Bernstein & Dvořák

The Dallas Symphony Orchestra is playing Bernstein & Dvořák at the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center on March 11, 13, and 14, 2027. Samuel Lee is conducting, and cellist Tommy Mesa makes his DSO debut. The program pulls from three different eras and styles, so you get a few distinct moods in one night.

It opens with Leonard Bernstein's Three Dance Episodes from On the Town, a set of jazz-inflected dances based on the story of sailors looking for adventure and romance in wartime New York. From there, the evening moves to a world premiere: Michael Abels' Cello Concerto, with Tommy Mesa on the solo part. Abels is best known for the score to the Oscar-winning film Get Out, and he's built this concerto around the ideas of serenity, courage, and wisdom in turbulent times. It's the kind of piece that gives a debut its weight—a new work that hasn't been heard anywhere else.

The second half belongs to Antonín Dvořák's Symphony No. 8 in G Major. Dvořák put it together after a summer in the Bohemian countryside, and you can hear those landscapes in the lush melodies and the echoes of Czech folk song that run through it. It's a big, melodic symphony that balances the newer material on the bill.

There are three performances to choose from: Thursday, March 12, and Saturday, March 14, both at 7:30 PM, and Sunday, March 15, at 2:00 PM. Tickets start at $38.