Review: ‘With Last-Minute Conductor Swap, Philharmonic Soldiers On’

NEW YORK — The New York Times has published a review of Brett Mitchell’s eleventh-hour subscription debut with the New York Philharmonic:

The final weeks of an orchestra’s season can feel like the end of school: Everyone’s worn down and summer is beckoning. Last week’s program at the New York Philharmonic had that mood even before a late-breaking curveball that tested the orchestra further.

The Spanish conductor Juanjo Mena was to be on the podium for the New York debut of Kevin Puts’s “The Brightness of Light,” an orchestral song cycle featuring the soprano Renée Fleming and the baritone Rod Gilfry, along with Ravel’s rapturous “Daphnis et Chloé.”

But the Philharmonic announced on Thursday afternoon — just a day before the concerts — that Mena would not be conducting…

Instead, the conductor Brett Mitchell, the music director of California’s Pasadena Symphony and a newcomer to the Philharmonic, stepped in. Mitchell possesses the right credentials, having led “The Brightness of Light” at the Colorado Symphony with Fleming and Gilfry in 2019. Still, this was no easy task given his truncated rehearsal time and lack of familiarity with the players.

“The Brightness of Light” is a portrait of the artist Georgia O’Keeffe and her husband, the photographer Alfred Stieglitz. For the libretto, Puts uses selections from their correspondence — from the heady rush of their early relationship through its souring and O’Keeffe’s deepening romance with the landscape of New Mexico. (This work expands on an earlier piece with Fleming, “Letters,” that relies solely on O’Keeffe’s perspective.)

Puts, who also wrote the opera “The Hours” with Fleming in mind, adores her voice’s glowing luminosity; his orchestral writing often bathes her in shining halos of sound, and on Friday she returned the favor. Gilfry, who was also making his New York Philharmonic debut, handled Stieglitz with polish, though the role functions as little more than a foil for O’Keeffe’s personal and artistic evolution.

The music was accompanied by Wendall K. Harrington’s visuals, which included projections of work by O’Keeffe and Stieglitz, images of the couple’s letters, and libretto supertitles. Puts leans on the projections to do the storytelling; the music often feels more like accompaniment than main attraction. Still, he illustrates the couple’s complicated relationship with verve and humor, deploying rapid percussion to express the nervous, bright energy of new love, and a hacking, squawking violin solo (played by the concertmaster Frank Huang) to go with the lines “I’ve labored on the violin till all my fingers are sore — You never in your wildest dreams imagined anything worse than the notes I get out of it.” (A little on the nose, but enjoyable nonetheless.)

Then came the Ravel, played with a steely determination to get through the not-ideal circumstances… School may be almost out, but the Philharmonic passed this particular test with grit.

To read the complete review, please click here.

(A version of this article appeared in print on May 21, 2025, Section C, Page 2 of the New York edition with the headline: “Last-Minute Switch Steps Up to Podium. A newcomer conducts a song cycle featuring Renée Fleming.”)

Review: ‘New York Philharmonic with Renée Fleming & Rod Gilfry – Brett Mitchell conducts Puts and Ravel’

Conductor Brett Mitchell and New York Philharmonic Chorus director Malcolm J. Merriweather onstage with the New York Philharmonic. © Brandon Patoc

Stepping in for Juanjo Mena, Brett Mitchell made an impressive Philharmonic debut.

NEW YORK — Classical Source has published a review of Brett Mitchell’s recent subscription debut with the New York Philharmonic:

Based on the 30-year-long, almost-daily correspondence between American painter Georgia O’Keeffe and the German-born photographer Alfred Stieglitz, Kevin Puts’s Brightness of Light is an expansion of his 2015 song-cycle, Letters from Georgia. Composed for Renée Fleming and Rod Gilfry in 2019, the highly programmatic piece is difficult to categorize. Enhanced by Wendall K. Harrington’s engaging and evocative projection design – which utilizes videos of O’Keeffe and images by both artists and copies of some of their letters – the opus touches on every aspect of the couple’s tumultuous relationship, from their first, business-like meeting, through their initial ardor and post-marriage cooling off, to their final separation, which left them physically distant though still emotional entwined…

Under [Brett] Mitchell, the Philharmonic was rhythmically secure and well-attuned to the nuances of Puts’s captivating score, and electrifying in the rapturous rendition of ‘The High Priestess of the Desert’. There were many memorable moments, most notably concertmaster Frank Huang’s humorous, scordatura-tuned accompaniment to O’Keeffe’s narration of her own attempts to play the violin, and the tuned gongs in the concluding ‘Sunset’.

Somewhat long-winded, with an outlandish scenario based on a 2nd century quasi-mythic love story involving a goatherd, a shepherdess, a herdsman, pirates and the god Pan, Daphnis et Chloé is perhaps best appreciated by simply sitting back and marveling at Ravel’s miraculous music. Mitchell expertly managed the score’s frequent tempo changes, alternating between languid wooing, ceremonial processions, exhilarating dances, sudden scenes of conflict, and tumultuous revelry. Flute, clarinet, horn, and trumpet soloists were uniformly eloquent, and Nancy Allen (recognized at intermission for her 25 years as the Philharmonic’s principal harp) delivered particularly graceful glissandos. The vocalizing of the 60-member NY Philharmonic Chorus, meticulously prepared by Malcolm J. Merriweather, provided additional color and strength to this ravishing rendition.

To read the complete review, please click here.

