Four notes instantly recognizable across generations welcome back the much-loved Symphony No. 5 to the Kleinhans stage. Dance Symphony's rhythmic jazz motifs were drawn from an evocative Copland ballet about a morbid conjurer who could raise the dead and make them dance. Beethoven expands on Mozart's influence in his Piano Concerto No. 1, featuring challenging key changes and bold harmonies.

A myriad of eclectic instruments—including pots, pans, and metal gadgets—accompany world-renowned percussionist Colin Currie and his acclaimed BPO ensemble in performing Danny Elfman's offbeat, idiosyncratic Percussion Concerto, composed without brass or woodwinds. Tchaikovsky's Fifth Symphony, once plagued by poor reviews and personal self-doubt, endures as a beloved, emotionally lyrical masterpiece, proving its timeless appeal.

Two English folk songs form George Butterworth's idyllic The Banks of Green Willow, premiered just two years before the promising young composer's demise in the trenches of World War I. German Max Bruch, captivated by Scottish traditions, wove these melodies into his violin showpiece, Scottish Fantasy. Meanwhile, Brahms' expressive Symphony No. 1, finely dubbed "Beethoven's Tenth," gestated for 22 years due to his remarkable perfectionism.

Bacewicz’s six-minute Overture for Orchestra, composed during the German occupation of Poland, offers a perpetually shifting palette of colors. Spaniard Joaquin Rodrigo’s animated Concierto de Aranjuez features elaborate orchestration for classical guitar, while Fauré’s tragic Pelléas et Mélisande Suite was originally composed as incidental music for a dramatic play. Borodin’s colorful Symphony No. 2 evokes the exuberance of Russian folk dances.

Franco-Brazilian composer Elodie Bouny creates a striking homage to the Amazon rainforest with Ignis, a contemporary complement to Mendelssohn’s exquisite and romantic Violin Concerto in E minor. Dvořák’s pastoral Eighth Symphony vividly depicts Czech songs and dances through rich, pleasing melodic harmonies.

The stirring orchestration of Sibelius’ patriotic Finlandia counters Haydn’s high-spirited and dramatic Cello Concerto No. 1, which remained undiscovered for two centuries until its chance 1961 find at the Czech National Library. Fittingly, Grieg’s four charming Symphonic Dances, inspired by Norwegian folk, also played a key role in formalizing Norway’s own national identity.

As the first of a trilogy of cantatas, Orff's irreverent Carmina Burana draws from a 13th century compilation of vagabond songs and poems detailing fate's fickleness, pagan delights, and corruption, with hypnotic sensuality and powerful rhythms. Hindemith's reworked Symphonic Dances emerged from a discarded ballet collaboration.

Our season concludes with three iconic compositions and two orchestral world premieres. Bernstein's toe-tapping Three Dance Episodes from On the Town, Copland's distinctively American Appalachian Spring Suite, and Gershwin's jazz-infused Rhapsody in Blue are paired with two works rooted in Western New York. Michael Daugherty's Niagara Falls is a musical journey through one of the world's great scenic wonders, while Buffalo-born Paul Moravec's Serenade—inspired by the Great Western Staircase at the New York State Capitol—offers a stirring narrative of ascent and aspiration.