broadway stars Hugh Panaro (The Phantom of the Opera), Scarlett Strallen (Mary Poppins), and Dee Roscioli (Wicked), these three Broadway veterans will join forces to wow the crowd with live renditions from all your favorite musicals.

Pops III: She’s Got Soul!
April 25, 2025, 7:30 pm
Capitol Theatre – Wheeling, WV
Conductor: John Devlin

We are thrilled to bring back WSO favorite Capathia Jenkins for She’s Got Soul!, a love letter to the women of soul and R&B. Those who loved Capathia’s performance in Aretha: A Tribute in 2019 and The Ladies of the Great American Songbook in 2022 will rejoice to hear that the evening’s list of covers will include songs by Whitney Houston, Gladys Knight, Chaka Khan, Adele, and many others.

2024-2025 Season: Community Concerts
Celebrate America 4th of July Tour
July 4, 2024, 8:00 pm
Heritage Port – Wheeling, WV

July 5, 2024, 8:00 pm
Weirton Events Center – Weirton, WV

July 6, 2024, 8:00 pm
Veterans Memorial Amphitheater – Clarksburg, WV

July 7, 2024, 3:00 pm
Canaan Valley Resort – Canaan Valley, WV

Conductor: John Devlin
Guest Artist: Ben Gulley

The WSO’s annual salute to America will feature tenor soloist Ben Gulley. From your favorite Patriotic music to a selection of operatic songs, this will be a July 4th tour to be remembered!

Music Under the Stars
September 1, 2024 7:30 pm
Anne Kuchinka Amphitheater, Oglebay Park – Wheeling, WV
Conductor: John Devlin
Guest Artists: Siri Howard, vocalist; Amanda McGovern, vocalist

Broadway actress Siri Howard and local rising star Amanda McGovern will join the WSO at the Anne Kuchinka Amphitheater to perform songs from various genres. This outdoor concert is a Labor Day weekend tradition, perfect for all ages.

Symphony On Ice
December 5, 2024, 7:00 pm
WesBanco Arena – Wheeling, WV
Conductor: John Devlin
Guest Artist: Amanda McGovern, vocalist

The Ohio Valley’s favorite holiday show returns this December! Join the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra, champion professional skaters, the Pittsburgh and Wheeling Figure Skating Clubs, and local middle and high school choirs as we welcome in the sounds of the season! It’s a holiday tradition the entire family will enjoy!

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