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World-renowned conductor-composer and current San Francisco Symphony Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen makes his Houston conducting debut March 26-28 with a program of treasured classics with a contemporary twist. To begin, enjoy beautiful and inspiring music of J.S. Bach, arranged for small orchestra by some of the 20th century’s most groundbreaking composers. Bach’s famous Prelude from Violin Partita No. 3 is performed on its own by concertmaster Yoonshin Song, then transformed into an ethereal soundscape in Salonen’s 2019 composition, FOG. The concerts close with Beethoven’s Symphony No. 1, music rooted in the traditions of Haydn and Mozart while heralding the singular genius to come.

Esa-Pekka Salonen’s restless innovation drives him constantly to reposition classical music in the 21st century. He is known as both a composer and conductor and is currently the Principal Conductor andamp; Artistic Advisor for London’s Philharmonia Orchestra and the Music Director of the San Francisco Symphony; 2020-21 being his first season. He is Artist in Association at the Finnish National Opera and Ballet. He is part of the faculty of LA’s Colburn School, where he develops, leads, and directs the pre-professional Negaunee Conducting Program. He is the Conductor Laureate for both the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, where he was Music Director from 1992 until 2009. Salonen co-founded—and from 2003 until 2018 served as the Artistic Director for—the annual Baltic Sea Festival, which invites celebrated artists to promote unity and ecological awareness among the countries around the Baltic Sea. Esa-Pekka Salonen is the recipient of many major awards. Most recently, in 2020, he was appointed an honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) by the Queen of England.

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Acclaimed as “a wonderfully talented violinist…whose sound and technique go well beyond her years”,  violinist Yoonshin Song was born in South Korea, where she began her musical studies at age 5. Making her solo debut with the Seoul Philharmonic at age 11, she has since built a successful performing career internationally.

Yoonshin was appointed as Concertmaster of the Houston Symphony in August 2019. Prior to that she has held the same position with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra for seven seasons. Yoonshin has also served as guest concertmaster of the Budapest Festival Orchestra under Iván Fischer.

Beyond her first chair duties, Yoonshin has performed as a soloist with many orchestras around the world, including the Houston Symphony, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, the Utah Symphony, the New Mexico Philharmonic Orchestra, the Bayreuth Festival Orchestra, the Paul Constantinescu Philharmonic Orchestra, the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, the KBS Philharmonic Orchestra, among many others. The highlights of her 2020-2021 season as a soloist include concertos with the Budapest Festival Orchestra, the Houston Symphony and the New Mexico Philharmonic Orchestra.

She has also participated as a soloist and chamber musician in numerous leading music festivals, including the Marlboro, Deer Valley, Great Lakes, and Aspen Music Festivals in the United States; the Miyazaki Chamber Music Festival in Japan; and the Verbier, Lucerne, and Bayreuth Festivals in Europe.

Yoonshin has earned many prestigious prizes throughout her career, including top prize awards in the Lipizer International Violin Competition in Italy; the Lipinski andamp; Wieniawski International Violin Competition in Poland; the Henry Marteau International Violin Competition in Germany; and first prize at the Stradivarius International Competition in the United States. She studied under the tutelage of Donald Weilerstein at the New England Conservatory and continued her studies with Robert Mann and Glenn Dicterow at the Manhattan School of Music.

Due to social distancing requirements, if you are purchasing a single (1) in-hall ticket or for a group of 3+, please call the Patron Services Center at 713.224.7575 or email patronservices@houstonsymphony.org to purchase your ticket(s). Go HERE to order tickets online