Totentanz: A Town and Country Symphony Orchestra Halloween Concert

The Town and Country Symphony Orchestra is playing a Halloween concert at The Farrell Auditorium in the Saint Louis Art Museum on Friday, October 23, from 7 to 8 PM. The program is built around Franz Liszt's Totentanz, with guest pianist Thomas Pandolfi taking the lead. The title itself fits the season—Totentanz is German for "Dance of the Dead," and the piece is a dark, virtuosic reimagining of the Dies Irae plainchant. Pandolfi is a Steinway Artist who's played at Lincoln Center's Alice Tully Hall, the Kennedy Center, the Kiev Opera House, Bucharest's Romanian Athenaeum, and London's Cadogan Hall.

There's more on the bill than just Liszt. Vocalists Nini Wang and Edwin Erwin will perform selections from Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera, and the orchestra will debut On a Dark and Windy Night, a new work by TCSO's own John Meurer. Between the Liszt, the Webber, and the new piece, the whole evening leans into the spooky, theatrical side of things.

The Town and Country Symphony Orchestra is a community ensemble of volunteer musicians led by conductor David L. Peek, now in its 65th season of bringing music to St. Louis County and the surrounding area. Their repertoire runs from classical symphonies and overtures to movie and Broadway themes, holiday classics, chamber music, and concertos, and they also run the Rising Talents Concerto Competition for young artists. This Halloween outing is part of their 2026/27 season, which opens with a concert showcasing women in music and continues with a December Holiday Concert, a March 2027 program with guest conductor Sebastian Buhts, a "Viva the Baroque and Classics" concert, and a May finale.

Admission is free, supported by the Regional Arts Commission of St. Louis and the Missouri Arts Council. The concert runs from 7 to 8 PM on Friday, October 23, at The Farrell Auditorium, Saint Louis Art Museum, 1 Fine Arts Drive, Forest Park, St. Louis, MO 63110. There's a second performance on Sunday, October 25, at 2:30 PM at Principia's Ridgway Auditorium.