The Deal

• One ticket to see the TSO perform Brahms Symphony 4, starting from $25
• When: Wednesday, May 4, at 8 p.m. or Thursday, May 5, at 8 p.m.
• Click to view the seating chart

Ticket values vary depending on the date and showtime you select. Seating availability also varies depending on the date.

The Program

Bold violin and dramatic orchestral flair—that’s what you get when Peter Oundjian conducts the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, especially when Leila Josefowicz joins the fun. The acclaimed MacArthur Fellow violinist enters the program to add her verve to the Canadian premiere of a new work from John Adams.

• Brahms—Symphony No. 4 in E minor: The composer’s final symphony prompted strong reactions when it premiered—celebrated critic Eduard Hanslick is said to have burst out mid-performance that the music made him feel as though he was “given a beating by two incredibly intelligent people.” The exuberant third movement, however, proved so popular that audiences often demanded it be played again immediately.
• Beethoven—Overture to Egmont: The earthquake-low opening strains that give way to a melody both ominous and triumphant are an homage to the Count of Egmont, a political martyr who gave his life to fight tyranny; the piece gained a second life as the unofficial anthem of the 1956 Hungarian revolution.
• John Adams—Scheherazade.2: The solo violin is the star of this dramatic symphony. Its exotic melodies not only pay homage to Rimsky-Korsakov’s Arabian Nights suite but also take on the role of a modern Scheherazade: a woman whose life is threatened, who must draw upon her own grit and cunning to finally escape her tormentors. Ultimately, as Adams says, the work is “the next chapter in the story.”