The Portland Symphony Orchestra

08/28/2026

This season, we're thrilled to welcome 48 singers from across Maine to the PSO Children's Chorus! These young voices will appear with the orchestra twice in the upcoming season—during our opening concert, Resurgam, alongside ChoralArt, Greely Honor Choirs, and Scarborough High School Chamber Singers, and during Magic of Christmas alongside the Magic of Christmas Choir.

Now in its fifth season, the PSO Children's Chorus provides a no-cost opportunity for participants showcase their choral and vocal skills as they perform in professional musical settings.

08/26/2026

We're excited to welcome back Morihiko Nakahara, a PSO fan-favorite guest conductor, for the upcoming season! Known for his charismatic presence on and off the podium, he has a knack for bringing recognizable favorites to the concert hall.

This October, he returns to lead the orchestra in a symphonic celebration of the iconic music of Studio Ghibli films, from Spirited Away to My Neighbor Totoro and more!

THE MUSIC OF STUDIO GHIBLI
🗓️ Saturday, October 10 & Sunday, October 11
📍 Merrill Auditorium, Portland, Maine
🎟️ Tickets and more info: https://portsym.org/ghibli

08/24/2026

What does a composer from Portland, Maine have in common with Aaron Copland, Leonard Bernstein, and Igor Stravinsky? Being inducted into the American Classical Music Hall of Fame in its inaugural year!

The composer is John Knowles Paine, born in Portland, who later became Harvard's first professor of music. He studied right here under Hermann Kotzschmar before becoming one of the founding voices of American classical composition.

Hear his Overture to "As You Like It," as part of the opening concert of our 102nd season—a celebration of home, its music, and how the spirit of Maine endures.

RESURGAM: American Folktales & Hymns
📅 Sunday, Sept 27 @ 2:30 PM | Tuesday, Sept 29 @ 7:00 PM
📍 Merrill Auditorium
🎟️ Purchase tickets at https://portsym.org/resurgam

08/21/2026

Thank you to the League of American Orchestras for highlighting PSO KinderKonzerts as part of this report! KinderKonzerts bring narrated trio and quintet performances to schools and communities across Maine and New Hampshire, working with music educators to serve their curricular needs.

Interested in hosting a KinderKonzert in the upcoming school year? Learn more: https://portsym.org/kinderkonzerts

If you’ve ever attended a free community performance, heard an orchestra concert at a library or school, or played in a youth orchestra, you’ve experienced one of the many ways orchestras serve and invest in their local communities.

In a new report, explore how orchestras are creating opportunities for learning, participation, and more through a remarkable variety of programs and partnerships.

Download "Orchestras Building Community Through Education and Engagement" at the link in the first comment.

08/17/2026

Join your PSO brass musicians for the perfect pairing of lively music and craft beers! This fall, we'll be popping up at three different breweries for a series of fun performances. All the concerts are free, so grab a friend, grab a drink, and enjoy this shoulder season in a vibrant brass way.🍻

October 1: Oxbow Beer Garden, Oxford
October 2: Goodfire Tasting Room & Kitchen, Freeport
October 3: Foundation Brewing, Portland

RSVPs recommended, but not required: https://portsym.org/brass-brews

08/10/2026

What a night!

Our infinite thanks to Guster and State Theatre, Portland, Maine, for inviting us to help kick off On the Ocean this year. It was incredible to see Merrill Auditorium filled with so many new faces and meet folks who traveled from near and far to be a part of such a special event. It's an experience we won't soon forget. ❤

08/05/2026

Congratulations to our friends at ChoralArt! We're thrilled to partner with them to premiere the orchestral version of FIRE! as part of our opening concert of the 2026-27 Season. You won't want to miss this powerful work!

RESURGAM: AMERICAN FOLKTALES & HYMNS
🗓️ Sunday, September 27 & Tuesday, September 29
📍 Merrill Auditorium, Portland, Maine
Tickets and more info: https://portsym.org/resurgam

Email from ChoralArt The national performing arts prize recognizes ChoralArt's world premiere of Travis Ramsey's FIRE!   ChoralArt Named National Finalist for  The American Prize for Choral Performa

08/03/2026

Darth Vader readies the second Death Star to unleash the final blow to the Rebel Alliance. Luke Skywalker joins R2-D2, C-3PO, and Princess Leia to free Han Solo from Jabba the Hutt and launch a desperate attack upon the entire Imperial Fleet.

Experience the final episode of the original Star Wars trilogy, as never before, as Return of the Jedi is projected on the big screen at Merrill Auditorium, with John Williams’ iconic score performed live by your Portland Symphony Orchestra.

STAR WARS: RETURN OF THE JEDI IN CONCERT
🗓️ Saturday, May 1 & Sunday, May 2
📍 Merrill Auditorium, Portland, Maine
Tickets and more info: https://portsym.org/return

08/01/2026

Take a musical journey through lyricism, renewal, and sweeping Romantic expression.

Cellist Joshua Roman—last seen with the PSO in 2018—brings his extraordinary musicianship and vulnerability to Saint-Saëns’s Cello Concerto, intensely lyrical, full of elegance, and moments of sheer beauty and emotional warmth.

Culminating the program is Rachmaninoff’s Symphony No. 2, a landmark in late Romantic music. Moving from a broad, expansive, and lyrical first movement through to its raucous, energetic finale, it’s music you want to bathe in.

RACHMANINOFF'S 2ND SYMPHONY
🗓️ Sunday, April 25
📍 Merrill Auditorium, Portland, Maine
Tickets and more info: https://portsym.org/rach-2

07/29/2026

The Portland Youth Symphony Orchestra, led by Robert Lehmann, joins the musicians of the PSO for a whimsical side-by-side concert, inviting audiences of all ages to experience adventure, wonder, and happily-ever-after melodies together.

Discovery Concerts bring the whole family together to enjoy the music of the PSO for just $10 a ticket. Designed for ages 4-12, the concert lasts approximately one hour with no intermission. Doors open early for games—including a hands-on Instrument Petting Zoo—and lots more musical fun!

ENCHANTED ORCHESTRA
🗓️ Sunday, April 11
📍 Merrill Auditorium, Portland, Maine
Tickets and more info: https://portsym.org/enchanted-pyso