Review: ‘Kevin Puts Has Georgia (and Alfred) on His Mind in BRIGHTNESS at NY Philharmonic’

Soprano Renée Fleming, conductor Brett Mitchell, and baritone Rod Gilfry perform Kevin Puts’s The Brightness of Light with the New York Philharmonic. © Brandon Patoc

Renee Fleming and Rod Gilfry Thrill in Helping Bring Correspondence to Musical Life with Conductor Brett Mitchell

NEW YORK — Broadway World has published a review of Brett Mitchell’s recent subscription debut with the New York Philharmonic:

This past weekend, composer Kevin Puts’s BRIGHTNESS OF LIGHT, based on the long, abundant correspondence of artist Georgia O’Keeffe and photographer/gallerist Alfred Stieglitz, had its long overdue New York premiere, with the New York Philharmonic under debuting conductor Brett Mitchell, and soprano Renee Fleming as O’Keeffe and baritone Rod Gilfry as Stieglitz, friends and lovers (marital and otherwise)…

The Philharmonic was not left out of Puts’s efforts—not only in the marvelously, intricately orchestrated songs, but in a pair of Orchestral Interludes, “Georgia and Alfred” and “The High Priestess of the Desert”—through which conductor Mitchell drew sweep and passion. He was a last-minute substitution on the podium, though he had conducted the work once before. Still, he did a stellar job, as did the ensemble…

Filling out the program was Ravel’s “Daphnis et Chloe (Choreographic Symphony in Three Parts),” which had been written by the composer for the Ballets Russes in 1912. It ran from the rhapsodic to the anarchic and back again, and was exciting to hear even if it's not among Ravel's most frequently played works.

Again, Mitchell didn’t have much time with the orchestra when he was parachuted in to replace Juanjo Mena, who was a last-minute cancellation, but the performance nonetheless ran smoothly… The New York Philharmonic Chorus, under Malcolm Merriweather, added greatly to the overall effect of the piece, becoming one more element of the orchestra.

To read the complete review, please click here.

Review: ‘Noisy and pastoral love vie in mixed Philharmonic program’

Brett Mitchell conducts the New York Philharmonic. © Brandon Patoc

NEW YORK — New York Classical Review has published a review of Brett Mitchell’s recent subscription debut with the New York Philharmonic:

Complete scores of ballets can flag in concert without dancers to sustain interest, but the hour-long performance of Daphnis et Chloé had no such problem Friday night. One could try to picture in one’s mind the ballet’s wacky scenario involving religious rites, shepherdesses and pirates, or one could just sit back and appreciate Ravel’s mastery of orchestral color and atmosphere. Ravel extracted two suites from this score, the second of which has become a familiar concert item, but it turns out the material in between the excerpts is almost as interesting.

Conductor [Brett] Mitchell smoothly managed Ravel’s constant tempo changes, ushering in stately processions, infectious dances, languid wooing, sudden battles, and ecstatic revelry by rapid turns. (The list of tempo markings alone occupied an entire page of the Philharmonic program.)

The wordless singing of the New York Philharmonic Chorus, directed by Malcolm J. Merriweather, put a human presence in the scene, whether cooing over the lovers or shouting for joy in the work’s closing revels.

Wind soloists and concertmaster Frank Huang had their eloquent say in the score’s quieter moments. Ripping arpeggios and tinkling nature sounds were contributed by harpist Nancy Allen, who was recognized before the performance for her 25 years as the Philharmonic’s principal harp.

To read the complete review, please click here.

Review: ‘Scenes from a marriage: The Brightness of Light at the NY Philharmonic’

The Brightness of Light creative team: from L to R, the New York Philharmonic, composer Kevin Puts, projection designer Wendall K. Harrington, conductor Brett Mitchell, baritone Rod Gilfry, and soprano Renée Fleming. © Brandon Patoc

NEW YORK — Bachtrack has published a review of Brett Mitchell’s recent subscription debut with the New York Philharmonic:

Georgia O’Keeffe and Alfred Stieglitz wrote thousands of letters to each other, beginning in 1916 and continuing until his death 30 years later. Along the way, her talent and his influence turned them into one of the most influential artistic couples the United States has ever produced. Kevin Puts memorializes their complex relationship, and their way with words, in The Brightness of Light, a song cycle drawn from their voluminous correspondence. Previously heard in Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles and Kansas City since its 2019 premiere, the work made its long-awaited Manhattan debut at the New York Philharmonic, featuring its original stars, Renée Fleming and Rod Gilfry.

Puts approaches the musical language in his typical style, an unapologetic embrace of neo-romanticism that recalls Barber and other mid-20th century American composers. The orchestra swells in two overwhelmingly lush interludes, Georgia and Alfred and The High Priestess of the Desert, with deeply chromatic tutti passages that envelope the listener in an intense sound world. There is a pleasing lyricism to Puts’ writing here, and the Philharmonic produced an appropriately warm coloring under conductor Brett Mitchell, a last-minute replacement…

Mitchell rounded out the program with a complete performance of Daphnis et Chloé, the latest in the Philharmonic’s ongoing celebration of Ravel’s 150th anniversary. The unusually bright acoustic of David Geffen Hall since its renovation in 2022 served the piece well, isolating solo voices in the woodwind and brass that sometimes get lost within the overall tapestry of the hour-long work. Mitchell kept the action moving seamlessly in a work that can easily turn a conductor into a traffic cop, and while the listener’s attention sometimes cannot help but wane, the Philharmonic’s reading offered a performance delightfully varied in color and style. Much credit goes to the New York Philharmonic Chorus, prepared by Malcolm J Merriweather, whose wordless cries of ecstasy set the right bacchic mood.

