San Francisco Symphony's Great Performers, Shenson Spotlight, and Chamber Music Series Present Solo Recitals, Visiting Ensembles, and Chamber Music Performances Throughout the 2025–26 Season

SAN FRANCISCO, CA— In the 2025–26 season, the San Francisco Symphony presents 10 chamber music concerts highlighting Symphony musicians, 10 Great Performers Series programs featuring world-class solo artists and visiting ensembles, and four Shenson Spotlight Series recitals highlighting ascendant artists in their Davies Symphony Hall debuts. For detailed concert listings, please refer to the 2025–26 Season Calendar or visit sfsymphony.org/calendar.

Chamber Music Series
Programmed and performed by Symphony musicians, the San Francisco Symphony’s 2025–26 Chamber Music Series presents 10 performances throughout the season at Davies Symphony Hall and the Legion of Honor. On October 19, musicians perform Andy Akiho’s 21; Leoš Janáček’s String Quartet No. 2, Intimate Letters; Bohuslav Martinů’s Quartet for Clarinet, Horn, Cello and Snare Drum; and Richard Strauss’ Till Eulenspiegel einmal anders! The November 9 program features works by Ludwig van Beethoven, Maurice Ravel, and Erwin Schulhoff, and the February 1 concert includes pieces by Luigi Boccherini, Georges Enescu, and Arthur Foote. 

Chamber music at Davies Symphony Hall continues on April 12 with Symphony musicians performing Johannes Brahms’ Piano Quartet in C minor, selections from the Danish String Quartet’s Last Leaf, Jean Françaix’s Octet, and Steve Reich’s Music for Pieces of Wood. The May 3 concert features pieces by Harry Burleigh, Jean Françaix, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Carl Nielsen, and Sergei Prokofiev. The series concludes on June 28 with a program including Gareth Farr’s Taheke, Gabriel Fauré’s Piano Trio in D minor, Sarn Oliver’s CAT Quartet with Soprano, and Joan Tower’s Petroushskates. 
 
The 2025–26 Legion of Honor Chamber Series returns with four concerts featuring SF Symphony Concertmaster Alexander Barantschik (Naoum Blinder Chair), former Symphony cellist Peter Wyrick, and guest pianist Anton Nel. On November 16, the trio performs Ludwig van Beethoven’s Piano Trio in E-flat major, Opus 1, no.1; Variations on “Ich bin der Schneider Kakadu;” and Piano Trio in B-flat major, Opus 97, Archduke. The January 18 program includes Johannes Brahms’ Piano Trio No. 1 in B major; Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Violin Sonata in B-flat major, K.378; and Franz Schubert’s Notturno in E-flat major, D.897. On April 12, the trio plays Edvard Grieg’s Piano Sonata in E minor; Joseph Haydn’s Piano Trio in A major, Hob. XV:18; and Franz Schubert’s Piano Trio No. 1 in B-flat major, D.898. The series wraps up on May 31 with Johannes Brahms’ Cello Sonata No. 1 in E minor; Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Piano Trio in E major, K.542; and Robert Schumann’s Piano Trio No. 1 in D minor.

The acclaimed Legion of Honor Chamber Series was launched in 2002 when the Fine Arts Museums honored Alexander Barantschik with an exclusive loan of a legendary Guarnerius del Gesù violin. The “David” Guarnerius del Gesu violin dates to 1742 and was once owned by the virtuoso Ferdinand David. It was bequeathed to the Fine Arts Museums by famed violinist Jascha Heifetz upon his death in 1987, with the stipulation that it be “played on special occasions by worthy performers.” Barantschik performs on this violin at all chamber concerts. This season marks 23 years of San Francisco Symphony’s partnership with the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco.

See the complete Chamber Music Series schedule here.

Free Community Chamber Concert Series
The San Francisco Symphony's free Community Chamber Concert series features small ensembles from the Symphony performing at community spaces across San Francisco. These concerts are an opportunity for audiences to get to know SF Symphony musicians and see them perform in an intimate setting. All Community Chamber Concerts are free and open to the public.

See a list of upcoming Community Chamber Concerts here; new concerts are added regularly.

Great Performers Series
The San Francisco Symphony’s 2025–26 Great Performers Series presents 10 programs featuring world-class artists in solo recitals and ensemble performances at Davies Symphony Hall throughout the season. 

The Great Performers Series kicks off on October 19 with pianist Marc-André Hamelin playing Ludwig van Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 29 in B-flat major, Hammerklavier; Maurice Ravel’s Gaspard de le nuit; and Robert Schumann’s Waldszenen. On November 4, violinist Itzhak Perlman returns to Davies Symphony Hall in his 80th birthday season accompanied by his longtime recital partner, pianist Rohan De Silva. 

On November 16, cellist Gautier Capuçon performs Gaïa, a recital of 17 world-premiere works, commissioned by the San Francisco Symphony in collaboration for this project. The recital features works composed by an all-star lineup of contemporary composers, including Bryce Dessner, Joe Hisaishi, Missy Mazzoli, Gabriela Montero, Nico Muhly, Max Richter, Ayanna Witter-Johnson, and more. The recital will also feature a new work by composer and cellist Quenton Xavier Blache, who Capuçon anonymously selected for a new commission from a pool of applicants under the umbrella of the 2023 Emerging Black Composers Project. Capuçon brings this program to the stage mere days after the release of his album Gaïa, which is dedicated to and inspired by the Earth. He says, “This unique album brings together 17 pieces by 16 composers from different cultures, worlds, and musical genres. Each piece gives its own voice to the cello, immersing us in the power and depth of nature and the Earth, the source of life.” All 17 works will be featured on the Gaïa recording, which will be released by Erato Records and available on all streaming platforms on November 7. A related lobby exhibit is on display in the Davies Symphony Hall lobbies now through October 14. 

