(Kissi Ussuki / For The Times)
Dudamel’s return and 15 other classical music, dance shows to catch this fall in SoCal
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As fall draws near, we await, with timorous breath, the arrival of a Godzilla El Niño and touch-and-go midterm elections. We fret over emerging pathogens with pandemic ambitions and anything AI. Wars won’t go away. Prices rise as surely as the sun goes up each morning. Yet a prospect of a new season remains ever an agent of renewal, a reliable cause for rejoice.
More so than many classical music falls, this year’s is characterized by comings and goings, reminders that nature turns, turns, turns. Los Angeles Opera, Los Angeles Philharmonic and Pacific Symphony have new music directors. Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra prepares for a new one next year. Unlike in so many cities, old ones return as well.
Unpredictability is also built in. We don’t know everything at the time of this writing. After a past season of regrouping, Long Beach Opera is promising new life but still nailing down details. Monday Evening Concerts, the historic new music series, along with other new music groups, are busy finalizing their seasons.
As for dance, highlights include the Los Angeles Ballet making its Hollywood debut and a celebration of choreographer Jerome Robbins, one of the most influential figures in American ballet and theater at the Ahmanson.
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Simply Beethoven: Dudamel conducts the Fifth Symphony and Piano Concerto No. 4
Downtown L.A. Classical Music
Gustavo Dudamel conducts the LA Phil in Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony on Aug. 20, 2026.
(Jason Armond/Los Angeles Times)
Yes, Gustavo Dudamel will be back with more Beethoven. Now as artistic and cultural laureate of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, he returns in December for a two-week “Simply Beethoven” festival that includes the “Eroica” and Fifth Symphonies along with the first four Beethoven piano concertos; Rudolf Buchbinder is the soloist.
Where: Walt Disney Concert Hall
When: Dec. 4-13
Price: Starts at $101
Where: Walt Disney Concert Hall
When: Dec. 4-13
Price: Starts at $101
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Shelley conducts Mahler's Symphony No. 2: 'Resurrection'
Costa Mesa Classical Music
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(Curtis Perry)
For 36 years, the Pacific Symphony has, for all intents and purposes, been the Carl St.Clair Symphony Orchestra. But last year, St.Clair stepped down to become conductor laureate, and the British conductor Alexander Shelley steps in this season as new music director. Born in 1979, three months before the Pacific Symphony was founded, Shelley arrives with blazing ambition, leading Mahler’s epic essay in optimism in the face of tragedy, his “Resurrection Symphony.” The season will, among other things, include a cycle of Beethoven’s nine symphonies and a semi-staged production of John Adams’ “Nixon in China.”
Where: Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall
When: Oct. 1-3
Price: Starts at $41.30
Where: Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall
When: Oct. 1-3
Price: Starts at $41.30
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Daniel Harding and Leif Ove Andsnes
Downtown L.A. Classical Music
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(Etienne Laurent/For The Times)
Daniel Harding will make his eagerly awaited first appearance with the L.A. Phil since his announcement as the orchestra’s new music director, beginning fall 2027. His programs include a recent piece by the stunning French-American composer Betsy Jolas, who turned 100 this month.
Where: Walt Disney Concert Hall
When: Nov. 6 at 8 p.m.
Price: Starts at $44
Where: Walt Disney Concert Hall
When: Nov. 6 at 8 p.m.
Price: Starts at $44
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Domingo Hindoyan conducts 'Carmen'
Downtown L.A. Classical Music
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(Chris Christoloudou)
Los Angeles Opera’s new music director, the Venezuelan conductor Domingo Hindoyan, currently music director of the Liverpool Philharmonic (where he also conducts Mahler’s “Resurrection” on Oct. 1), opens the company’s season in October conducting a new production of Bizet’s “Carmen.” It stars mezzo-soprano Rihab Chaieb, who has dazzled in Mozart at LA Opera. The Spanish gothic new production is by Thaddeus Strassberger and choreographer Antonio Najarro.