To read the full review, please click here.

Review: ‘Love, Light, Letters: Song Cycle Embraces Painter, Photographer’

Brett Mitchell leads the New York Philharmonic in Kevin Puts’s ‘The Brightness of Light’ with soprano Renée Fleming and baritone Rod Gilfry. © Brandon Patoc

NEW YORK — Classical Voice North America has published a review of Brett Mitchell’s recent subscription debut with the New York Philharmonic:

On May 16, the New York Philharmonic offered a program of two romances born in the early 20th century: a contemporary song cycle based on the correspondence between two iconic American artists and a 1912 ballet score highlighting nymphs and shepherds from classical mythology. The repertoire provided the opportunity to luxuriate in work by two of America’s finest opera veterans, supported and surrounded by New York’s flagship orchestra in full fettle.

Kevin Puts’ The Brightness of Light was born from an Eastman School of Music 2015 commission for soprano Renée Fleming for a performance by the conservatory’s orchestra at Lincoln Center. Eastman alumnus Puts came across a quote from Georgia O’Keeffe — “My first memory is of the brightness of light, of light all around” — and decided to set letters from the painter’s voluminous correspondence with Alfred Stieglitz, photographer, gallery owner, and O’Keeffe’s life partner. After the premiere of the cycle of eight songs for soprano, Fleming suggested expanding the work into a musical dialogue with Stieglitz with a part for a male singer. The expanded cycle premiered in 2019 at Tanglewood, co-commissioned by seven performing institutions, with Fleming and baritone Rod Gilfry in the roles they sang with the Philharmonic…

The complete score of Ravel’s Daphnis et Chloé (2012) filled the second half and provided a showcase for the orchestra, particularly appropriate on an evening honoring Philharmonic retirees and long-serving current members. Rich in solo opportunities throughout the sections, the work was Ravel’s only score for the legendary Ballets Russes, which from 1909 to 1929 was Europe’s preeminent ballet company. The hour-long ballet, to Ravel’s longest score, is set on the island of Lesbos where the goatherd Daphnis pursues the shepherdess Chloé among nymphs and shepherds. After Daphné is abducted by pirates and rescued, thanks to the intervention of Pan, all dance a frenzied bacchanale.

Ravel’s lush impressionistic language was a treat for the ear… There were many sensual delights to relish, notably the sinuous flute solos played by Robert Langevin.

In his Philharmonic debut, Brett Mitchell was a last-minute replacement for scheduled conductor Juanjo Mena. Mitchell currently serves as music director of the Pasadena Symphony and has appeared with major orchestras across the U.S. and globally. Even on short notice, Mitchell was well prepared for the [Kevin] Puts cycle [The Brightness of Light], having conducted the work in 2019 as music director of the Colorado Symphony, one of the work’s co-commissioners. The occasional earsplitting fortissimo (and a runaway wind machine) revealed Mitchell’s lack of familiarity with the acoustics of David Geffen Hall, but the conductor paced both works nicely, with a good sense of where the Puts needed to breathe.

To read the complete review, please click here.

In his Philharmonic debut, Brett Mitchell was a last-minute replacement for scheduled conductor Juanjo Mena. © Brandon Patoc

Preview: ‘Van Cliburn Winning Pianist Coming to Sunriver’

Brett Mitchell leads the Sunriver Music Festival Orchestra in Sunriver, Ore. (Photo by David Young-Wolff)

BEND, Ore. — Source Weekly has published a preview of the Sunriver Music Festival’s 2025 season, Brett Mitchell’s fourth as Artistic Director & Conductor:

During this year's Sunriver Music Festival, listeners will be treated to amazing performers, diverse compositions and a dynamic, creative driving force behind it all. One of the most thrilling aspects of this year's festival is that a newly awarded medalist from the prestigious Van Cliburn International Piano Competition will be announced on June 7, and this performer will subsequently come to Sunriver to play two concerts. Artistic Director and Conductor Brett Mitchell shared his excitement over the 48th season of the festival…

Source Weekly: How did the partnership between the Van Cliburn Piano Competition and the Sunriver Music Festival come about?

Brett Mitchell: The Cliburn connection is something that has been a part of Sunriver Music Festival for longer than I have been. It is always, of course, an enormous event in the classical music world. These pianists come from all over the world, and to have a complete unknown who, seemingly overnight, becomes a household name is amazing. This opportunity that we have in Sunriver to feature one of the medalists, honestly is one of the things that attracted me to this position. The opportunity to work with some of the greatest up-and-coming musicians on the scene is incredible. I'm a musician, period, because I had a great high school band director. I thought that's what I wanted to do, to teach young musicians. And that has been a very big part of my career. When I was the assistant director of the Cleveland Orchestra, I was also the director of the Cleveland Youth Orchestra. So, the opportunity to find these young musicians that the Cliburn has and shine a light on them... and that we in Sunriver are able to bring them to our community, literally two months after they have been awarded a medal, is just amazing. I think it's one of the most exciting things we do. 

SW: I imagine it's a bit like choosing a favorite child, but which concert are you personally most excited about this summer?

