North Carolina Symphony

Summer nights in North Carolina, done right. Live music under the open sky, great food, friends, and that unmistakable feeling that summer is here. Twilight concerts, with candles transforming the lawn into a sea of stars, is one of the best way to spend a summer evening. This is your North Carolina Symphony, outside, exactly where you want to be. Embrace the extraordinary. Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No.1  SAT, MAY 23 | 8PM  Koka Booth Amphitheatre, Cary  Sophie Mok, conductor  Albert Cano Smit, piano  Epic Film Scores  SAT, MAY 30 | 8PM  Koka Booth Amphitheatre, Cary  Lawrence Loh, conductor  Swan Lake Selections  FRI, JUN 5 | 8PM  Koka Booth Amphitheatre, Cary  Chad Goodman, conductor  Elli Choi, violin  A Space Spectacular:  Star Wars & More  SAT, JUN 6 | 8PM  Koka Booth Amphitheatre, Cary  David Glover, conductor  Patriotic Pops  FRI, JUN 12 | 8PM  Koka Booth Amphitheatre, Cary  Sophie Mok, conductor  Under the Sea  SAT, JUN 13 | 8PM  Koka Booth Amphitheatre, Cary  Shira Samuels-Shragg, conductor  Mozart by Moonlight  SAT, JUN 20 | 8PM  Koka Booth Amphitheatre, Cary  Louis Lohraseb, conductor  Joshua Brown, violin  Classics Under the Stars  FRI, JUN 26 | 8PM  Koka Booth Amphitheatre, Cary  Kellen Gray, conductor  The Music of Billy Joel  with Tony DeSare  SAT, JUN 27 | 8PM  Koka Booth Amphitheatre, Cary  Sophie Mok, conductor  Tony DeSare, vocalist, piano   Independence Day  SAT, JUL 4 | 8PM  Koka Booth Amphitheatre, Cary  Sophie Mok, conductor  Sidecar Social Club  FRI, JUL 10 | 8PM  Koka Booth Amphitheatre, Cary

Springtime in Raleigh feels different with music. May doesn’t ease in. It opens big and stays there. A full orchestra performing Jurassic Park live as the film unfolds on screen, larger, sharper, more intense than you remember. Then Appalachian Spring, clear, open, unmistakably American, music that gives you space and resets everything. Now it shifts. Motown & Beyond. The songs you know and love lifted with a level of energy and scale you don’t get anywhere else. Three completely different experiences. One gold standard. This May, the best of spring meets the best of Raleigh meets the best of music. Your North Carolina Symphony. Embrace the extraordinary. Jurassic Park in Concert  FRI, MAY 1 | 8PM  SAT, MAY 2 | 8PM  SUN, MAY 3 | 3PM   Meymandi Concert Hall, Raleigh    Conner Gray Covington, conductor  Friday Favorites: Appalachian Spring   FRI, MAY 8 | NOON  Meymandi Concert Hall, Raleigh    Carlos Miguel Prieto, conductor  Appalachian Spring  FRI, MAY 8 | 8PM  SAT, MAY 9 | 8PM  Meymandi Concert Hall, Raleigh    Carlos Miguel Prieto, conductor  ICON: Motown & Beyond  SAT, MAY 16 | 8PM   Meymandi Concert Hall, Raleigh    Sophie Mok, conductor  Capathia Jenkins, vocalist  Ryan Shaw, vocalist

Still looking for Saturday night plans? Less than 100 seats remain for tonight's one night only performance of ICON: Motown & Beyond with guest vocalists Capathia Jenkins and Ryan Shaw. Come dance and sing along to all of your favorites — like Lady Marmalade and many more. Visit ncsymphony.org for tickets. We can't wait to see you at 8PM at Meymandi Concert Hall!

