The Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra's 2024-25 season will feature opera and dance stars, a big world premiere, blockbuster films on screen, and beloved works by Beethoven, Mozart, Mahler, and Wagner. It will not, however, include a Concerts in the Garden series this summer.

FWSO unveiled their new season - the third under music director Robert Spano's leadership - on January 11. They're going into it with a full orchestra, having recently filled about a dozen vacancies.

"I am very much looking forward to a new season of passionate music-making, continuing our commitment to excellence and exploration, and sharing transcendent experiences with our audiences,” Spano says in a release.

Here's a closer look.

FWSO says they are working with FWBG on a date to resume Concerts in the Garden once a stage is built. Photo by Julien Lambert

Summer concerts
While technically not part of the regular season, the Concerts in the Garden series at the Fort Worth Botanic Garden is one of the city's most popular traditions of summer. The series returned in 2022 after a two-year pandemic hiatus and in 2023, swapped old-fashioned fireworks for innovative drones to end each performance. FWSO is pressing pause on the series for 2024 - but plans to bring it back.

"Given the increasing costs of bringing in the physical stage for live performances at the FWBG, the FWSO has announced that the annual Concerts in the Garden Summer Music Festival will temporarily pause to accommodate the FWBG's Master Plan, which includes the design and construction of a new stage," FWSO says in a release.

FWSO says it will hold several community summer concert-alternatives. According to the release, they include:

• Friday Nights at the Garden, which "will feature popular chamber music presented by the FWSO and FWBG. Guests can enjoy cocktails while listening to the music." More info is TBA.
• In conjunction with the FWBG Summer Camps, "FWSO will integrate a STEM-focused education concert as part of the Summer Camp curriculum." More info is TBA.
• In partnership with American Airlines, the FWSO will present a free, family-friendly STEM concert at the CR Smith Museum featuring their Exploring Sounds program. More info is TBA.
• A family-friendly, patriotic July 3rd Concert at Arborlawn United Methodist Church featuring "the sounds of Americana with the FWSO." (Tickets: $20 for adults and $5 for kids 12 and under.)
• FWSO Lawn Party at the Carter Museum. "Families are encouraged to pack a picnic and enjoy a night of classical music under the stars on the front lawn of the Amon Carter Museum in June 2024." More info is TBA.

Violinist James Ehnes opens the FWSO Symphonic Season. Photo by Ben Ealovega

Symphonic series
Highlights of the concerts (all at Bass Hall) include guest violinist James Ehnes and pianist Angela Hewitt, and concerts featuring FWSO principal cellist Allan Steele, principal violist DJ Cheek, and concertmaster Michael Shih. Also includes a world premiere of a piece by composer Jake Heggie and a semi-staged production of Wagner's The Flying Dutchman.

Schedule at a glance:

• Opening Weekend: Tchaikovsky’s Sixth and Sibelius’ Violin Concerto, September 6-8, 2024. Robert Spano, conductor; James Ehnes, violin.
• Mozart and Strauss, September 27-29, 2024. Kevin John Edusei, conductor.
• The FWSO’s Allan Steele: Schumann Cello Concerto and Berlioz Symphonie Fantastique, October 11-13, 2024. Robert Spano, conductor; Allan Steele, cello.
• Jane Glover Conducts Mozart, October 25-27, 2024. Jane Glover, conductor; Angela Hewitt, piano. (Mozart Piano Concerto No. 25)
• Spano Conducts Beethoven and Jake Heggie, December 6-8, 2024. Robert Spano, conductor; Key’mon Murrah, counter-tenor; Urban Bush Women, dancers; Jawole Willa Jo Zollar, choreographer/director. (World premiere piece by composer Jake Heggie, Earth 2.0)
• Dvořák’s “New World” and Mozart’s 40th, January 3-5, 2025. James Conlon, conductor.
• The FWSO’s Michael Shih and DJ Cheek: Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante, January 17-19, 2025. Kevin John Edusei, conductor; Michael Shih, violin; DJ Cheek, viola.
• Musical storytelling Spano Conducts: Scheherazade and The Rite of Spring, January 31, February 1-2, 2025. Robert Spano, conductor; gloATL, dancers; Lauri Stallings, choreographer/director.
• Spano conducts Mahler’s Ninth, March 14-16, 2025. Robert Spano, conductor.
• Wagner’s The Flying Dutchman, April 11-13, 2025. Robert Spano, conductor; Greer Grimsley, bass-baritone; Heidi Melton, soprano; Kyle Van Schoonhoven, tenor; Ray Aceto, bass; Luretta Bybee, mezzo-soprano; Bille Bruley, tenor.