BM: I love all of these programs. The French program that we open with is going to be a really nice experience. All of the pieces are French, but they couldn't be more different from each other. The Dukas Fanfare is a brass fanfare, which is not something you associate with France. The Ravel Piano Concerto is hugely inspired by George Gershwin and the world of jazz. The Fauré is probably what most folks would consider French music: delicate, beautiful, exquisite. And then, of course, there's Carmen [by Bizet] which is designed to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Carmen, which premiered in 1875, and it also marks the 150th anniversary of Bizet's death. And then also the Classical Tradition program, with the Bolcom Commedia, which is such a funny, witty piece. To have Mark Kosower, who is the principal cellist of the Cleveland Orchestra, come out and do the Rococo Variations of Tchaikovsky... and we know that Tchaikovsky was history's greatest admirer of Mozart, along with about five million of the rest of us! Then to have [Mozart's] Marriage of Figaro on there, it's such a greatest hit of classical music. And then to follow that up with the Stravinsky Dance Concertantes, which is from Stravinsky's neoclassical period... that program I'm really excited about as well. I know you asked for one, but there's two.

SW: Can you talk about your personal journey with music?

BM: When I was growing up in Seattle in the '80s and early '90s when grunge hit, I got to Nirvana before I got to Beethoven. But when I got to Beethoven in high school a few years later, it did not sound so different to me from Nirvana. It was like, here's this guy, or group of guys, and they are clearly going through some stuff... and they are trying to say it artistically to see if it might resonate with the rest of us. And that, I don't care if you are from the 1700s, 1800s, 1900s or today, if you have a universal message, it's worth hearing. Which is why we do what we do.

To read the complete preview, please click here.

BREAKING: Brett Mitchell Steps In at the New York Philharmonic

NEW YORK — Stepping in for an indisposed Juanjo Mena, Brett Mitchell will make his subscription debut with the New York Philharmonic this weekend, the orchestra has announced.

On the first half of the program is Kevin Puts’s The Brightness of Light, featuring soprano Renée Fleming and baritone Rod Gilfry. Mr. Mitchell was a co-commissioner of this work during his tenure as Music Director of the Colorado Symphony.

On the second half, Mr. Mitchell and the orchestra will be joined by the New York Philharmonic Chorus for a performance of the complete score of Maurice Ravel’s ballet Daphnis et Chloé.

Three performances will be presented in the Philharmonic’s home of the Wu Tsai Theater at David Geffen Hall:

• Friday, May 16 at 7:30 p.m

• Saturday, May 17 at 7:30 p.m.

• Sunday, May 18 at 2 p.m.

For information, please click here.

Composer Kevin Puts, soprano Renée Fleming, conductor Brett Mitchell, and baritone Rod Gilfry after performing The Brightness of Light with the Colorado Symphony in November 2019

Brett Mitchell Returns to the Houston Symphony in June 2025

HOUSTON — The Houston Symphony has announced that Brett Mitchell will return to lead the orchestra in Patrick Doyle’s score for Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, the fourth film in the Harry Potter franchise.

Mr. Mitchell and the orchestra will present the film with live orchestral accompaniment three times at Jones Hall:

• Friday, June 27 at 7:30 p.m.

• Saturday, June 28 at 2 p.m.

• Sunday, June 29 at 2 p.m.

For more information, please click here.

Mr. Mitchell has been leading the Houston Symphony for almost 20 years since joining the orchestra as Assistant Conductor in the 2007-08 season. Since then, he has led more than 150 performances with the ensemble, including John Williams’s Oscar-nominated score for the first film in the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, in July 2023.

Preview: ‘Pasadena Symphony to Close Season with Beethoven’s “Pastoral” Symphony’

Music Director Brett Mitchell leads the Pasadena Symphony at the Ambassador Auditorium in October 2024. He will lead the final program of his inaugural season on Saturday, May 3. (Photo by Karen Tapia)

PASADENA — Pasadena Now has published a preview of the final program of Brett Mitchell’s inaugural season as Music Director of the Pasadena Symphony:

Pasadena Symphony […] will close out its 2024-2025 season with an afternoon and evening of sweeping romanticism and bucolic serenity as Music Director Brett Mitchell leads a program culminating in Beethoven’s Symphony No. 6, the “Pastoral,” on Saturday, May 3.

Performances are scheduled for 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. at the Ambassador Auditorium.

The concert marks the conclusion of Mitchell’s inaugural season at the helm of the orchestra, and the repertoire reflects his signature approach: programs that are both emotionally resonant and carefully constructed.

“The program ends with a sense of optimism and joy,” the symphony stated in its season announcement. The concert will open with George Whitefield Chadwick’s “A Pastoral Prelude for Orchestra,” followed by Max Bruch’s beloved “Violin Concerto No. 1,” featuring acclaimed American soloist William Hagen.

Hagen, who performs on a rare 1732 Antonio Stradivari violin on loan from the Rachel Barton Pine Foundation, is known for his virtuosic presence and lyrical sensitivity. He has appeared with major orchestras across North America and Europe, earning praise from critics for performances that are “captivating, floating delicately above the orchestra,” according to Chicago Classical Review.

Mitchell, named Music Director of the Pasadena Symphony in March 2024, is no stranger to major stages. A former music director of the Colorado Symphony and a frequent guest with top-tier American and international ensembles, he has shared the podium with soloists such as Yo-Yo Ma, Itzhak Perlman, and Renée Fleming.

Saturday’s program, centered on nature-inspired works, draws a thematic throughline from Chadwick’s turn-of-the-century American romanticism, through Bruch’s dramatic German lyricism, to Beethoven’s ode to the countryside.

