The Marietta-based Georgia Symphony Orchestra issued the following news release announcing its 2023-2024 season:

Marietta, GA, May 25, 2023 –

The Georgia Symphony Orchestra (GSO) proudly announces the 2023-2024 season schedule for its orchestral, choral, jazz, holiday, sensory friendly and youth music education program performances. The season will showcase thrilling melodies and harmonies that will captivate and engage audiences.

The opening performance, An Early Grave, on October 28, 2023, will comprise the beloved works of four late classical composers who met an early death, Georges Bizet with his popular Carmen Suite No. 1 and Carmen Suite No. 2, Charles Tomlinson Griffes’ tone poem The Pleasure Dome of the Kubla Khan, Felix Mendelssohn’s Verleih uns Frieden gnädiglich (dona nobis pacem), and Lili Boulanger’s Vieille prière bouddhique (Old Buddhist Prayer).

Following with more classical performances on February 24, 2024, Mozart’s sublime Concerto for Clarinet and the second symphony of Brahms will create an evening of symphony sure to please. Stepping into the role of the soloist is GSO principal clarinet Justin Stanley.

Ending the classical portion of the season with a bang, Beethoven’s Universe will take place on May 18, 2024. Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 stands as one of the greatest human achievements in music, as it revels in ideals of joy, freedom, and equality. And embracing these ideals, the soloists for this special performance are selected from a national competition open to anyone, adopting a truly equal opportunity to share the stage with this triumphant music of the human spirit.

Moving onto the holiday season and in the spirit of tradition, GSO’s Holiday Pops! Chorus performance will take place on December 2, 2023, at the Marietta Performing Arts Center. The GSO Chorus will bring the holiday spirit with Christmas classics, new holiday favorites, and a sing-a-long! There will also be a Gospel Mass; the date and venue will be determined later in the year.

For Jazz lovers, GSO Jazz! will celebrate the music of Burt Bacharach and Hal David with What the World Needs Now on February 17, 2024, at the Strand Theatre. And, on April 13, 2024, GSO Jazz! will play the music of The Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Vanguard Orchestra for an evening of five decades of the Grammy-nominated jazz orchestra’s influential catalog of music.

In a continued commitment to bringing live classical music to members of the region’s underserved communities, the GSO will host its annual Sensory Friendly Concert Series on November 11, 2023, and April 27, 2024, at the Marietta Performing Arts Center. The series is designed specifically for individuals with sensory sensitivities and their families. Concertgoers are encouraged to be themselves and move around, clap, dance or vocalize during the 50-minute performance. A pre-concert Instrument ‘Petting Zoo’ and a Quiet Room will also be available.

With a focus on empowering and supporting students in developing the discipline required to accomplish musical goals, GYSO, the youth orchestra branch of GSO, will present 12 performances featuring 13 student ensembles, all hosted at the Bailey School of Music at Kennesaw State University.

GSO season ticket sales will begin on May 25 at 2:00 pm through June 19 for current subscribers. New subscribers’ sales will be from June 19 to July 24. Individual tickets go on sale on July 24.

Community members are invited to explore the amazing performances and programs offered by GSO here.

About the Georgia Symphony Orchestra

The Georgia Symphony Orchestra began in 1951 with the formation of the Marietta Music Club.

According to the GSO website:

The music room of Arthur F. Moor’s home on 383 Church Street in Marietta would establish the foundations for what would evolve over the next sixty-plus years. Talented local musicians would come together to create and share wonderful music with audiences. From 1955 until 1989, Betty Shipman Bennett conducted the orchestra through this long period of development. The music club grew to become the Marietta Community Symphony.

The orchestra was later renamed the Cobb Symphony as more professional musicians were added to the staff, and in 2011 it became the Georgia Symphony Orchestra.

The GSO states as its mission:

The mission of the Georgia Symphony Orchestra is to enrich our community through accessible, high quality musical and educational experiences that instill a lifelong appreciation for the arts.