Asheville Symphony Announces 2026–2027 Season and Free Symphony in the Park Concert September 6

By Geoffrey Cantrell | Publish Date 08.27.2026

The Asheville Symphony’s beloved Symphony in the Park returns to downtown Asheville’s Pack Square Park on Sunday, September 6, at 7 p.m., opening the Symphony’s 2026–2027 season with a free outdoor concert for the whole community.

Presented by Givens Communities and part of Boomtown Arts & Heritage FestAVL for the third year, Symphony in the Park brings thousands of music lovers from across Western North Carolina together for an evening of live orchestral music in the heart of Downtown Asheville.

Led by Music Director Darko Butorac, the program will span classical masterworks, beloved opera arias, Broadway favorites, pop hits, and film scores, offering something for everyone. World-class vocalist Erica Gabriel returns for her third performance with the Asheville Symphony, performing selections from Porgy & Bess, Phantom of the Opera, The Wiz, and more.

Leadership from Asheville Symphony and Givens Communities are proud to be able to offer Symphony in the Park to the Asheville community.

“Symphony in the Park is one of the highlights of our season, bringing thousands of people from across our community together through music,” said Asheville Symphony Executive Director Daniel Crupi. “With 10,000 attendees each year, including many children and families, it’s a powerful reminder that the Symphony belongs to everyone. We are proud to make this experience free and accessible to all.”

“Live music does something for people that very little else does, at any age,” said Kevin Schwab, President and CEO of Givens Communities. “Creating community is at the heart of everything Givens Communities does, and vibrant aging depends on it — on having neighbors, gathering places, and something worth showing up for. Symphony in the Park is all three in one evening. That’s why we support the Asheville Symphony, and why we’re glad this concert asks nothing of anyone but their attention.”

The Givens Communities Masterworks Series opens September 26 with Masterworks 1: Fellowship, featuring Brahms’ First Piano Concerto and Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony in a program celebrating the power of creative kinship, community, and collaboration.

On October 6, the wildly popular ALT ASO series returns, taking the stage at Pisgah Brewing in Black Mountain with Balkan Brass Meets NOLA. This genre-crossing program is inspired by the energy of Balkan brass bands and New Orleans street music; it includes favorites such as “Bourbon St. Parade,” “When the Saints Go Marching In,” and more.

On October 17, the Givens Communities Masterworks Series continues with Masterworks 2: Nightfall, featuring bassist Joseph Conyers in Tan Dun’s Contrabass Concerto: Wolf Totem. Tan Dun, best known to many audiences for his Academy Award-winning score for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, brings his trademark cinematic intensity to the program, which also includes Anna Clyne’s This Midnight Hour and Jean Sibelius’ Symphony No. 5.

The 2026–2027 season also features a wide range of Masterworks concerts, genre-crossing special performances, and an expanded ALT ASO series with five innovative concerts in venues across the region. The Symphony’s biennial Asheville Amadeus Festival returns in April 2027, featuring co-headliners Kelli O’Hara and Aaron Diehl in a variety of concerts, collaborations, and community engagements.

Full season details, subscription options, and single ticket purchases are available at
www.AshevilleSymphony.org, by phone at 828-254-7046 or in person at the Asheville
Symphony office at 27 College Place, Suite 100.

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