The Blue Ridge Orchestra celebrates 25 years of symphonic excellence with our thrilling season finale under the leadership of Music Director Dr. Emily Mariko Eng.

Our 25th Anniversary Season Finale, part of the Asheville Symphony Orchestra’s bi-annual festival: “The Art of Storytelling,” spans genres of jazz and classical in a highly collaborative program. Two exciting works by Leonard Bernstein - Prelude, Fugue, and Riffs and Symphonic Dances from West Side Story - will bookend a beautiful, lyrical piece for jazz quartet and orchestra, Mom by Asheville-based composer Richard Shulman. The program concludes with the glorious Beethoven Symphony No. 6, “Pastoral.”

Blue Ridge Orchestra’s Music Director Dr. Emily Mariko Eng says of the program: “When I planned this music a year ago, I couldn’t have imagined the poeticism in concluding our season with Beethoven’s Symphony No. 6, the Pastoral. It is one of his few programmatic works, and it tells a story of the beauty of nature, but also the destruction it can cause and the feelings following such devastation. We will end our season on a hopeful, joyous note following the storm, represented musically but also embodied emotionally.”

Deb Kenney, Board President expresses enthusiasm for the BRO’s success in its silver anniversary– The Blue Ridge Orchestra is celebrating its 25th Anniversary Season Finale with an exciting program created by Music Director, Dr. Emily Mariko Eng! The versatility of our musicians will be on display with works ranging from the full orchestra to jazz ensemble. Based in Asheville, NC, we are proud to be Western North Carolina’s volunteer community orchestra, and thrilled that some of our musicians for this concert performed in the very first BRO concert, 25 years ago……having performed continuously throughout those 25 years! The Blue Ridge Orchestra is truly of the community, for the community, and succeeds to this day only by this community’s support. We thank this amazing artistic community for our opportunity to perform for you.

BRO’s Season Finale is generously sponsored by Ingles Markets.
Friday, May 2nd, 2025, 7:00 pm
Sunday, May 4th, 2025, 3:00 pm
UNC Asheville
Lipinsky Auditorium
300 Library Lane
Asheville, NC. 28804

Tickets:
General Admission: $20
Friends of the Orchestra: $15
Students: $5
Children 6 and under: Free

Info:https://blueridgeorchestra.org/may-25th-anniversary-season-finale-25, Facebook, Instagram, or call 828-782-3354.