Where: Dorothy Chandler Pavilion
When: Oct. 17-Nov. 7
Price: Starts at $51
Where: Dorothy Chandler Pavilion
When: Oct. 17-Nov. 7
Price: Starts at $51
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Charlemagne Palestine, 'Strumming Music'
East Hollywood Classical Music
(Udo Siegfriedt / Foundation Charlemagne Palestine Belgium)
There is no more maverick an artist than Charlemagne Palestine. The New York-born pianist, composer, sculptor, performance artist and whatnot has long been a cult figure based in Europe. The last time he was in L.A., in 1998, he began an all-night concert in a Hollywood church by placing strips of paper between organ keys to create drones. He then headed over to a piano covered with stuffed animals but stopped before long saying the night was not right. This time, he’s slotted for two hours to open the lively Piano Spheres season.
Where: The Brick
When: Oct. 7 at 8 p.m.
Price: $40
Where: The Brick
When: Oct. 7 at 8 p.m.
Price: $40
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Kafka’s Letter to his Father and Gloria Cheng and Ralph van Raat
Westwood Classical Music
(Giannis Antonoglou / Greek National Opera)
CAP UCLA hosts another Piano Spheres event, featuring Gloria Cheng and Ralph van Raat exploring the intersection of the midcentury avant-garde of Pierre Boulez, John Cage and Morton Feldman — of which Palestine is a kind of bizarre next generation transfiguration. Keeping things in weird perspective, CAP UCLA precedes that two-piano recital with a production of Czech composer Jiri Trtik’s opera “Letter to His Father.” About Kafka’s artistic liberation from paternal authority, it is produced by and stars the most transformative tenor of our time, Timur.
Where: The Nimoy
When: Piano Spheres, Nov. 20 at 8 p.m.; “Letter to His Father,” Nov. 12-14 at 8 p.m.
Price: Starts at $38.08
Where: The Nimoy
When: Piano Spheres, Nov. 20 at 8 p.m.; “Letter to His Father,” Nov. 12-14 at 8 p.m.
Price: Starts at $38.08
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Kuniko Kato presents REICH90
Downtown L.A. Classical Music
(© Michiyuki Ohba)
Steve Reich turns 90 on Oct. 3, and the composer, who has consistently been one of American music’s most convincingly striking voices for the last 60 years, gets a celebration two weeks later by the Japanese percussionist Kuniko Kato. Her Steve Reich Project, which she gave at Suntory Hall in Tokyo last fall, features her and young Japanese percussionists displaying virtuosity that needs to be witnessed to be believed.
Where: Colburn School’s Zipper Hall
When: Oct. 16 at 7:30 p.m.
Price: Starts at $43
Where: Colburn School’s Zipper Hall
When: Oct. 16 at 7:30 p.m.
Price: Starts at $43
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Art of Elan in the desert
San Diego County Classical Music
Steven Schick conducts Susan Narucki (soprano), Aleck Karis (piano) and the red fish blue fish percussion ensemble in Jean Barraque’s “Chant apres Chant” at Zipper Concert Hall at Colburn School in Los Angeles in 2015.
(Lawrence K. Ho / Los Angeles Times)
Inspired by a trip to Bryce Canyon, Olivier Messiaen wrote his percussion-rich chamber music masterpiece “From the Canyons to the Stars” as a 1976 U.S. Bicentennial commission from Alice Tully Hall in New York. Replete with Messiaen’s characteristic bird calls, it’s been done out of doors before, and memorably at the Ojai Music Festival. But the San Diego imaginative new music series Art of Elan is now taking it to the desert for a special performance led by percussionist Steven Schick at an outdoor theater in Borrego Springs.
Where: Stargazing Theater at La Casa del Zorro Desert Resort & Spa
When: Oct. 12 at 6:30 p.m.