On November 21, violinist Alexi Kenney, Principal Flute Yubeen Kim (Caroline H. Hume Chair), and harpsichordist Jonathan Dimmock join forces to perform Johann Sebastian Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 5, a dazzling Baroque work that showcases playful interplay between the violin, flute, and harpsichord. “I’m thrilled to be making my solo debut with the San Francisco Symphony in the 2025-26 season,” said Kim. “Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 has been on my playlist for years—it’s not programmed often these days, so I’m really looking forward to bringing it to life in concert, especially alongside Alexi Kenney.” In this program, Kenney also leads the Orchestra in Olli Mustonen's Nonet No. 2 for String Orchestra; Barbara Strozzi’s “Mercé di voi, mia fortunata stella,” from Il Primo Libro de Madrigali; and Antonio Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons. 

On February 1, violinist Nicola Benedetti performs An Evening with Nicola Benedetti, featuring cellist Adrian Daurov, guitarist Plínio Fernandes, and accordionist Hanzhi Wang. The concert combines solo performances and storytelling, with Benedetti sharing a selection of romantic, virtuosic, Celtic, and folk-inspired works. On February 8, Yefim Bronfman plays a solo piano recital of programming to be announced, and on March 1, violinist Joshua Bell leads the Academy of St Martin in the Fields in performing Johannes Brahms’ Violin Concerto and Robert Schumann’s Symphony No. 1, Spring.

On March 15, violinist Pinchas Zukerman and pianist Shai Wosner present a duo recital featuring works of Johannes Brahms, including Violin Sonata No. 1 in G major, Violin Sonata No. 2 in A major, Scherzo in C minor from F-A-E Sonata, and Violin Sonata No. 3 in D minor; and on April 19, Joshua Bell returns to Davies Symphony Hall for a solo violin recital. The series closes on April 26 with pianist Yuja Wang and the Mahler Chamber Orchestra led by concertmaster Matthew Truscott. The concert features Paul Hindemith’s The Four Temperaments; Sergei Prokofiev’s Symphony No. 1, Classical; and Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 2.

See the complete Great Performers Series schedule here or visit sfsymphony.org/gps. 

Shenson Spotlight Series
The San Francisco Symphony’s Shenson Spotlight Series, now in its fifth season, features ascendant artists in their Davies Symphony Hall debuts. 

On January 21, pianist Jaeden Izik-Dzurko performs a solo recital. He is a current recipient of the Borletti-Buitoni Trust Fellowship and the 2024 winner of the Dame Fanny Waterman Gold Medal at the Leeds International Piano Competition. He also recently became the first Canadian instrumentalist to be awarded the Grand Prize Laureate at the Concours Musical International de Montréal. In the 2025–26 season, he gives debut performances at London’s Wigmore Hall, the Leipzig Gewandhaus (Mendelssohn-Saal), Hamburg’s Elbphilharmonie, and more. Born in British Columbia with Hungarian-Ukrainian heritage, Izik-Dzurko formerly attended the Juilliard School and now studies with Jacob Leuschner at the Hochschule für Musik Detmold and Benedetto Lupo at the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia.

On February 25, pianist Mao Fujita performs a solo recital. Born in Tokyo, he was still studying at the Tokyo College of Music in 2017 when he took First Prize at the prestigious Concours International de Piano Clara Haskil in Switzerland, along with the Audience Award, Prix Modern Times, and the Prix Coup de Coeur, which first brought him to the attention of the international music community. He was also the Silver Medalist at the 2019 Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow, where his special musical qualities received exceptional attention from a jury of leading musicians. In the 2025–26 season, Fujita appears at major festivals and venues across Europe, America, and Asia, and performs a recital tour across North America. He is an exclusive Sony Classical International artist, and in 2024, he released his second album, 72 Preludes, which champions the 24 Preludes of Chopin, Scriabin, and Yashiro.

On April 15, violinist Nathan Amaral performs with pianist Sophiko Simsive. Amaral recently won the Grand Prize of both the Concert Artist Guild (CAG) and Young Concert Artist Trust (YCAT) competitions, and he is also the first prize winner of the 2024 Sphinx Competition. He has appeared as soloist with orchestras including the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Philadelphia Orchestra, and Philharmonia Orchestra. Born in Rio de Janeiro, Amaral received his first violin lessons at the age of twelve as part of a social project in the favela of Mangueira. Hailed as an “exceptional musician of rare talent who promises to become one of the leading pianists of her generation” by pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Simsive began her studies at the age of three and, since then, has been invited as a recitalist to prestigious venues such as Berlin Philharmonie and Concertgebouw. She is the newest pianist of the Claremont Trio, and she holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the Manhattan School of Music.

On June 3, violinist Njioma Grevious performs with pianist Andrew Goodridge. A graduate of the Juilliard School in 2021, she is a winner of the 2024 Avery Fisher Career Grant, the Robert F. Smith First Prize and the Audience Choice awards in the Senior Division of the Sphinx Competition, and the Grand Prizes of the Concert Artist Guild (CAG) and the Young Classical Artist Trust (YCAT) Competition. In the 2024–25 season, she made her debut at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam with the Brussels Philharmonic and at Carnegie Hall in New York City with the Sphinx Virtuosi. Grevious began her violin studies at the age of four, becoming a scholarship recipient through Boston’s Project STEP string training program for Black and Latino youth as well as through Winsor Music. Goodridge has performed with many leading artists, including James Buswell, Roman Totenberg, and members of the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, and Boston Symphony Orchestra. He runs a private piano studio in Woburn, MA, and is on the faculty at the New England Conservatory Preparatory School.

See the complete Shenson Spotlight Series schedule here.

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