Beethoven’s Sixth, subtitled “Pastoral,” is a departure from the composer’s more stormy and structured works. Composed in 1808, it offers a deeply personal reflection of his love for nature, with movements titled “Scene by the Brook” and “Thunderstorm” giving way to the final movement’s sense of peaceful renewal.

Mitchell was appointed Music Director in March last year, signaling a new chapter for Pasadena Symphony.

To read the complete preview, please click here.

Pasadena Symphony Unveils Its 2025-26 Season: Bold Classics and New Voices

Brett Mitchell will lead his second season as Music Director of the Pasadena Symphony at the Ambassador Auditorium from November 2025 through May 2026. (Photo by Tim Sullens)

PASADENA — The Pasadena Symphony has announced its 2025-26 season, Brett Mitchell’s second as Music Director. Pasadena Now has published an extensive article about this announcement:

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PASADENA SYMPHONY UNVEILS ITS 2025-26 SEASON: BOLD CLASSICS AND NEW VOICES
Brett Mitchell's sophomore season as Music Director promises a delicate balance of orchestral staples and contemporary voices

In Southern California’s classical music scene, the Pasadena Symphony has long occupied a position of understated elegance—neither flashy nor provincial, but rather a thoughtful custodian of orchestral tradition. Now, with Brett Mitchell entering his second season as Music Director, the orchestra appears poised for a subtle yet significant transformation. The recently announced 2025-26 season suggests a conductor and ensemble seeking to establish a dialogue between the canonical and the contemporary, between European tradition and American innovation.

The season opens on November 8th with the appropriately titled “Symphonie Fantastique!” program, featuring Berlioz’s hallucinatory masterpiece alongside Ravel’s effervescent Piano Concerto in G Major, performed by Orion Weiss, a pianist whose interpretive choices often bring fresh perspective to familiar works.

The inclusion of Jim Self’s “Tour de Force” signals Mitchell’s interest in expanding the orchestral repertoire beyond the expected, though one wonders if this particular piece will offer substantive musical rewards or merely serve as an obligatory nod to living composers.

The January program pairs Mendelssohn’s evocative “Scottish” Symphony and “Hebrides Overture” with Edgar Meyer’s Violin Concerto, to be performed by Tessa Lark. Meyer, whose compositional voice bridges classical formalism with American vernacular traditions, represents a shrewd programming choice—familiar enough to avoid alienating subscription-base conservatives while still offering something beyond the standard repertoire.

February 21st brings a program featuring Tchaikovsky’s profound “Pathétique” Symphony, Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 23 performed by Michelle Cann, and Jeffrey Nytch’s “Beacon”—another example of Mitchell’s commitment to showcasing contemporary voices alongside canonical masterworks.

Perhaps most intriguing is the March 21st concert featuring Juan Pablo Contreras as both composer and special guest for his Symphony No. 1, a co-commission by the orchestra.

Contreras, whose work often explores his Mexican heritage through classical forms, will share the program with Bernstein’s “Three Variations from Fancy Free” and Dvořák’s perennial “New World” Symphony—a pairing that seems designed to invite reflection on musical representations of American identity across different eras and cultural perspectives.

April 25th presents Beethoven’s revolutionary “Eroica” Symphony alongside Quinn Mason’s thematically related “Heroic Overture (Overtura Eroica)” and Jennifer Higdon’s Cello Concerto, performed by Julian Schwarz in its West Coast première—further evidence of Mitchell’s interest in creating meaningful dialogues between established masterpieces and contemporary compositions.

The season concludes with “America @ 250” on May 30th, a program that reads initially like a Fourth of July concert displaced to Memorial Day weekend. Yet the inclusion of Jonathan Leshnoff’s “Rhapsody on ‘America'” (receiving its West Coast première and co-commissioned by the orchestra) alongside selections from John Williams’ “American Journey,” Copland’s “Appalachian Spring Suite” and “Lincoln Portrait” suggests a more thoughtful engagement with national musical identity than mere patriotic spectacle. Pianist Joyce Yang joins the orchestra for this exploration of American musical vernacular.

Throughout the season, Mitchell has assembled an impressive roster of soloists and programming that consistently pairs orchestral warhorses with works by living composers.

What emerges is a portrait of an orchestra and conductor navigating the perennial challenge facing American symphonic institutions: how to honor the European classical tradition while establishing a distinct and contemporary American orchestral identity. Mitchell’s approach appears to be one of gentle evolution rather than radical reinvention—introducing new works alongside familiar masterpieces, inviting audiences to discover connections between centuries and continents.

Whether Mitchell’s vision will ultimately lead to a distinctive institutional identity remains to be seen, but his sophomore season suggests a promising direction: neither hidebound by tradition nor recklessly innovative, but attentive to both the past and future of orchestral music in America.

Music Director Brett Mitchell onstage at the Pasadena Symphony’s home of the Ambassador Auditorium, the “Carnegie Hall of the West.” (Photo by Tim Sullens)

Feature: ‘Brett Mitchell Pays Tribute to Leonard Nimoy and Star Trek with Emotional Piano Performance’

‘Brett Mitchell Pays Tribute to Leonard Nimoy and Star Trek with Emotional Piano Performance’

Italian Star Trek news magazine ExtraTrek has published an extensive feature about Brett Mitchell’s film music covers on his YouTube channel. The following excerpts are translated from the original Italian:

* * * * *

BRETT MITCHELL PAYS TRIBUTE TO LEONARD NIMOY AND STAR TREK WITH EMOTIONAL PIANO PERFORMANCE
Brett Mitchell's YouTube channel features piano-based reinterpretations of famous film scores, celebrating iconic characters and creating an immersive musical experience

Brett Mitchell, a renowned conductor and pianist, has developed a special relationship with film and television music over the years, combining his interpretative sensitivity with his passion for soundtracks. On his YouTube channel, active since 2006, Mitchell offers original arrangements ranging from orchestral classics to the most iconic soundtracks in pop culture.

