The Cleveland Orchestra offers exciting, fun-filled opportunities for young people to experience classical music
2019-20 Family Concert Series supported by the Weiss Family Foundation celebrates 50 years of kid-friendly Cleveland Orchestra performances at Severance Hall
2019-20 PNC Music Explorers encourages children to discover the thrill of orchestral instruments
Under 18s Free continues for both the Family Concert Series and PNC Music Explorers
CLEVELAND – The Cleveland Orchestra offers captivating and educational opportunities for children and families to experience classical music in a dynamic, kid-friendly environment. The 2019-20 Family Concert Series supported by the Weiss Family Foundation, for ages seven and older, and the PNC Music Explorers series, for children ages three to six, are designed to introduce young people to the magic and wonder of orchestral music.
A highlight of The Cleveland Orchestra’s educational offerings for young people every year, the Family Concert series celebrates its 50th Anniversary with this season’s programs. For many families across Northeast Ohio, the series has become an annual tradition by creating lasting musical memories with its presentations of unique and engaging concert experiences. Attendees are encouraged to share their recollections and photographs of Family Concerts with The Cleveland Orchestra on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter using the hashtag #cleorch.
“We’re honored and inspired to have influenced the musical memories of so many families across Northeast Ohio,” said Joan Katz Napoli, The Cleveland Orchestra’s Senior Director of Education & Community Programs. “Looking forward, we’re deepening our commitment to making music a part of every child’s life during our next half-century of Family Concerts at Severance Hall.”
Subscriptions for each series are now available by visiting the Severance Hall Ticket Office, clevelandorchestra.com, and by calling 216-231-1111 or 800-686-1141. Tickets to individual performances go on sale in late summer. The Orchestra’s popular Under 18s Free program is available for all concerts (see below for more information.)
2019-20 Family Concert Series supported by the Weiss Family Foundation
(August 14, 2019 update) On Saturday, October 26 at 2:00 p.m., members of The Cleveland Orchestra will dress in Halloween costumes for enchantingly eerie musical fun at festive Severance Hall. Our celebratory Halloween Spooktacular features an afternoon of music and magic, including Mussorgsky’s mysterious Night on Bald Mountain and Saint-Saëns’s bone-rattling Danse Macabre. Attendees are encouraged to arrive early and dress in costume for a contest to be held at 1:00 p.m., and to enjoy the Orchestra’s Instrument Discovery zone.
Leonard Bernstein was one of the most beloved and influential conductors, composers, and musical educators of the twentieth century. His daughter, Jamie Bernstein, visits Severance Hall to host The Bernstein Beat on Sunday, February 2 at 2:00 pm— a one-hour family program designed to introduce kids to her father's music and modeled after his own groundbreaking Young People's Concerts. In conjunction with this performance, audiences are encouraged to discover more about Leonard Bernstein and his music at a Maltz Museum of Jewish Heritage exhibition titled, “Leonard Bernstein: The Power of Music,” beginning in fall 2019.
Join The Cleveland Orchestra on Friday, May 1 at 7:30 p.m. for an intergalactic journey with Out of this World — a fun-filled concert that promises to transport audience members from Severance Hall to distant galaxies with music from Star Wars, Strauss’s Also Sprach Zarathustra (theme from 2001: A Space Odyssey), Holst’s The Planets, and more. The evening’s program will feature large projections of photographs taken from the Hubble Telescope, International Space Station, and NASA’s own archives. This event, which includes space-related pre-concert activities, is presented in partnership with Great Lakes Science Center — home to the NASA Glenn Visitor Center.
Every Cleveland Orchestra Family Concert features engaging pre-concert activities, including our Instrument Discovery zone, which offers hands-on opportunities for children to try playing various orchestral instruments. The Instrument Discovery program and various other free pre-concert events begin one hour before each Orchestra performance.
The Family Concert series is supported by The Giant Eagle Foundation.
PNC Music Explorers Series for 2019-20
The PNC Music Explorers Series is an ideal way for children and families to learn about orchestral instruments, one at a time, with Cleveland Orchestra musicians, special guests, and an engaging host who encourages audience members to sing, clap, and move to the music. In addition, each half-hour adventure features brief musical selections and instrument demonstrations created to inspire and entertain young music explorers, ages three to six.
This season, children have an opportunity to become music explorers at home by watching a series of five-minute videos, starring Major Scale and Ranger Rhythm, available online at https://www.clevelandorchestra.com/Education-and-Community/Music-Explorers/ or https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL3zevNxAsOJ_DUatmuxKSWYCi6whbwF4z. These videos will also be e-mailed to subscribers before PNC Music Explorers performances and shown on screens in Smith Lobby at Severance Hall.