Price: Starts at $23.18
Where: Stargazing Theater at La Casa del Zorro Desert Resort & Spa
When: Oct. 12 at 6:30 p.m.
Price: Starts at $23.18
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Democracy Sessions 2026
Downtown L.A. Classical Music
(Ian Byers-Gamber)
With the collective orchestra Wild Up, you know they will be up and they will be wild, but you don’t always know in what ways. For three nights in October, Wild Up, led by conductor, composer and musical activist Christopher Rountree, will, through music, discussion and ritual, ponder the upcoming midterms with three Democracy Sessions.
Where: Geffen Contemporary at MOCA (map pin) and REDCAT
When: Oct. 3 at 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. at Geffen; Oct. 10 at 8 p.m. and Oct. 11 at 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. at REDCAT
Price: $12 at Geffen; $27 at REDCAT
Where: Geffen Contemporary at MOCA (map pin) and REDCAT
When: Oct. 3 at 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. at Geffen; Oct. 10 at 8 p.m. and Oct. 11 at 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. at REDCAT
Price: $12 at Geffen; $27 at REDCAT
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Handel’s Messiah with Le Concert d’Astrée and Bach: The Christmas Oratorio
San Marino Classical Music
Grant Gershon conducts the Los Angeles Master Chorale at Walt Disney Concert Hall in a celebration of the chorus’ 60th anniversary.
(Jamie Phan / Los Angeles Master Chorale)
For its annual “Messiah,” the Los Angeles Master Chorale will be led, this year, by the Los Angeles Philharmonic artist collaborator Emmanuelle Haïm and her sterling French early music group, Le Concert d’Astrée, in Walt Disney Concert Hall. Meanwhile, members of the chorus will participate in Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra’s performance of Bach’s Christmas Oratorio, led by its charismatic outgoing music director, Jaime Martín, east and west of Disney at the Huntington and the Wallis.
Where: Walt Disney Concert Hall; the Huntington (map pin); the Wallis
When: Dec. 15 at 7 p.m. at Disney; Dec. 19 at 7:30 p.m. at the Huntington; Dec. 20 at 4 p.m. at the Wallis
Price: Starts at $67 at Disney; starts at $48 at the Huntington; starts at $42 at the Wallis
Where: Walt Disney Concert Hall; the Huntington (map pin); the Wallis
When: Dec. 15 at 7 p.m. at Disney; Dec. 19 at 7:30 p.m. at the Huntington; Dec. 20 at 4 p.m. at the Wallis
Price: Starts at $67 at Disney; starts at $48 at the Huntington; starts at $42 at the Wallis
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Los Angeles Ballet debut at Hollywood Bowl
Hollywood Hills Dance
(Cheryl Mann)
Fresh off its 20th season, the Los Angeles Ballet will make its Hollywood Bowl debut with the L.A. Philharmonic in September. The program spans genres, with pieces rooted in Mexican and American compositions and choreography. Grammy-winning conductor Carlos Miguel Prieto leads the orchestra in a night designed to unite the city’s artistic communities.
LAB will also appear in a production at BroadStage in September called “American Icons,” in celebration of America’s semiquincentennial. The show celebrates innovators in American dance and music and includes two legendary American dancemakers, Jerome Robbins and Paul Taylor, as well as LAB Artistic Director Melissa Barak’s “Wavelength,” set to a score by American composer David Lawrence.
Where: The Hollywood Bowl; BroadStage
When: Sept. 8 at 8 p.m. at the Hollywood Bowl; Sept. 24-26 at 7:30 p.m. and Sept. 27 at 2 p.m. at BroadStage
Price: Starts at $12 at the Hollywood Bowl; Starts at $71 at BroadStage
LAB will also appear in a production at BroadStage in September called “American Icons,” in celebration of America’s semiquincentennial. The show celebrates innovators in American dance and music and includes two legendary American dancemakers, Jerome Robbins and Paul Taylor, as well as LAB Artistic Director Melissa Barak’s “Wavelength,” set to a score by American composer David Lawrence.