One of his most touching tributes is the video Horner: Spock (Brett Mitchell, piano), in which he performs on the piano an arrangement of James Horner ’s Spock theme, taken from the soundtrack of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. This song, full of emotion and depth, is a perfect tribute to the figure of Leonard Nimoy and his iconic character, remembered for his wisdom, his stoicism and his famous motto: Live long and prosper. A few days ago Mitchell offered this piece on the day in which the actor, interpreter of the most famous Vulcan of the franchise, would have turned 94.

A tribute full of meaning

Mitchell's performance is notable for the delicacy with which he manages to render the emotional nuances of Horner's piece. The arrangement, entirely for piano, captures the melancholy and grandeur of Spock, evoking the most touching scenes of the film. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan is a fundamental chapter of the saga, made immortal by the dramatic scene of Spock 's death, accompanied by Horner's music.

This tribute goes beyond a simple musical performance: it is a gesture of love towards a character who has marked generations of fans and who continues to be one of the most beloved figures of the Star Trek franchise.

Music and Cinema: The Perfect Combination on Brett Mitchell's Channel

Mitchell's work doesn't stop with Spock . His channel is a veritable archive of great soundtracks reinterpreted with sensitivity and mastery. Staying on the subject of Star Trek, we can't help but mention another example of his talent: the piano arrangement of A Good Start, a piece composed by Jerry Goldsmith for Star Trek: The Motion Picture. This piece, which accompanies the iconic final sequence of the film, is a hymn to the wonder of space exploration and the sense of adventure that has always characterized the saga.

The artist doesn't just play music: in his videos he often synchronizes the music with the original scenes, offering an immersive experience that fuses the power of the soundtrack with the visual narrative.

In addition to the two videos mentioned, Mitchell's channel features other highly valuable performances, such as:

• Angelo Badalamenti: Twin Peaks Theme (Piano Cover) (Brett Mitchell, piano), a touching reinterpretation of the famous theme from the Twin Peaks series, characterized by dreamlike and melancholic atmospheres.

• John Williams: AI Artificial Intelligence (Brett Mitchell, piano), an intense and emotionally charged performance of Williams’s score for Steven Spielberg’s film, which perfectly captures the film’s sense of wonder and melancholy.

A journey through music and memory

Visit his YouTube channel and subscribe to not miss all his new reinterpretations and to enjoy many other songs already published. For those who love cinema, soundtracks and classical music, his YouTube channel is a must-see, where every note tells a timeless story.

Preview: ‘In Pasadena today, Mozart’s Turkish delight takes center stage’

Music Director Brett Mitchell (center) will lead the Pasadena Symphony this weekend in music by Adolphus Hailstork (left), and will collaborate with violinist Stefan Jackiw (right) on Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 5.

PASADENA — Pasadena Now has published a preview of Brett Mitchell’s subscription concerts with the Pasadena Symphony this weekend:

At first glance, the Pasadena Symphony’s program today might appear conventionally classical: Mozart, Prokofiev, Stravinsky. But beneath this seemingly traditional façade lies a thoughtfully curated journey through musical history—from contemporary reflections on Baroque sensibilities to neoclassical reimaginings—all anchored by Mozart’s inventive Violin Concerto No. 5, the so-called “Turkish.”

Under the baton of Brett Mitchell, who assumed leadership of the Pasadena Symphony in April 2024 (only the sixth music director in the orchestra’s 97-year history), today’s performances at Ambassador Auditorium—at 2:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.—promise to showcase both the ensemble’s evolving artistic vision and violinist Stefan Jackiw’s remarkable interpretive gifts.

The centerpiece, Mozart’s A-major concerto, remains one of the composer’s most intriguing instrumental works. Composed in 1775 when Mozart was just 19, it demonstrates his growing compositional sophistication. The concerto’s nickname derives from its finale, where Mozart dramatically shifts from A major to A minor, introducing what his European contemporaries perceived as exotically “Turkish” elements: unison chromatic crescendos, repetitive phrases, and col legno playing (striking strings with the wood rather than hair of the bow)—techniques that must have seemed thrillingly foreign to 18th-century Salzburg audiences. As music scholar Tchaikovsky noted, this piece represents “the highest, culminating point to which beauty has reached in the sphere of music.”

Jackiw, who began playing violin at age four and debuted professionally with the Boston Pops at 12, brings particular sensitivity to this repertoire. Now 39, the Korean-German American violinist has built a reputation for combining technical brilliance with profound emotional intelligence. “In just a few bars of Mozart, you encounter an entire universe of feeling,” Jackiw once observed about the concerto’s Adagio movement, noting the “huge range of emotions contained in just a few bars” particularly in the slow movement.

Mitchell’s programming reveals curatorial acumen. The concert opens with Adolphus Hailstork’s Baroque Suite, a contemporary work filtering modern compositional techniques through historical forms, before proceeding to Mozart’s concerto with Jackiw as soloist. The program continues with Prokofiev’s impeccably crafted Classical Symphony before concluding with Stravinsky’s Suite from Pulcinella.