If music like this is why you love the symphony, a Pops subscription is the best way to experience it all with your North Carolina Symphony. The 26/27 POPS Series features unforgettable nights celebrating the music you know and love, including a symphonic celebration of Pink Floyd, Cirque Holiday Pops with aerial acrobats soaring above the orchestra, Motown classics that will have the whole hall dancing, a totally 80s throwback packed with iconic hits, a sweeping tribute to Rodgers and Hammerstein, and so much more! Secure your seats, enjoy subscriber savings, and make nights like this part of your year. Embrace the extraordinary. To purchase your subscription use the link in our bio or go to ncsymphony.org

You’ll recognize it the second it starts. Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 begins big, fast, and physical, then takes you on a ride with so many unexpected twists and turns you get lost in its magic. Add friends and family, warm summer air, scrumptious food and drink, and hundreds of candles across the lawn so the entire place is glowing, and you’ve got, hands down, the best place to be Memorial Day Weekend. UNC Health Summerfest at Koka Booth Amphitheatre with your North Carolina Symphony. Embrace the extraordinary. Purchase your tickets today! Memorial Day Weekend  Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No.1  SAT, MAY 23 | 8PM  Koka Booth Amphitheatre, Cary  Sophie Mok, conductor  Albert Cano Smit, piano    Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1  Dvořák: Symphony No. 8  Summerfest Presenting Sponsor: @unchealth Series Sponsor: First Citizens Bank Picnic of the Week Sponsor: @wegmans   Hosted By: @caryncgov

This Saturday, May 16, guest vocalists Ryan Shaw and Capathia Jenkins join your North Carolina Symphony for ICON: Motown and Beyond! Seats are selling fast for this one-night-only performance—get yours today at ncsymphony.org.

Every great performance starts with someone who believed in you first. Happy Mother’s Day from your North Carolina Symphony.

Last night, Music Director Carlos Miguel Prieto and your North Carolina Symphony delivered a performance filled with beauty, energy, and intensity. The music of Ortiz, Copland, and Revueltas was both powerful and deeply moving. Thanks to our amazing audience for experiencing this with us. One last chance to embrace the extraordinary at tonight's finale of the 25/26 classical season. Appalachian Spring and more. Don't miss is. And don’t wait to explore our 2026–27 season — there is so much more to come. Appalachian Spring SAT, MAY 9 | 8PM Meymandi Concert Hall, Raleigh Carlos Miguel Prieto, conductor Gabriela Ortiz: Kauyumari Copland: Appalachian Spring Revueltas: La noche de los Mayas /event/2D0062DAA6195ED3

Field Trip Friday! The 7th grade Band went and made music with the awesome band students at Moore Square Middle! @moore_square_magnet They were great hosts and we enjoyed food, games, and then wrapped our trip up with a matinee visit to the NC Symphony! @ncsymphony Appalachian Spring was the chaperone favorite but the students argued that the conch shell playing in La noche de los Mayas was peak.

The North Carolina Symphony 26/27 Season brings together music that is both beloved and newly discovered, including a celebration of Beethoven, marking 200 years since his death. A Classical subscription is the best way to experience this extraordinary year of music. Choose the series that fits you, from three concerts to the full season. Enjoy priority access, flexible exchanges, and meaningful savings. Make this year of music uniquely yours! Embrace the extraordinary. Subscribe TODAY at ncsymphony.org

Our “simple gift” to you: A peek from this afternoon's rehearsal of Copland's Appalachian Spring. Hear this masterpiece LIVE this weekend—tomorrow at noon & 8PM and Saturday at 8PM. Visit ncsymphony.org for tickets. Special thanks to Friday Favorites Series Sponsor @thecardinalnorthhills

This is what happens when songs that were already great get the space, scale, and fire that make them even greater. Your North Carolina Symphony doesn’t imitate the originals. It expands them, pushing them further with weight, detail, and presence you’ve never heard live. You and the people around you start to move without thinking about it. Then you’re up. Singing. Maybe even dancing. This is a real celebration of the voices and hits that changed music forever! Featuring iconic songs by Michael Jackson, Prince, Whitney Houston, Gladys Knight, Elvis Presley, Diana Ross, Stevie Wonder, and more! ICON: Motown & Beyond SAT, MAY 16 | 8PM Meymandi Concert Hall, Raleigh Sophie Mok, conductor Capathia Jenkins, vocalist Ryan Shaw, vocalist Concert Sponsor: @theforestatduke