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The Cape Symphony Orchestra and the Chatham Chorale are delighted to join forces for Into the Light: The Best of Handel, Mozart, and Schubert at Monomoy High School on April 26, 2026 at 3:00 PM. Joseph Marchio, Director of the Chatham Chorale and Assistant Conductor of the Cape Symphony Orchestra, will lead the collaborative performance. Classically trained soprano Kristin Howard (pictured) will be the soloist, and shared her thoughts about this regal, majestic, and exciting program.

In my last message, I shared how orchestras across the country are evolving—finding new ways to connect with their communities while staying rooted in the art form. Here on Cape Cod, that evolution takes on a very specific shape.

Because this is not a typical place.

The Cape Symphony Orchestra presents Nature's Song: Vivaldi's The Four Seasons at the Barnstable Performing Arts Center on April 11, 2026 at 4:00 PM and April 12, 2026 at 3:00 PM.
Ticketholders are invited to a discussion of the concert program led by Assistant Conductor Joseph Marchio one hour before each performance.

In my last message, I shared a simple idea: that Cape Symphony is still an orchestra, and we are becoming something more.

That’s not unique to us. It’s part of a broader shift happening across the country. For most of the 20th century, the role of an orchestra was very clear: You went to the symphony to hear great music performed live. That experience was rare, and it was central to cultural life in many communities.

Today, the experience of music looks very different.

If you’re ever lucky enough to get in conversation with Cape Symphony Concertmaster and Managing Artistic Principal Jae Cosmos Lee, you might miss your next appointment, but you won’t care. When you meet a friendly, fun person who knows an awful lot about a great many things, and is always jazzed to learn more, time just doesn’t seem to matter.

The Cape Symphony Orchestra will perform “Nature’s Song: Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons” April 11 and 12, 2026 at the Barnstable Performing Arts Center. While the Vivaldi grabs headlines, the shorter works to be performed in the concert’s first half are also not to be missed. First among them: Jean Sibelius’s The Swan of Tuonela.