Baltimore Symphony Orchestra’s Music for Maryland Tour Returns with Eight Statewide Summer Performances

Pay What You Wish Admission Increases Accessibility to Classical Music Across the State

(BALTIMORE, MD) – This summer, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra’s (BSO) Music for Maryland Tour makes its 2024 return, delivering eight, pay-what-you-wish performances across the state of Maryland.

The tour kicks off on July 9, 2024, featuring a mix of chamber ensemble and full orchestra performances in Dorchester, Somerset, Caroline, Talbot, Worcester, and Wicomico Counties on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, Charles County in Southern Maryland and Washington County in Western Maryland. Admission to each concert is pay-what-you-wish, and reservations are encouraged. Each concert promises a unique sonic journey through both time-honored classics and modern favorites, embodying the orchestra’s artistic range and diversity.

“Music for Maryland is about transforming our commitment into tangible experiences, bringing the joy of music to every corner of Maryland,” said Mark Hanson, President, and CEO of the BSO. “We are thankful for the partnerships with counties across the state that have made this tour possible as we look for new ways to serve our community statewide.”

The BSO’s Music for Maryland Tour full orchestra performances showcase an exhilarating blend of accessible classical masterpieces, from the timeless, infectious melodies of Rossini’s Barber of Seville Overture and Brahms’s Variations on a Theme of Joseph Haydn to the contemporary vibrance of Montgomery’s Strum and Bellido’s Techno from Fiesta. Audiences will be treated to a rich tapestry of sounds and witness dazzling solos as performed by select members of the Baltimore Symphony. Additionally, the BSO will also offer three evenings of chamber music on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. These special intimate concerts will feature a wide variety of repertoire performed by BSO Ensembles.

Launched in 2022 coming out of the pandemic, the Music for Maryland Tour’s goal was to expand the reach of the BSO throughout the state of Maryland and beyond the walls of the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall and The Music Center at Strathmore and into all 24 jurisdictions throughout the state by the end of 2024 with an intensive focus on the summer months.

This year’s Music for Maryland Tour received renewed leadership support from the Maryland Legislature in the form of a FY2025 State Operating Grant of $500,000, with special recognition to Senator Guy Guzzone and Delegate Benjamin Barnes, leadership including Senate President William “Bill” Ferguson, Speaker Adrienne Jones, and the Governor Wes Moore administration, highlighting a collective vision for cultural prosperity across Maryland. Additional support for this year’s tour is provided by the PNC Bank Foundation. In honor of the leadership gifts of Robert E. Meyerhoff and Rheda Becker, all Music for Maryland concerts will once again be recognized as Robert E. Meyerhoff & Rheda Becker Community Performances.

The insights garnered from the ambitious three-year Music for Maryland journey will help to guide the BSO’s future endeavors in statewide tours, emphasizing a sustained commitment to musical outreach and inclusivity.

For more details on the Music for Maryland Tour and to reserve tickets, please visit www.bsomusic.org/music-for-maryland.

Full 2024 Music for Maryland Schedule

Dorchester County
Dorchester Center for the Arts
321 High Street, Cambridge, MD
Chamber Ensemble, July 9, 2024, 7 pm

Washington County
Maryland Theatre
21 S. Potomac Street, Hagerstown, MD
Full Orchestra, July 11, 2024, 7 pm

Artists
Nicholas Hersh, conductor
René Shapiro, trumpet
Jane Marvine, English horn

Repertoire
ROSSINI Barber of Seville Overture
SHOSTAKOVICH Capriccio from Two Pieces by Domenico Scarlatti
BELLIDO Techno from Fiesta!
COPLAND Quiet City
FAURÉ Gavotte from Masques et bergamasques
MONTGOMERY Strum
BRAHMS Variations on a Theme of Joseph Haydn

Wicomico County
Jackson Family Auditorium at Holloway Hall-Salisbury University
1101 Camden Avenue Salisbury, MD
Chamber Ensemble, July 16, 7 pm

Somerset County
University of Maryland, Eastern Shore, Fitzgerald Performing Arts Center
11868 College Backbone Rd, Princess Anne, MD
Full Orchestra, July 18, 2024, 7 pm

Artists
Stephanie Childress, conductor
Jeremy Buckler, trombone

Repertoire
ROSSINI Barber of Seville Overture
SHOSTAKOVICH Capriccio from Two Pieces by Domenico Scarlatti
BELLIDO Techno from Fiesta!
BARFIELD Red Sky FAURÉ Gavotte from Masques et bergamasques
MONTGOMERY Strum
BRAHMS Variations on a Theme of Joseph Haydn

Caroline County
Colonel Richardson High School
25320 Richardson Road, Federalsburg, MD
Full Orchestra, August 1, 2024, 7 pm

Artists
Anthony Parnther, conductor
Lisa Steltenpohl, viola

Repertoire
ROSSINI Barber of Seville Overture
SHOSTAKOVICH Capriccio from Two Pieces by Domenico Scarlatti
BELLIDO Techno from Fiesta!
COPLAND Quiet City
FAURÉ Gavotte from Masques et bergamasques
MONTGOMERY Strum
BRAHMS Variations on a Theme of Joseph Haydn

Charles County
North Point High School
2500 Davis Road, Waldorf, MD
Full Orchestra, August 2, 2024, 7 pm

Artists
Anthony Parnther, conductor
Lisa Steltenpohl, viola

Repertoire
ROSSINI Barber of Seville Overture
SHOSTAKOVICH Capriccio from Two Pieces by Domenico Scarlatti
BELLIDO Techno from Fiesta!
BRUCH Romance in F major for Viola and Orchestra FAURÉ Gavotte from Masques et bergamasques
MONTGOMERY Strum
BRAHMS Variations on a Theme of Joseph Haydn

Talbot County
Oxford Community Center
200 Oxford Street, Oxford, MD
Chamber Ensemble, August 3, 2024, 7 pm

Worcester County
Ocean City Performing Arts Center
4001 Ocean Highway Center, Ocean City, MD
Full Orchestra, August 11, 2024, 3 pm

Artists
Michelle Merrill, conductor
Nina DeCesare, bass

Repertoire
ROSSINI Barber of Seville Overture
SHOSTAKOVICH Capriccio from Two Pieces by Domenico Scarlatti
BELLIDO Techno from Fiesta!
ROTA Divertimento Concertante for Double Bass and Orchestra, mvts. I & IV
FAURÉ Gavotte from Masques et bergamasques
MONTGOMERY Strum
BRAHMS Variations on a Theme of Joseph Haydn