As Mitchell’s inaugural season unfolds, today’s concerts offer a compelling glimpse of his artistic vision—one that respects tradition while embracing innovation. Known for his “warm, down-to-earth demeanor” and ability to connect with audiences through insightful musical interpretations

To read the complete preview, please click here.

Brett Mitchell to debut with Nashville Symphony on 2025-26 classical series

NASHVILLE — The Nashville Symphony has announced that Brett Mitchell will make his debut on their 2025-26 classical subscription series, leading the following program at Schermerhorn Symphony Center on May 15 and 16, 2026:

BARBER - Medea’s Meditation and Dance of Vengeance
EDGAR MEYER - Bass Concerto No. 2 (for Double Bass and Percussion)
Edgar Meyer, double bass | Sam Bacco, percussion
BEETHOVEN - Symphony No. 3, ‘Eroica’

To learn more, please click here.

Brett Mitchell to lead opening weekend of The Cleveland Orchestra’s 2025 Blossom Music Festival

Brett Mitchell will lead The Cleveland Orchestra’s opening weekend of the 2025 Blossom Music Festival. (Photograph by Roger Mastroianni)

CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Orchestra has announced that, for the third time in the past five seasons, Brett Mitchell will lead the opening weekend of performances at the 2025 Blossom Music Festival.

On Saturday, July 5 and Sunday, July 6, Mr. Mitchell will lead John Williams’s Oscar- and Grammy-nominated score for Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone while the original film plays live on the big screen.

For tickets and more information, please click here.

Brett Mitchell to lead Houston Symphony’s 2025 holiday festival

Brett Mitchell will lead half a dozen public performances as part of the Houston Symphony’s 2025 holiday festival. (Photo by Roger Mastroianni)

HOUSTON — The Houston Symphony has announced that Brett Mitchell will lead its holiday festival during the 2025-26 concert season.

Mr. Mitchell will conduct four performances of Very Merry POPS from Thursday, December 11 through Sunday, December 14, featuring vocalist Ali Stroker and the Houston Symphony Chorus.

He will also lead two performances of Oh, What Fun! A Holiday Concert for Kids on Saturday, December 13.

Mr. Mitchell will also lead several private performances with the orchestra during the holiday season.

For complete details, please visit the orchestra’s 2025-26 season announcement.

Sunriver Music Festival announces 2025 season, Brett Mitchell’s fourth as Artistic Director & Conductor

SUNRIVER, Ore. — The Sunriver Music Festival has announced details of its 2025 summer season, Brett Mitchell’s fourth as Artistic Director & Conductor and the organization’s 48th:

The Summer Festival opens August 2 at the iconic Tower Theatre in downtown Bend and closes August 13 at Sunriver Resort’s historic Great Hall. Four classical concerts, one pops concert, a brilliant solo piano recital and a Family Concert will be presented. Featured artists include pianist Stewart Goodyear, cellist Mark Kosower, and Festival concertmaster Yi Zhao.

The classical season will consist of the following four programs:

THE CLASSICAL TRADITION
WILLIAM BOLCOM - Commedia for (Almost) 18th-Century Orchestra
TCHAIKOVSKY - Variations on a Rococo Theme
Mark Kosower, cello
MOZART - Overture to The Marriage of Figaro
STRAVINSKY - Danses Concertantes

A FRENCH SOIRÉE
DUKAS - Fanfare from La Péri
RAVEL - Piano Concerto in G Major
Stewart Goodyear, piano
FAURÉ - Suite from Pelléas et Mélisande
BIZET - Selections from Carmen

VIENNA WAITS FOR YOU
HAYDN - Symphony No. 96, ‘Miracle’
MOZART - Piano Concerto TBD
2025 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition medalist
BEETHOVEN - Symphony No. 5

THE LEIPZIG CONNECTION
SCHUMANN - Manfred Overture
MENDELSSOHN - Violin Concerto
Yi Zhao, violin
BACH (arr. Styles) - Toccata and Fugue in D minor
BACH - Orchestral Suite No. 3 in D Major

For complete repertoire, see our Upcoming Events page, and visit sunrivermusic.org to learn more.

News: Pasadena Symphony Helps Community Grieve and Give After Fires

Pasadena Symphony music director Brett Mitchell stands in front of the orchestra’s home, the Ambassador Auditorium, which was undamaged during the recent wildfires in Southern California. (Photo by Tim Sullens)

PASADENA — Violinist.com has published a story about the Pasadena Symphony’s recent subscription concerts—led by music director Brett Mitchell—in the wake of the destructive wildfires that ravaged the community. Half a dozen Pasadena Symphony musicians and two board members lost their homes in the blaze.

The concert was about to begin last Saturday, and I looked across the stage at my colleague Irina Voloshina, sitting right by the audience in the first violins. I could see she was having a hard time holding back the tears.

Pasadena Symphony conductor Brett Mitchell was finishing his opening words, acknowledging that it had been a very difficult few weeks in the community of Pasadena and Altadena, California, where the Eaton Canyon fire had reduced a huge portion of the area to rubble and ash over the course of one night.

Irina's home had burned to the ground during the fire…

Back on stage - Brett was telling the audience that we were about to play one of the most heart-wrenching pieces of music ever written, Barber's "Adagio for Strings." The piece had been added to the program at the last minute, in acknowledgment of the community's devastating losses.

Irina was looking away from the audience, trying to keep it together to play this gut-wrenching music. I confess that I questioned this choice, earlier in the week. How on Earth could we play this music? How could anyone listen to it? To me it felt like too much - too sad for people who have lost too much.

