NEW SEASON TICKETS ON SALE: SEASON 41
Join the San Juan Symphony for Season 41
“Music can connect us with themes that are larger than life. Our Season 41 is designed to showcase incredible music, new guest artists, and thrilling performances with our wonderful musicians.”
Thomas Heuser, Music Director of the San Juan Symphony
NEW Season Tickets Available July 6, 2026
Discounts for First-Time Subscribers
50% Off in Durango
25% Off in Farmington
Durango
Community Concert Hall Box Office
970.247.7657
Farmington
Henderson Performance Hall Box Office
505.566.3430
On October 3rd and 4th, fasten your seatbelts for a concert of epic proportions! American composer John Adams slings the orchestra into high gear with his brilliant Short Ride in a Fast Machine, which propels us into Gustav Holst’s The Planets – a grand tour of the solar system. From Jupiter the Bringer of Jollity to Mars the Warrior and the wonderfully abstract Neptune, the music depicts Holst’s unique interpretations of each larger-than-life astrological character. Maestro Heuser and the San Juan Symphony will be joined by members of the SJS Chamber Singers and the Durango Women’s Chorus for this impactful musical experience. Our audiences will also be introduced to Mélanie Bonis, a rarely performed French avante-garde composer whose life and music are brimming with energy and drama. Her evocative tone poem, Le Songe de Cléopatre, is part of the huge orchestral triptych Trois Femmes de légende. Expect to be awash in incredible harmonies and the richness of this unusually massive orchestra.
On November 7th and 8th, we are thrilled to welcome Cuban-American cellist Tommy Mesa for his debut with the San Juan Symphony. Dr. Mesa is the recipient of an Avery Fisher Career Grant, and as a recent last-minute substitute for the great Yo-Yo Ma, Tommy has appeared as soloist with major orchestras including the Los Angeles Philharmonic, The Cleveland Orchestra, The Philadelphia Orchestra, and others. He will perform the sublime Cello Concerto by Antonín Dvořák, a work that showcases both our soloist, his artistry, and our musicians in their most ideal circumstances. The pair of “Romantic Giants” that will grace our stage in this eloquent program includes Johannes Brahms, whose formidable Third Symphony will set a profound and relentlessly passionate tone.This is the best of Johannes Brahms, and without question, such a deep and complex symphonic undertaking highlights the best of San Juan Symphony.
On February 20th and 21st, our performances of Mozart’s Jupiter Symphony will round out our three-season exploration of Mozart’s final three symphonies. The majestic C Major Symphony will be absolutely sensational; this is music that represents one of the greatest examples of pure musical joy, abundant lyricism, and astonishing craftsmanship. We look forward to welcoming back local students to perform Side by Side with the Symphony as part of an annual tradition that has provided a professional experience for dozens of young musicians over the years. As a new feature in Season 41, we are thrilled to announce the first-ever SJS Young Artists Competition taking place in 2026, which will result in the debut of a Concerto Competition Winner as part of this subscription event in 2027. Applicants will perform a live screening for a panel of judges and Finalists will appear in a public Final Recital in November where winners will be awarded in both Junior and Senior division categories. These historic performances will have a profound impact on the next generation of students in the San Juan Symphony community, and we will be able to witness the solo debut of one lucky winner!
The great Russian master Sergei Rachmaninoff conveys perhaps more passion and feeling than any other composer in history. His music brings audiences to their feet with abundant enthusiasm every time, and such is always the case for his thrilling Second Piano Concerto. On April 3rd and 4th, we are delighted to welcome back Norman Krieger as our Guest Artist, one of the most acclaimed pianists of his generation, whose academic credits include the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, the USC Thornton School of Music, and Durango’s own Fort Lewis College, where he served as Professor of Music for well over a decade. Rachmaninoff’s sentimental artistry will be paired with the seamlessly crafted and highly engaging Ninth Symphony by another titanic figure in Russian musical history, Dimitri Shostakovich. Written in reaction to the Second World War in 1945, Shostakovich’s Ninth brims with optimism and energy while delving into a host of deeply personal emotions. Our SJS musicians and Maestro Heuser are poised to deliver a poignant account of this “Iron and Ivory” concert repertoire.