- The Victorious Viola will be presented on October 18 & 19, with Cleveland Orchestra violist Eliesha Nelson.
- The Fantastic Flute will be presented on November 15 & 16, with Cleveland Orchestra assistant principal flutist Jessica Sindell.
- The Cheerful Cello will be presented on March 6 & 7, with Cleveland Orchestra cellist David Alan Harrell.
- The Triumphant Trumpet will be presented on April 17 & 18, with Cleveland Orchestra trumpet player Jack Sutte.
- The final concert in the series is Powerful Percussion, presented on May 1 & 2, with Cleveland Orchestra percussionist Thomas Sherwood.
- In addition, the series includes a special PNC Holiday Music Explorers program, focusing on the traditions and sounds of the season. It features the Christmas Brass Quintet, with members of the Orchestra’s brass section, and will be presented on December 13 & 14 in the Concert Hall at Severance Hall.
PNC Music Explorers concerts are sponsored by PNC Bank and endowed by the Pysht Fund.
Cleveland Orchestra PNC Music Explorers and Family Concerts are part of a broad array of educational programs designed to foster a lifetime love of music. For more information, please contact The Cleveland Orchestra’s Department of Education and Community Programs at 216-231-7355 or visit https://www.clevelandorchestra.com/education-and-community/overview/
Under 18s Free
The Cleveland Orchestra’s Under 18s Free program offers free tickets (one per regular-priced adult paid admission) to young people, 17 and under, for PNC Music Explorers concerts and the Family Concert Series supported by the Weiss Family Foundation. Under 18s Free tickets are not available for box seating.
Under 18s Free is a program of The Cleveland Orchestra’s Center for Future Audiences. The Center, created with a lead endowment gift from the Maltz Family Foundation, was established to fund programs to foster new generations of audiences for Cleveland Orchestra concerts in Northeast Ohio. Under 18s Free continues to develop young audiences by making Orchestra concerts affordable for families, offering free tickets to young people, 17 and under, for select Severance Hall performances. For more information on Under 18s Free and other Center for Future Audiences ticketing programs, please visit: https://www.clevelandorchestra.com/support-and-volunteers/center-for-future-audiences/.
Ticket and Performance Parking Information
A three-concert subscription package for the 2019-20 Family Concert Series supported by the Weiss Family Foundation is available now through the Cleveland Orchestra Ticket Office. Subscribers save up to 33% off the price of individual concert tickets and are guaranteed the same reserved seats for all three concerts. Subscription prices are $30 or $60 for all three concerts.
Five-concert packages for the PNC Music Explorers series are now on sale. Subscriptions are $25 for the five-concert series, a savings of nearly 30% off the price of individual tickets. Two subscription series times are available: Friday at 10:00 a.m. and Saturday at 11:00 a.m. Individual tickets to the Christmas Brass Quintet concerts are priced at $7 and may be added to a PNC Music Explorers series subscription.
Tickets to individual performances go on sale in late summer.
For more information about the Family Concert Series supported by the Weiss Family Foundation and PNC Music Explorers programs, or to subscribe, call the Cleveland Orchestra Ticket Office at 216-231-1111 or 800-686-1141, or visit clevelandorchestra.com.
The Severance Hall Ticket Office is located on street level in the Smith Lobby. The entrance and 15-minute Ticket Service parking are along the west side of the building, on East Boulevard. Severance Hall Ticket Office hours are Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. From September through May, the Ticket Office is also open on Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. (closed Sundays and holidays except for those days with performances, when the Ticket Office will be open three hours before each performance).
For information about parking for Severance Hall concerts, click here.
All programs, artists, and prices are subject to change.
Education and Community Engagement
The Cleveland Orchestra’s commitment to education and community service was central to the establishment of this ensemble in 1918, and remains a cornerstone initiative. Over the past century The Cleveland Orchestra has introduced more than four million young people to symphonic music through live concert experiences. Today, with the support of many generous individual, foundation, corporate, and governmental funding partners, the Orchestra’s education and community programs reach more than 60,000 young people and adults annually, helping to foster a lifelong relationship with music and the arts. Music Director Franz Welser-MÓ§st leads the Orchestra into its second century with a renewed commitment to music education and community engagement based on his conviction that every child’s life should include music. He also believes that the arts are critical to a well-rounded education, and learning is a lifelong pursuit and journey.
As The Cleveland Orchestra looks to the future, it strives to be Cleveland’s Orchestra, engaging Northeast Ohio’s diverse citizenry and building community through music, removing barriers to participation, advocating for and helping to facilitate equitable access to comprehensive music education, nurturing the next generation of musicians and audience members, and harnessing the life-changing power of music to make the world a better place through new initiatives developed for even deeper impact. For more information visit https://www.clevelandorchestra.com/education-and-community/overview/.