But during the week, Brett did explain the choice: "I never program this piece for a regular concert. It is only when something like this happens," he told us. He gently encouraged us to play the Barber in certain ways - at the beginning, just sneak in, let the sound come from absolutely nothing. Toward the end of the piece is an immense apotheosis, he told us to use as many bows as we wanted, and he would hold that note for as long as he possibly dared. And after that note - a silence, followed by the quietest pianissimo we could manage. Stillness and grief. "I've studied this music for years, put notes in the score," he said during rehearsal. "In this place, I wrote...," he hesitated a little, "'Ashen.' Just devastated."

"Ashen" - ? Part of me was thinking, "Why would you say this to us? How could you even GO THERE?" Three musicians in the orchestra had lost their homes to the fire. Other musicians had been evacuated and displaced. Any of us living in the area were grieving - for our beautiful Altadena and the people who made it that way, now bearing unthinkable hardship.

Then again...wasn't this exactly what this music was saying? How can we NOT go there? Ashen. I had to fight my own tears as we continued to rehearse that day.

As Brett continued his spoken introduction at the concert, Irina was looking away from the audience, she was in fact looking straight in my direction. I felt desperate to send her a sign - I put hand over my heart. I think we were all trying to send strength to her, and to Carrie Kennedy, sitting next to her, and to Joel Pargman, married violinists who also had lost their homes to the fire.

And so we played Barber's Adagio for Strings - we traveled together through that music's numb emptiness and through its wailing grief, back to something still and quiet, a glimmer of hope. The audience seemed to travel with us.

The rest of the program was actually quite upbeat - Jessie Montgomery's "Starburst," Florence Price's jubilant Piano Concerto in One Movement, and Mozart's "Jupiter" Symphony. I had wondered about that, too. Was this music too happy for the occasion? Brett had originally programed it to "give everyone a boost" during the dark days of January. "I had no idea, what a boost we would all need," he said at the concert.

It was actually just perfect. Jessie's piece was a burst of energy after the Barber. Florence Price's concerto was so joyful, with pianist Inon Barnatan as our affable and sure-handed soloist. More than a few of us were singing its catchy "juba" dance tune as we exited the stage for intermission. And closing with the Mozart - it's a symphony that feels like a rescue mission for the soul, an infusion of beauty, where spirit triumphs over the dark shadows, every time. I had the sense that we were simply enjoying its humor, cleverness and bright energy. Mozart was familiar territory, in the face of a world that felt so changed.

To read the complete story, please click here.

Review: ‘Pasadena Symphony Warms to New Music Director’

Brett Mitchell stands in front of the Pasadena Symphony’s home, the Ambassador Auditorium. (Photo by Tim Sullens)

PASADENA — San Francisco Classical Voice has published a review of Brett Mitchell’s recent subscription program with the Pasadena Symphony:

A new era began at the Pasadena Symphony this season with the arrival of Brett Mitchell as music director… Mitchell is only the sixth music director in the band’s 97-year history, an impressive record of longevity and continuity in a business that typically sees much more turnover at the top…

Judging by the orchestra’s solid performance on Saturday, Jan. 25, at Ambassador Auditorium — the third subscription concert of Mitchell’s inaugural season — the organization is in competent professional and musical hands. An engaging communicator who has already forged a congenial rapport with both the musicians and the audience, Mitchell, who formerly led the Colorado Symphony, created an informal and welcoming atmosphere for this eclectic program of works by Jessie Montgomery, Florence Price, and Mozart. It will take time, of course, to judge Mitchell’s musical vision for the orchestra, which has in the last few years been staging a strong recovery from financial strain and the COVID shutdown.

In brief remarks, he acknowledged the devastating impact of the terrible fires that recently ravaged nearby Altadena and parts of Pasadena and paid tribute to first responders and fire department personnel who had been invited to attend. A heartfelt, if glacially slow, performance of Samuel Barber’s funereal Adagio for Strings followed, an appropriate addition to the scheduled program. “America’s semi-official music for mourning,” as NPR writer Anastasia Tsioulcas has called it, this arrangement for string orchestra of the second movement of the composer’s 1936 String Quartet, Op. 11, has been heard after many tragic occasions.

Another work for string orchestra, Montgomery’s exuberant and cheerful Starburst, cleared the air. Montgomery has said that this energetic curtain-raiser lasting just a little over three minutes is meant to “create a multidimensional soundscape” inspired by the dazzling birth of new stars, represented by jabbing unison string lines and a pulsing rhythmic undercurrent. The Pasadena Symphony strings rose to the occasion…

To read the complete review, please click here.

Audio: Brett Mitchell hosts ‘Classical Californians’

Brett Mitchell hosts this week’s episode of Classical Californians on KUSC in Los Angeles and KDFC in San Francisco.

LOS ANGELES — Brett Mitchell is the host of this week’s episode of Classical Californians, a co-production of KUSC in Los Angeles and KDFC in San Francisco. From the official show notes:

This week’s Classical Californian is Brett Mitchell, the new Music Director of the Pasadena Symphony. In an episode recorded before the recent fires, he shares some of the pieces that inspired his love for music as he was growing up. He’s chosen music by Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Tchaikovsky, Wagner, and John Williams. (Note that for their January 25th concerts at the Ambassador Auditorium, the Pasadena Symphony will be offering free tickets to first responders, and those who have been displaced, evacuated or experienced loss during the fires. There’s more information here.)

Listen the complete episode on KUSC or KDFC, or stream it below.