Miguel Harth-Bedoya will return to conduct Return of the Jedi. Photo courtesy of Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra

Pops series
Highlights include films in concert, such as Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark and Stars Wars Return of the Jedi (featuring the return of maestro Miguel Harth-Bedoya). Also includes the annual Home for the Holidays concert featuring Santa Claus. All Pops concerts are at Bass Hall.

Schedule at a glance:

• Kings of Soul, October 18-19, 2024. Michelle Di Russo, conductor; Chester Gregory, vocalist; Darren Lorenzo, vocalist; Michael Lynche, vocalist. (Soulful music of legendary artists Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson, James Brown, Otis Redding, The Temptations, Al Green, and others.)
• Home for the Holidays, November 29-30, 2024. Michelle Di Russo, conductor; Jasmine Habersham, soprano; Texas Boys Choir.
• Sci-Fi Symphony, January 10-11, 2025. Michaelle Di Russo, conductor. (Symphony "tour" of some of the greatest scores in sci-fi movie history, including Star Trek, X-Files, Alien, Jurassic Park, and Star Wars.)
• Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark, January 24-25, 2025. Scott Terrell, conductor. (John Williams’ score performed live to picture by the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra.)
• Tony Bennett: The Official Musical Celebration, February 7-8, 2025. Evan Roider, conductor. (Celebration of Tony Bennett's music.)
• Star Wars: Return of the Jedi, April 4-5, 2025. Miguel Harth-Bedoya, conductor. (John Williams’ score performed live to picture by the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra.)

FLY Dance Company: Breakin’ Classical returns in October 2024. Photo courtesy of FLY Dance Company

Family series
All family concerts are presented at 11 am, for all ages, and are conducted by Michelle Di Russo. (Family 3-series pricing: Adult Season Tickets - $64, Children Season Tickets - $36).

Schedule at a glance:

• Fly Dance Company Breakin’ Classical, October 19, 2024 at Bass Hall. (Hip-hop dance to classical music, appropriate for ages 3-10.)
• Mozart’s Magnificent Voyage, February 8, 2025 at Bass Hall. (Adaption of two Classical Kids stories featuring Mozart’s young son, Karl.)
• Storybook: Little Red Riding Hood, May 3, 2025 at Van Cliburn Concert Hall, TCU. (Symphonic concert that brings to life the tale of Little Red Riding Hood.)

Chamber series
All Chamber Series concerts are presented in the Kimbell Art Museum’s Renzo Piano Pavilion at 3 pm. (3-Concert Series Package is $69.)

Schedule at a glance:

• Mozart, Schulhoff, and Korngold, November 24, 2024. Artists TBA.
• Brahms and Schoenberg, February 23, 2025. Robert Spano, piano.
• Mendelssohn, Barber, and music for two pianists, May 4, 2025. Robert Spano, piano; Pedja Mužijević, piano.

Joyce DiDonato will star in the 2025 Fort Worth Symphony Gala Concert. Photo courtesy of The Dallas Opera

Season specials
Special add-on concerts including the Gala Concert featuring acclaimed soprano Joyce DiDonato, as well as the films Frozen and Black Panther in concert.

Schedule at a glance:

• Gala Concert Starring Joyce DiDonato, March 1, 2025 at Bass Hall. Robert Spano, conductor; Joyce DiDonato, soprano. (Grammy Award-winning DiDonato joins FWSO in a performance of operatic repertoire.)
• Stars of the Symphony, August 31, 2024 at Bass Performance Hall. Taichi Fukumura, conductor; DJ Cheek, viola; Tim Daniels, oboe; Kyle Sherman, trumpet. (Stars of the FWSO are featured.)
• Tim Burton’s Nightmare Before Christmas, November 2, 2024 at Will Rogers Auditorium. Christopher James Lees, conductor. (Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas score performed live to picture by the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra.)
• Frozen in Concert, December 13-14 at Will Rogers Auditorium. Deanna Tham, conductor. (In an FWSO premiere, the animated film Frozen score is performed live to picture by the orchestra.)
• Black Panther in Concert, March 8, 2025 at Will Rogers Auditorium. Anthony Parnther, conductor; Massamba Diop, talking drum; Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra. (Black Panther score performed live to picture by the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra.)
• Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto and Symphony No. 39, May 17, 2025 at Arlington ISD’s The Center for Visual and Performing Arts. Robert Spano, conductor; Stas Chernyshev, clarinet. (All-Mozart program.)

Frozen makes its debut with FWSO. Movies.Disney.com

For more information about concerts, repertoire, and tickets, visit the FWSO website. Subscriptions go on sale April 4, and single tickets go on sale July 10 at www.fwsymphony.org.