2019-20 Family Concert Series supported by the Weiss Family Foundation
CALENDAR LISTINGS
Severance Hall
Sunday, October 27, 2019, at 2:00 p.m. (August 14, 2019 update)
HALLOWEEN SPOOKTACULAR
The Cleveland Orchestra
Vinay Parameswaran, conductor
Audience members are encouraged to dress in Halloween costumes for an afternoon of spooky and melodic fun, in a program filled with magical tricks and musical treats. Relish in Mussorgsky’s mysterious Night on Bald Mountain, shiver at Saint-Saëns’s bone-rattling Danse Macabre, and more. There will be a pre-performance costume contest for audience members — and orchestra musicians — at our “haunted” concert hall.
Severance Hall
Sunday, February 2, 2020, at 2:00 p.m.
THE BERNSTEIN BEAT
The Cleveland Orchestra
Vinay Parameswaran, conductor
Leonard Bernstein was one of the most beloved and influential conductors, composers, and musical educators of the twentieth century. His daughter, Jamie Bernstein, hosts this one-hour family program designed to introduce kids to her father's music and modeled after his own groundbreaking Young People's Concerts. According to Cleveland’s Plain Dealer, “[Jamie Bernstein] resembles her dad — irrepressible, feisty, and game for just about anything.” In conjunction with this performance, audiences are encouraged to discover more about Leonard Bernstein and his music at a Maltz Museum of Jewish Heritage exhibition titled, “Leonard Bernstein: The Power of Music,” beginning in fall 2019.
Severance Hall
Friday, May 1, 2020, at 7:30 p.m.
OUT OF THIS WORLD
The Cleveland Orchestra
Vinay Parameswaran, conductor
Presented in partnership with Great Lakes Science Center and its NASA Glenn Visitor Center
Join The Cleveland Orchestra for an intergalactic journey with Out of this World— a fun-filled concert that promises to transport audience members from Severance Hall to distant galaxies with music from Star Wars, Strauss’s Also Sprach Zarathustra (theme from 2001: A Space Odyssey), Holst’s The Planets, and more. The evening’s program will feature large projections of photographs taken from the Hubble Telescope, International Space Station, and NASA’s own archives. This event, which includes space-related pre-concert activities, is presented in partnership with Great Lakes Science Center — home to the NASA Glenn Visitor Center.
Instrument Discovery and other free pre-concert activities begin one hour before each Family Concert Series performance.
2019-20 PNC MUSIC EXPLORERS SERIES
CALENDAR LISTINGS
(Thirty-minute programs for children ages three to six and their families.)
The PNC Music Explorers Series is an ideal way for children and families to learn about orchestral instruments, one at a time, with Cleveland Orchestra musicians, special guests, and an engaging host who encourages audience members to sing, clap, and move to the music. In addition, each half-hour adventure features brief musical selections and instrument demonstrations created to inspire and entertain young music explorers.
THE VICTORIOUS VIOLA
Severance Hall
Friday, October 18, 2019, at 10:00 a.m.
Saturday, October 19, 2019, at 11:00 a.m.
Eliesha Nelson, viola
THE FANTASTIC FLUTE
Severance Hall
Friday, November 15, 2019, at 10:00 a.m.
Saturday, November 16, 2019, at 11:00 a.m.
Jessica Sindell, flute
THE CHEERFUL CELLO
Severance Hall
Friday, March 6, 2020, at 10:00 a.m.
Saturday, March 7, 2020, at 11:00 a.m.
David Alan Harrell, cello
THE TRIUMPHANT TRUMPET
Severance Hall
Friday, April 17, 2020, at 10:00 a.m.
Saturday, April 18, 2020, at 11:00 a.m.
Jack Sutte, trumpet
POWERFUL PERCUSSION
Severance Hall
Friday, May 1, 2020, at 10:00 a.m.
Saturday, May 2, 2020, at 11:00 a.m.
Thomas Sherwood, percussion
PNC HOLIDAY MUSIC EXPLORERS
For young people and their families
Cleveland Orchestra members and guests perform short selections celebrating the music of the season.
CHRISTMAS BRASS QUINTET
Severance Hall
Friday, December 13, 2019, at 10:00 a.m.
Saturday, December 14, 2019, at 11:00 a.m.
Michael Miller, trumpet
Lyle Steelman, trumpet
Whitney Clair, trombone
Hans Clebsch, horn
Kenneth Heinlein, tuba
PNC Music Explorers are performed on Fridays at 10:00 a.m. and Saturdays at 11:00 a.m.