UK Symphony Orchestra opens 107th season
LEXINGTON, Ky. (Sept. 18, 2025) — The University of Kentucky Symphony Orchestra (UKSO), under the direction of John Nardolillo, has announced its 107th season of concerts.
The season will open 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 26, in the Singletary Center for the Arts Concert Hall with Johannes Brahms’ “Academic Festival Overture,” Jimmy López’s “Fiesta!” in its Kentucky premiere, music from Engelbert Humperdinck’s “Hansel and Gretel” and Antonín Dvořák’s Symphony No. 8. The opening night concert will feature Nardolillo alongside conductor and doctoral student Stephan Gomez.
The 2025-26 UKSO season will continue Friday, Nov. 7, with Symphony No. 2, titled “Mysterious Mountain,” by Alan Hovhannes; Jean Sibelius’ Violin Concerto featuring Nathan Cole; and Dmitri Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 5. On Thursday, Dec. 4, the orchestra will present Esa-Pekka Salonen’s “Helix” in its Kentucky premiere; Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto featuring Ricardo Morales; Camille Saint-Saëns’ “Introduction et Rondo capriccioso” with violinist Amy Oshiro; and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4.
The spring semester concerts begin Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026, featuring instruments from the “Violins of Hope” traveling exhibit. Instruments in the private collection include violins, violas and cellos, all collected following the end of World War II. The program includes Jennifer Higdon’s “blue cathedral;” Kentucky premieres of works by Hans Krása, Pavel Haas and Viktor Ullmann; John Williams’ Theme from “Schindler’s List” featuring violinist and doctoral student Reisa Fukuda; and Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 4, featuring soprano and UK School of Music alum Mary-Hollis Hundley and violinist and master’s degree student Edgar Querales.
On Friday, March 27, the orchestra will highlight the annual Concerto Competition Winner, along with Maria Huld Markan Sigfúsdóttir’s “Clockworking” in its Kentucky premiere and Jean Sibelius’ Symphony No. 2. To close the season, UKSO will join forces with the UK Choirs and The Lexington Singers on Friday, April 24. The season finale will feature Johannes Brahms’ Symphony No. 3 and his monumental “German Requiem,” with soloists Catherine Clarke Nardolillo, D.M.A., and doctoral student Chris Burchett.
Tickets
Tickets to the UK Symphony Orchestra and UK Choirs season finale are $20 for adults and $10 for students (additional online processing fees may apply) and are available at the Singletary Center ticket office, by phone at 859-257-4929 or online at SingletaryCenter.com. Students can also get one free ticket in advance through the Singletary Center ticket office and must present their IDs at the door the day of the event. Free tickets are not available on the day of the performance.
About the UKSO
Founded in 1918, the UK Symphony Orchestra, part of the School of Music within the College of Fine Arts, is a 100-member all-student ensemble presenting classical, chamber, opera, and education concerts. The group includes undergraduate and graduate students from across the United States and around the world. UKSO has regularly performed with world-renowned artists including Itzhak Perlman, Sarah Chang, Marvin Hamlisch, Denyce Graves, Ronan Tynan, Wynonna Judd, Keith Lockhart and Arlo Guthrie.
As the state’s flagship, land-grant institution, the University of Kentucky exists to advance the Commonwealth. We do that by preparing the next generation of leaders — placing students at the heart of everything we do — and transforming the lives of Kentuckians through education, research and creative work, service and health care. We pride ourselves on being a catalyst for breakthroughs and a force for healing, a place where ingenuity unfolds. It's all made possible by our people — visionaries, disruptors and pioneers — who make up 200 academic programs, a $476.5 million research and development enterprise and a world-class medical center, all on one campus.