Where: The Hollywood Bowl; BroadStage
When: Sept. 8 at 8 p.m. at the Hollywood Bowl; Sept. 24-26 at 7:30 p.m. and Sept. 27 at 2 p.m. at BroadStage
Price: Starts at $12 at the Hollywood Bowl; Starts at $71 at BroadStage
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Ronald K. Brown / Evidence
Beverly Hills Dance
(Quinn B. Wharton)
Evidence, the landmark African diasporic dance company led by choreographer Ronald K. Brown, recently celebrated its 40th anniversary. West Coast fans will have the chance to experience the New York-based company’s unique blend of contemporary, African and African-American dance traditions when it visits the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in October, bringing a program of four pieces that includes tributes to some of Brown’s most enduring collaborators.
Where: The Wallis
When: Oct. 8-10 at 7:30pm
Price: Starts at $35
Where: The Wallis
When: Oct. 8-10 at 7:30pm
Price: Starts at $35
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Houston Ballet, ‘Sons de L’âme’
Costa Mesa Dance
(Quinn B. Wharton/Segerstrom Center for the Arts)
The Houston Ballet visits Costa Mesa’s Segerstrom Center for the Arts for the first time, bringing with them celebrated young pianist George Li for an ode to Frédéric Chopin. Making its West Coast debut, and created by Stanton Welch AM, artistic director of the Houston Ballet, the piece, “Sons de L’âme” (Sounds of the Soul), merges choreography with a live performance of Chopin’s famed piano pieces, showcasing the talents of the nation’s fourth-largest ballet company and a rising star of classical music.
Where: Segerstrom Center for the Arts
When: Oct. 15-16 at 7:30 p.m.; Oct. 17 at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.; Oct. 18 at 1 p.m.
Price: Starts at $34
Where: Segerstrom Center for the Arts
When: Oct. 15-16 at 7:30 p.m.; Oct. 17 at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.; Oct. 18 at 1 p.m.
Price: Starts at $34
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Ballet Festival: Jerome Robbins
Downtown L.A. Dance
(Steven Pisano / The Joyce Theater Foundation)
For three nights in October, the Ahmanson Theatre will host a celebration of choreographer Jerome Robbins, one of the most influential figures in American ballet and theater. Robbins is perhaps best known for conceiving, directing or choreographing some of the most beloved musicals of the 20th century, including “West Side Story,” “Peter Pan,” “On the Town” and “Gypsy,” but this program will focus on his ballet masterpieces. Curated by New York City Ballet principal dancer Tiler Peck and accompanied by live chamber music, the occasion will bring together dancers from New York City Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, Paris Opera Ballet and other major companies.
Where: Ahmanson Theatre
When: Oct. 23-24 at 7:30 p.m.; Oct. 25 at 2 p.m.
Price: Starts at $39
Where: Ahmanson Theatre
When: Oct. 23-24 at 7:30 p.m.; Oct. 25 at 2 p.m.
Price: Starts at $39
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Dance Theatre of Harlem, ‘Higher Ground’
Northridge Dance
(Theik Smith / Dance Theatre of Harlem)
In November, the Soraya will feature the renowned Dance Theatre of Harlem performing the Los Angeles premiere of “Higher Ground,” set to the music of Stevie Wonder. The piece blends classical ballet and Black vernacular dance for an exploration of social issues. Choreographer Robert Garland originally created “Higher Ground” for the company’s 50th anniversary, and it debuted in 2022. The evening will open with a performance of William Forsythe’s “Blake Works IV,” inspired by the electro-soul music of British singer and composer James Blake.
Where: The Soraya
When: Nov. 14 at 8 p.m.
Price: Starts at $49
Where: The Soraya
When: Nov. 14 at 8 p.m.
Price: Starts at $49
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