Tanglewood in August
Programming Highlights
By: BSO - Aug 03, 2021
Saturday, August 7, 8 p.m.: Always a welcome guest on the podium, Herbert Blomstedt returns to lead the BSO in an all-Beethoven program: the Violin Concerto with another Tanglewood regular, Joshua Bell, and the Symphony No. 7. This concert will be available, August 15-September 14, on the BSO NOW streaming portal at bso.org/now.
Sunday, August 8, 2:30 p.m.: American conductor Karina Canellakis leads the Boston Symphony Orchestra for the first time, in a program that opens with Sinfonia (for Orbiting Spheres) by American composer Missy Mazzoli, continues with Tchaikovsky’s Variations on a Rococo Theme, for cello and orchestra, with soloist Yo-Yo Ma, and concludes with Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4.
Saturday, August 14, 8 p.m.: BSO Assistant Conductor Anna Rakitina makes her long-awaited Tanglewood debut leading a program that includes Russian-born British composer Elena Langer’s Suite from Figaro Gets a Divorce, Elgar’s Enigma Variations, and Ravel’s jazz-influenced Piano Concerto in G, with eminent French pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet as soloist. This concert will be available, August 22-September 21, on the BSO NOW streaming portal at bso.org/now.
Sunday, August 15, 2:30 p.m.: Returning for the final BSO concert of the season, Herbert Blomstedt leads an all-Brahms program: the Violin Concerto with noted Greek violinist Leonidas Kavakos and the Symphony No. 4.
Friday, August 6, 8 p.m.: Saxophonist Branford Marsalis, part of the famed musical dynasty, is special guest conductor of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, a Full Tilt presentation of the Tanglewood Learning Institute.
Friday, August 13, 8 p.m.: With John Williams and Keith Lockhart at the helm, movie lovers of all ages and tastes are sure to delight in John Williams Film Night, a musical journey through multiple decades of movie magic. As excerpts from the featured films play on the large screens, the Boston Pops Orchestra performs the musical score that enhances the scene.
Thursday, August 5, 8 p.m.: As part of TLI/TMC OpenStudio, the world’s most famous cellist, Yo-Yo Ma, leads a master class with Fellows of the Tanglewood Music Center, as TLI participants gain a new perspective on the interpretive process.
Friday, August 6, 8 p.m.: TLI Full Tilt, which offers patrons unconventional performances, presents the acclaimed Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with special guest Branford Marsalis leading the dynamic ensemble featuring 15 of jazz’s finest instrumentalists.
Monday, August 9, 8 p.m.: Herbert Blomstedt (TMC Class of 1953) returns to lead this year’s class of emerging professional musicians in the TMC Orchestra in a program of Mendelssohn, Mozart, and Brahms. This concert will be available, August 17-September 16, on the BSO NOW streaming portal at bso.org/now
Thursday, August 12, 8 p.m.: For the season’s last TLI/TMC OpenStudio, distinguished violinist Leonidas Kavakos leads a master class with Fellows of the Tanglewood Music Center, giving TLI participants an inside glimpse of up-and-coming artists working with a master musician.
Monday, August 16, 8 p.m.: Conducting program head Stefan Asbury leads the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra in a wide-ranging program including American composer Brian Raphael Nabors' Iubilo, Smetana’s "Vyšerad" from his most familiar work, Má Vlast, Vaughan Williams’ Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis, and Dvo?ák’s Symphony No. 7. This concert will be available, August 24-September 23, on the BSO NOW streaming portal at bso.org/now.
Please note: The Tanglewood Music Center, the BSO’s acclaimed summer music academy, also presents free chamber music programs on Sunday mornings and Monday afternoons throughout the Tanglewood season, July 12-August 16.